I am in panic mode right now. Like many of you I have suffered all my life with cold sores, some outbreaks worse then others.This one I have right now is bad. 3 cold sores all at bottom lip ( I am devastated). Woke up Sunday morning, felt a tingle but wasn't sure so I let a few hours pass and blisters started to form. It is Monday night, I took my 1st dose (2000mg) of Valacyclovir at 4pm, it is now 10pm and still nothing. My next dosage (2000mg) is at 4am. My question is when will it take effect? And what difference will I notice? I am leaving for Miami on Wednesday and really depressed bc of these cold sores, pls help! I need answers. Thank you
Valtrex - Will Valacyclovir work after day 2 (blisters already present)?
Question posted by helpinmontreal on 30 July 2013
Last updated on 8 May 2020
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3 Answers
chellybow
9 May 2020
I've suffered with fever blisters since I was about 6 years old and I am now 50. I typically have a breakout once or twice a year, usually from the stress of chronic digestive disease flares, overexposure to the sun or general stress or operations. I am currently in a flare of fever blisters like never before! I have three separate clusters of blisters on my bottom lip (they are always on my bottom lip, never the top) and each of the three clusters have between 10-15 blisters each going down my face below my bottom lip. I counted this morning over 35 individual blisters!!! I have been running low grade fevers from 100-101 for the past 3-4 days, each day I would wake with yet another cluster.
I have been in contact with my GI specialist and had to cancel an iron infusion today due to the fever as we aren't allowed to show up under normal circumstances with a fever since other people with various autoimmune diseases are there getting infections and it's so dangerous to pass things around to each other, especially now with Covid. This is the first time I have received a prescription for Valacyclovir to treat my fever blisters. I usually just cope with Abreva. If I catch it at the tingle I can usually shorten up the outbreak and be basically over it in about a week, but this time it's like gangbusters talking over my entire bottom lip and the real estate just under my bottom lip down to my chin!!! They are at the stage now where they are weeping and it itches so dang bad I just want to dig in and scratch the heck out of them but we all know how painful that is at this stage of the herpes game! Yikes, I hope this antiviral gets them dried up quickly, so embarrassing and I literally went through an entire tube of Abreva in three (3) days!!! I've never used that much before but it's literally taken over my entire bottom lip and skin under. Like the original poster, I would like to know how quickly has it worked for you all? I'm excited to have access to this and I'm so happy to see I have a refill so I'll have them on hand for the first tingle next time! Thanks for reading my short (ha ha!) story here and best wishes to you all, I sure wish they would find a cure for this stuff... just grateful it's the herpes of the mouth/lips and not the Nether Regions! Lol, thank God for little favors!
Kevoptical
9 April 2014
I have dealt with cold sores for a long time. One thing that I have found very helpful, other then early treatment, is taking 3 Advil. I happened to be on a script for 800mg ibuprofen when I hurt my back while I had an outbreak. Though they didn't do much for my back pain I was amazed at how the swelling and pain subsided from my cold sore. Now whenever I have any tingle I try to use acyclovir, abreva and take 3 Advil ASAP. Seems to work for me and in most cases stops progression immediately and gone in a few days. I always take more Advil before going to bed as it seems that things flare up more at night for me. That's my plan, not sure if this is a bad thing but it seems to be the only thing I've found that gives me relief especially when I have more severe outbreaks. Hope this is helpful for others.
I should ask my Dr. Why not prescribe a stronger anti inflammatory to people who suffer from cold sores. It seems that if you can control the swelling the less symptoms you have and the less severe the sores get.
chellybow
9 May 2020
Oh how I wish I could take ibuprofen/Advil. It does work well for certain things but because I have an autoimmune inflammatory chronic illness, I can't take them. It's a great tip for those who can! Best wishes!
DzooBaby
30 July 2013
It should help keep you from breaking out in more blisters and it may help to dry the ones you have faster. always better to take at the first sign of tingling!
Sport2246
1 Aug 2013
Definitely take at onset of the slightest tingling sensation which generally prevents outbreak for me. But if I wait " boom ! It will sneak up on me quick with a cluster etc..I abhor breakouts to the 10th power... stress about bills for me once or twice a year
chellybow
9 May 2020
One more question, are y'all on the antiviral Valacyclovir pills or a cream ointment you put on your lips? I just got the pills today, but previously had used the cream ointment. Which do you prefer and have you used both at the same time? I still have some ointment I didn't remember having when this current outbreak started tingling... I could kick myself for not finding it three days ago!
Related topics
valtrex, valacyclovir, cold sores, blister
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