cold sores - care for an opinion?
I've read a lot of nonsense online about how to treat a cold sore, and I figured I'd record my position on the issue.
My cold sores, and those of many people, are introduced by (1) an odd redness that stands out from the rest of the lip, (2) the appearance of tiny little bumps which increase in size and number, (3) the concurrent swelling of those regions, and (4) (prior to any visible bumps) the feeling that the redness is colder than the rest of the lip.
I 've had my share of cold sores: the first one lasted two weeks, the second lasted one week because I handled it better, and all subsequent ones have lasted no more than 36 hours before the sore receded but I'll say 2-3 days to be safe.
At the first sign of a sore, I take an antiviral drug. I do not wish to advertise, but there are only three major drugs out there: acyclovir, valacyclovir (valtrex), and then there's Famvir. I can only talk of valacyclovir - it works by blocking the action of enzyme DNA Polymerase, without which the virus can't replicate. Valacyclovir has greater bioavailability, which means more of the drug can be used by your body (55% vs 15%).
After taking my medication, the little bumps keep increasing in size and number, and it has been my perception that the drug initially speeds up this process.You keep looking in the mirror, only to see the blisters form what appear to be continental masses divided by many canals - they haven't merged yet. The development of the sore after taking the drug peaks 12-16 hours later, and meanwhile you wonder how bad your scar will be. At the 24 hour mark, you relax because it becomes clear the sore has stopped growing, and at 30 hours, the sore has begun receding. One day and a half, the skin where the breakout occurred was only slight darker than the surrounding skin, but it was not broken or breached, and it's a matter of a little more time for it to look like the surrounding skin. Not a bad feat considering it had been populated by many white blisters so close together they looked like they HAD to scab in order to heal.
All over the internet I have found tips to speed the drying and scabbing process. But this seems like *utter nonsense*. If you take your drug at first symptoms (and you learn to recognize those), the blisters will continue to progress, but will then *recede*. Now, if the skin is still strong and healthy, it will recover, without any scabbing and hence without any scarring. My worst blisters in the past 2 years have completely receded within 36 hours, without a scab and without a scar. Throughout the breakout I made sure to apply a good lip moisturizer frequently (but using good common sense to never actually touch the sore itself, or wash my hands very thoroughly before touching other parts of my body), to prevent the skin around a blister from drying and beginning to scab.
A browse through the internet will show many alarming pictures than should be rated R, and show you many horrific scenarios - all of which seem to do nothing but stress you out. The fact is this: if you take your drug at *first symptoms*, and keep the skin strong with a good moisturizer without biting at it, you should be fine.
Posted by uh OH its ME
ABREVA!!!
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How to recognize the symptoms of cold and flu, which treatments work best, and advice on staying healthy during cold and flu season
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