“A lot of people are completely dumbfounded when they’re diagnosed because they didn’t know they could get HSV-1 on their genitals from oral sex,” adds Vensel. “The majority of new infections are HSV-1, passed from one person’s mouth to another person’s genitals during oral sex,” says Jill Grimes, MD, who wrote the book Seductive Delusions: How Everyday People Catch STIs. And intercourse isn’t the only way to contract this sexually transmitted infection, often called an STI by clinicians. But it also has ‘silent shedding’ between outbreaks, meaning the virus can spread at just about any time. The herpes virus is the most infectious just before, during, and after an outbreak - when blisters are present. So p romiscuous or polyamorous people aren’t the only ones at risk. That’s because even if there are no noticeable symptoms like small red bumps, white blisters, pain, or itching, you can still spread the viral cells and unknowingly infect a partner. It turns out you can have herpes without knowing it, even in a monogamous relationship. Allow us to set your mind at ease and debunk three widespread herpes myths:

Not only is herpes incredibly common - it’s also totally manageable. But genital herpes is sometimes the exact same virus - just in a different location.” “Cold sores are so common they’ve been normalized at this point.

“One big misconception is that cold sores are caused by HSV-1 and genital herpes are always type 2, but that’s not always the case,” says Sarah Vensel, a physician assistant in San Francisco. While it’s true that HSV-2 is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) and can cause genital sores or blisters, type 1 can do the same thing.

Many people consider HSV-1 more benign, but it turns out there’s not much difference between the two types of virus. Another 417 million people (11 percent) between ages 15 and 49 worldwide have herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2). According to the World Health Organization, 3.7 billion people under age 50 have herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) - that’s 67 percent of the global population in that age bracket. Shocked? You shouldn’t be, since the virus is very common. A surprising number of people you know probably have herpes.

Can you get herpes from touching