I declare: NO MORE COLD SORES!
Today is Fight the Frump Friday hosted by Mrs Fussy pants.
And I also declare it NO MORE COLD SORES day!!! This week I got one on the side of my lower lip and I thought — aww c’mon! I guess I should be thankful it wasn’t in the middle of my upper lip right under my nose. *sigh*
I know, I know I could take L-Lysine with the array of supplements and medications that I already take but I don’t. Apparently I am in denial that I ever get a cold sore (even tho they seem to be showing up about 1x a month at this point *double sigh*).
I used to use campho-phenique and I have to say it worked ok but man that cold sore would hang around a couple of weeks until a friend of mine recommended Abreva (jeez I feel like a commercial here). Well I went running to the pharmacy and picked up a tube (at the ripe old price of $15 for the teeniest tube ever invented). Best $15 I’ve spent in a long time cuz this was 2 years ago and more than 1/2 the tube is still full AND the cold sores go away in a matter of a couple days (not a couple weeks!!!).
So shout it with me – DOWN WITH COLD SORES, DOWN WITH COLD SORES!!!!
———————————
Here is the definition of a cold sore according to Valtrex:
A cold sore, sometimes called a “fever blister,” is a blister or sore which usually appears on the outside of the lips or mouth. It is different from a canker sore, which appears inside the mouth. Cold sores may appear just once in a person’s life, or return again and again. Before you actually get a cold sore, you may feel a tingling, itching, or burning sensation beneath the surface of the skin, usually around the mouth or base of the nose. This is the first sign of a cold sore, called the prodrome stage.
Cold sores are extremely common – it is estimated that, in the United States,
80%-90% of the population has been infected by the cold sore virus by the time they are 50 years old. Only about 30% of those infected with the virus actually ever get a cold sore.
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April 18th, 2008 | Tags: abreva, campho-phenique, cold sores | Category: Fight the Frump
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April 18th, 2008 at 9:27 am
DOWN WITH COLD SORES!
I totally agree! I used to get them quite frequently and it was such a pain. Yogurt is supposed to help prevent them. But Abreva is a miracle worker. I finally tried some after I saw a million commercials but almost fainted at the price for the Barbie doll sized container. But it works! Hope yours goes away sooon!
Yogurt huh? I’ve wondered if it was something with my stomach…*sigh*
April 18th, 2008 at 9:43 am
I’ve been plagued with cold sores since I was an infant. And you might not complain so much when you find out I always got them on my nose. They started all over the top, turning me into Rudolph, and as I got older they migrated down, eventually covering the inside of my nose when I had a break out. So painful! But you couldn’t see them at least. I didn’t get a cold sore on my lip until I was in college. Thankfully they’ve slowed down in my adult years, but you can imagine I’ve tried just about everything. Lysine is great, and Abreva is decent, but you want to get something stronger. Your doctor (any kind) can give you a prescription for Zovirax (acyclovir is the generic). It comes in a cream, which has lasted me seriously like 10 years. And it comes in pill form, which I haven’t tried out as much but seems to work too. This stuff is the bomb!
REEEEALLLY how interesting. I guess I’ve never even thought of asking….I’ve even used L-Lysine (I’ve smashed a tab and spread it right on the cold sore to get it activated faster on the sore besides ingesting them or now my favorite Abreva.
April 18th, 2008 at 10:03 am
I used abreva forever until my OB/Gyn gave me a sample of a pill called Famvir. Oh my gosh that stuff totally works. At the first tingle of a fever blister I pop three pills, and I am telling you it barely comes to the surface. It is the most amazing stuff, and I used to think abreva was the most amazing. I’m telling go ask your doctor for it.
Another tip to ask my doc….ok, I’m hearin ya, y’all!!!
April 18th, 2008 at 2:15 pm
I will have to try it! Zovirax saved my mouth in High School (but it is prescription). I got once once a month back then…ahhh, teenage hormones. Lots of people don’t know that cold sores are actually Herpes Simplex 1 and once you have it you are always a carrier, although usually it is dormant. Hope that was not TMI but it is important to know.
I have not had one in YEARS. Did I just jinx myself?
Yeah I think “most” people know it’s a form of Herpes. All those toads we kissed before we got married I guess. *sigh* LOL LOL Oooohh I hope you didn’t jinx yourself either. YUK!
April 18th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
DOWN WITH COLD SORES! I’m afraid to say I’ve never had one- in case it comes back to bite me in the butt! Or the lip, as the case may be!
NO WAY! You lucky dawg!
April 18th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
My family has always had them, so I don’t know who generously shared the virus first, but…certain foods to trigger them. Peanut/peanut butter and chocolate come to mind. L-Lysine works as a preventative more than anything else…if you take with daily supplements it helps keep them at bay. That being said, I can never remember to take my vitamins, so that doesn’t work for me. Fortunately, I get them inside my mouth, so my pain is a personal thing that I don’t have to advertise to the world. Apparently you get either/or, so I’m glad I got mine.
My MIL was so incensed when I told her they were caused by a virus. “My son doesn’t have a virus…it is a calcium deficiency.” Um, yeah, right…he was also an immaculate conception, right?
Once in a while I get them on the inside of my mouth too. That’s FUNNY about your MIL!!!
April 18th, 2008 at 11:09 pm
Aww, you poor thing
( My Mom seems to get cold sores pretty badly at times… I’ll have to share with her all the wonderful information you have here! Awesome post 
)
Happy Frump Fighting!!! Much love and God Bless
Thanks for stopping by Amanda. Hope it helps your mom.
April 19th, 2008 at 8:15 am
I never got them until after I got my braces off-hhhhhmmmmm. I talke L-Lysine every day. My Dad taught me that one. I used to forget for a long time to take it and wham! I would get a cold sore. So I do know it works for me. Good Luck chicadee!
LYMI!
Good girl!
May 27th, 2008 at 2:06 pm
I bought Abreva during my last pregnancy when I had cold sore trouble….and then read the “consult your doctor before use if you are pregnant, nursing, etc….” I asked my doctor about it, and he told me that using rubbing alcohol on a cold sore would be just as effective. I didn’t try either one, the cold sore just cleared up. But rubbing alcohol would be a lot cheaper!!!
May 27th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Hi Ingrid, now that is a vey good tip! I’m going to try that if I get another cold sore. Let’s hope it’s a longggg time down the road.
September 7th, 2008 at 8:12 pm
I realize cold sores are common, and no matter how many statistics I read, I still can’t shop for cold sore items and Wal-Mart, I always use: http://theprivatepharmacy.com/