Living with herpes

People with genital herpes can live a normal life. This is achieved by talking to a doctor and making sure you have the right information, right treatment and right support to take control of the situation.

Speak to your doctor about the best genital herpes treatment option to suit your needs. If you are sexually active you may choose to use suppressive therapy to protect yourself and your partner. If you are not sexually active and rarely experience outbreaks you may choose to use pre-emptive suppressive therapy or episodic therapy.

Learn how to manage the virus. Make note of the diet and lifestyle factors that trigger an outbreak for you and avoid these where possible. Take care of your overall health and wellbeing by eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly and getting plenty of sleep.

Make sure you have a strong support network around you. If you are not comfortable discussing your situation with someone close to you, speak to your doctor, a counsellor or join a herpes support group. Remember, overcoming the emotional effects of genital herpes is often much more challenging than managing the physical symptoms, so take the time to learn about the condition and express your feelings and emotions along the way.