Kissing as trigger to cold sores?
Hi!
I've been with my new boyfriend for about 4 months now. We don't get to see each other quite a lot since we are living abroad from each other, but nearly every time after I've seen him, I get a herpes simplex (cold sore) outbreak. I've always had the virus, got it from my mom as a child, so that's no surprise to me.
It does, however, make me wonder why I always get it after being with him. He doesn't have the virus, neither labial nor genital and as far as we know I haven't passed it on to him. Could it be that kissing works as a trigger for me and that I can get cold sores from intense kissing sessions? I do have to add that I have a serious addiction to lipbalm and chapstick, so my lips are usually very dry without those. (I know, it's not good, but I can't help it) Kissing obviously makes my lips drier, so that's my current train of thought: That my lips are becoming extremely chapped from the kissing which 'activates' the virus and increases the chance of having a breakout.
Does this make sense at all? Or should I be looking at other suggestions?
- Herpes Doctor - Public Forums:
kissing could be a cold sore trigger
Hi Laylala,
Your theory makes perfect sense, although I wonder if it's not the lip area's dryness per se, but instead just the fact of minor irritation that's causing the outbreaks (ie. the rubbing, or repeated stubble burn from your guy!).
When I asked about herpes triggers here, someone responded that vigorous sex is often a trigger for genital herpes outbreaks, which is a common observation.
So it makes sense that a lot of smooching would irritate your skin enough to trigger a cold sore outbreak! Try making sure that your BF keeps his face extra smooth for you and see if that helps.
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