Eat Shrink And Be Merry

16 responses so far ↓

• 1 Margo // Sep 11, 2007 at 8:56 pm

  Dear, dear Greta,
  You poor thing! My son had been dubbed at a very young age “The King of Cold Sores” by his pediatrician. He is nearly 14 now and has suffered with cold sores like you would not believe, since under the age of one year. At its worst, an outbreak would completely cover his chin from the mouth down (imagine tingly sore blisters breaking out, plus the ongoing drooling and touching of a toddler!) For a few years, he was probably never a month or six weeks without an outbreak, and always of course at the fun times like Christmas and birthdays. So, needless to say, we’ve searched and in desperation tried it all, from tree sap to near-constant oral medication etc etc. As he’s grown older, the outbreaks are fewer, further between, and less severe. But he still gets those darn cold sores. The virus is in the nerve endings and sits there, dormant, waiting for our most important moments, it would seem, to surface! (But then again, when is a good time to get a cold sore??)
  In the past year, a new drug has come our way, known as Valtrex. Our family doctor, who also is a cold sore sufferer, recommended we try it. How it works is at the very initial onset, like at the moment you first feel the tingly warning signs that you’re about to get a cold sore (some hours before you actually see it), you take 4 pills all at once, and twelve hours later, another four, and that’s it. This has been the most successful treatment so far. It stops the outbreak of the cold sore in its tracks. You will absolutely want to talk to your doctor about trying Valtrex, but for us, and for a 14 year old boy who has had to deal with this all his life, and who now has other wondrous things like whiskers and pimples to deal with, it’s been a godsend.
  Hope this is helpful!!

• 2 Marla // Sep 11, 2007 at 9:35 pm

  Hi there,
  I also am prone to these lovely sores. I have used Abreva from the first little sign and it keeps them from getting so big. I have a friend who swears by Acidophilus. He takes two or three the minute he feels one coming and he says it wards them off pretty well….who knows!

• 3 Greta // Sep 12, 2007 at 9:38 am

  Thanks for the advice. My dentist told me about Valtrex but said you have to take it BEFORE the cold sore breaks…so it’s too late for me. However, I will be sure to get a prescription for “next time,” though I hope there is never a next time! It looks worse today, if that’s possible. Thank God we’re not taping our TV show right now

• 4 Norma // Sep 12, 2007 at 10:13 am

  Would a Dermatologist (sp?) be able to do anything imediate? I know they can zap a zip imediately. I know a cold sore is a virus and usually virusis(again sp?) have ot run their course, But maybe they would be able to stop it sooner. Just a thought. Hope this heals quickly for you !

• 5 Margo // Sep 12, 2007 at 11:31 am

  Yes, you do have to have a prescription (ie. 8 pills) on hand so that as soon as you get the warning signs, you hit it hard with a large dose, followed by a second large hit 12 hours later. It does look worse as it begins to heal because there are stages: tingling, the blister coming out, oozing, crusting over, scab, healing, gone. Lovely, isn’t it? Is this your first cold sore? Unfortunately, once you have had one, the virus is in those nerve endings, “dormant”, until usually stress and other mysterious things trigger it. I say mysterious, because the doctors tend to link it to stress, however our son was the happiest toddler you ever saw, singing all the time, not even any other sign of cold or illness to accompany it… but still they came persistently.
  I was thinking about you taping a show and such, which is why using the Valtrex might really be a helpful route for you to go. I wouldn’t hesitate to hit it with Acidophilus too, as suggested. How much greater if that did the trick.

• 6 Laura Martin // Sep 18, 2007 at 9:12 am

  Hi Greta
  I believe cold sores are a symptom of lack of lysine in your diet. Lysine is a amino acid and some people are more prone to this than others.
  You can buy Lysine supplement in a health foot store and/or cream with Lysine as an ingredient. Putting this on your cold sore, you will see the healing in a matter of a couple of days. Taking the supplement on a regular basis can build up your system form further outbreaks.

• 7 Heather // Sep 22, 2007 at 11:02 pm

  Hi Greta,

  I’m a fourth year pharmacy student! I’m not sure why they recommended the Abreva, it’s supposed to go on before the cold sore breaks open. That was a waste of money. You can keep it for next time when you feeling that “tingling” sensation and put it on and that helps prevent the cold sore from breaking out. Unfortunately, once it’s at the stage you are now, there is nothing you can do about but wait for it to heal on its own.

  Some other people suggested Valtrex and they are right in that it does help before breakouts but it is quite expensive. That also comes as a cream or ointment form for application right onto the cold sore.

  As for the lysine, I could not find any evidence for it being beneficial for cold sores. As well, I DO NOT recommend you taking supplements on a daily basis as it also has no clinical evidence for it to “build up the immune system”. I say that to anyone about any medication or “supplements” you are considering taking. Please check with a health care professional first! A lot of so called “natural health products” are NOT Health Canada or FDA regulated so they have not been cleared for safety.

