Straight Facts About Cold Sore Symptoms?

Did You Know? Cold sore symptoms are very specific and recognizable. Cold sores can be so severe as to lay you up for days, or so mild you barely are bothered. Each of your cold sore stages has its specific cold sore symptoms.

When you are first infected with the cold sore virus, you will get a specific set of cold sore symptoms that generally only occur this one time. You will experience any combination of fever, headache, swollen glands under the jaw, and sore throat.

Your symptoms at this point will range from quite mild to severe. It is common to feel that you have caught the flu or a cold. They usually begin about 14 days after first infection and lasts about three to four days. Quite often you do not get a cold sore this first time.

NOTE: All cold sore symptoms are caused by active herpes simplex virus. This virus only becomes active to create new virus on the surface of your face. About 90% of the planet population carry the virus by the time they are 10 years old. Most of the time it is latent and hiding in the nerve cells deep within the nerve fibers.

You will never be bothered with cold sore symptoms when the herpes virus is latent. About a third of those infected will never experience an active cold sore. For the rest of us, we can expect a cold sore once every 8 months. Many folks will get six or more per year.

Your first indication of the cold sore symptoms is often barely noticeable. In the cold sore area, you will feel symptoms such as a dryness, tingling, itching or burning. This indicates that you are in the first stage of a cold sore. The virus is moving to the surface nerve cells. Your cold sore will occur in a day or two.

Next you will enter the inflammation stage. Your cold sore symptoms at this point include swelling of the area and the appearance of small, painful, red bumps. These bumps are generally quite painful to the touch. Other common symptoms you will notice are headaches, slight fever, tiredness and beginning of lymph gland swelling.

Next, your little bumps swell, burst and come together causing one or two large open ulcer-like sores. You will find these quite painful as the sore is created on the end of a nerve. You will probably experience a runny nose and fever-induced headaches.

You will experience enlarged and painful lymph glands under the jaw. A highly contagious, clear fluid, loaded with new virus, will weep from the sore. At this point you can easily cause someone else to become infected - or infect another site on yourself.

Within a couple days a yellowish scab will form - beginning the healing process. You will find it still painful to touch it. Your scab can crack when you move your mouth causing a lot of pain. Your fever, headaches and swollen glands should be letting up now. Your cold sore will continue to itch as healing takes place.

Normally your scab will fall off in a few days. This will reveal new skin but healing will still be taking place beneath - which will continue to cause you itching and redness of the area for another week or two. Your fever and headaches should be about gone now. Your lymph glands should be greatly reduced.

If your are like me, this is the most frustrating part of a cold sore. You look and feel much better but the healing is still taking place. You must be careful as it is quite common for the cold sore to turn around and come right back during this time. Keep using a good cold sore treatment plan to prevent this.

Sorry - there is so much more you should know that can prevent cold sores in your life, but I have run out of space right now. Please heed the following caution.

You do not want to infect someone else, or cause a new infection somewhere else on your body. Use caution as cold sores are extremely contagious during all these cold sore symptoms.