im new to the group and new to knowing i have herpes. there are a few things i need to know that may have been posted before, and dont see in any of the medical articles ive read. first, i get cold sores, my grand kids get cold sores. i know they can infect others with them.. are they going to have to worry about future relationships and kissing their other relatives now? and my story, my ex boyfriend had a bump on his penis..he thought maybe he had scratched himself. then i blistered. he went to the dr and got tested.. the dr said he didnt have herpes and the ex said that we had had oral sex before a cold sore i had was totally gone. i went to my dr and got tested and he said i have both 1 and 2. my ex started wearing boxers to bed and that was pretty much the end of our sex life.. anyhow his blisters looked like ones i seen pictures of.. my dr told me i may have had an outbreak and never known .and another question, i need more information on shedding and spreading the virus. evidently there is no way of knowing how long ive been infected and i know i will have it for ever.. ive read all the posts from others about telling potential partners and im all for that. but for right now im just gonna chill until i get a better handle on this new chapter in my life. thanks for listening.. its a good thing to be able to talk about it for a change.