• 8 katie // Sep 23, 2007 at 11:05 pm

  This is gonna sound like the weirdest suggestion, but lick it and keep licking at it.

  Sounds gross I know. But it seriously works. I never put anything on my coldsores because I find the cream either helps create another one or it does zip. I lick them instead and now I get way less cold sores than I used to and when I do get them they only are little and last maybe a day or two max then all gone! Like a miracle!

  I figure if dogs lick at their sores to go away, then what could be the harm if I did the same to my own convienently located next to my tongue cold sore. Defo does the trick.

  Incidently, I get them when I either get too much sun, not enough sleep or eat too many tomatoes or pineapple. Sometimes I get them when I am stressed out too but usually that goes hand in hand with no sleep.

  Hope your cold sore has disappeared by the time you read this.

  Take care

  Katie

• 9 Danielle // Sep 27, 2007 at 3:11 pm

  I hear ya! I hate those things and with me, they are brought on by stress and then add more stress…argh vicious circle. For me, (sorry again a little gross) I break open as many of the tiny little bubbles as I can and wash away that virus-infested liquid that’s inside. Then apply Vitamin E or Zovirax (sp?) cream. For the Vitamin E, I go get the little capsules from the pharmacy and pop one end with a pin, squeeze out the oil and rub it in. The Zovirax cream is a prescription. It works for me. Good luck.

• 10 Wanda // Sep 30, 2007 at 1:39 pm

  This is what my mother would do to us , long time ago. At first tingle she would heat one end of wooden spool of thread on top of the woodstove , then quickly touch the impending coldsore. I guess that would be considered barbaric today , but it worked everytime.
  I use zincofax or prenaten cream for any small outbreaks , the high amount of zinc heals things very quickly.

• 11 Sheri // Oct 2, 2007 at 3:03 pm

  Ok, this will sound weird, and I am sure you will get the biggest urge to dance when you do this, but one thing that work on cold sores when I was a kid was a dab of purfume. Trust me, you will dance for a minute, but it would help dry up that thing in a hurry. Mom had Channel, but I have tried other purfumes. If you have some, give it a try.

  Someone else told me about baking soda. dampen some and dab it on there. Definitely be sure to be surrounded by nobody or those who are used to your personal appearance in any form.

• 12 Kristin // Oct 12, 2007 at 11:51 am

  HI! The BEST thing for a cold sore in the world is the yellow tube of original Carmex! Not the pot - but the squeeze tube! Buy one -keep it ready … and when you feel the “tingle” put a generous abount on !!! Keep putting it on like crazy~ trust me it is the best thing!

• 13 Luci // Nov 14, 2007 at 1:49 pm

  Super Lysine - makers of RespirActin. I find it at Fortinos
  I have been taking this on a daily basis for 2 years now and the only time i get a cold sore is when I forget to take them for like a week.
  I would get enormous clod sores on my chin and my glands would swell up under my chin. So I have tried every pill and cream out there.
  If you have a flare up put peroxide in a small spray bottle and spray the thing to death….. garlic is helpfull too… ALLIMAX. mix with some aloe vera and put on sore.
  I am happy to say I have been free of this burden for over a year now… and once upon a time i would get them at least 6 times a year!

• 14 Tracy // Jan 24, 2008 at 6:03 pm

  Hi Greta.

  I just found your website and was reading your blog when I thought I would throw my 2 cents in the ring for the cold sore problem. I have suffered for years and so has my teenage daughter. When I took her to the orthodontist for a consultation for braces,one of his questions on the form was asking if you get cold sores. I thought it was odd but my daughter ticked yes. When we met with the Dr. I asked him about it and he said that he used to get them too and was at a conference and was told of the “Perfect Cure” and he hasn’t had a cold sore since - over ten or so years. He said once you feel it coming (it also works after it “pops” out) take 2 aspirin every 4 hours for two days, and no you don’t have to get up at night. The aspirin is an anti-inflammatory to reduce the size of the monster and it heals it from the inside out, not like the creams that just make it shiney and stand out more. My daughter and I both have been using this method and so far so good.

• 15 Lisa // Feb 25, 2008 at 6:36 pm

  Get a prescription for Acyclovir tablets. If you think you might be about to get one, take them for a day or two. Never ever let your lips get dry or sunburned. Once you’ve got one, you’re sunk, although I’ve heard of people having them cauterized. Ouch. Anyway, I’ve had these all my life and the Acyclovir works like a charm, but you have to take it before.

• 16 Stacey // Oct 3, 2009 at 7:32 pm

  After reading all of the great ideas today. I went with the ice and alcohol and wow! This morning when I woke up the blister on my lip was huge, but it had not burst yet. So….. I put about 8 ice cubes in a row on my lip and then for the rest of the afternoon I kept dabbing my lip with rubbing alcohol. At this point 7 hours has past since I started with the ice and alcohol and my cold sore is almost gone, it looks like a small spot on my lip is slightly chapped. The alcohol has totally dried up the coldsore and I expect that by the morning it will be totally gone. Thanks everyone for all of your great ideas.

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