Oral herpes symptoms can wreak havoc on your regular routine. All it takes is one nasty cold sore to turn an otherwise confident person into the picture of self-consciousness. If you tend to suffer from oral herpes symptoms, you should know that even though there’s no cure for oral herpes, symptoms can often be prevented without having to take medication.

For starters, oral herpes symptoms are often triggered by stress. Now eliminating stress from your life is easier said than done, but by taking steps to avoid situations known to bring about stress, you may be able to limit the extent to which oral herpes symptoms pop up. You can also try doing yoga, meditation, and other such calming activities to reduce your overall stress load.

Another thing you can do to avoid oral herpes symptoms is to steer clear of the sun’s harmful rays. Sun exposure, like stress, can cause symptoms of oral herpes to surface, so if you’re hitting the beach, wear lip balm with sunscreen and use a hat to keep your face covered.

Of course, if these natural methods don’t work then you do have the option of pursuing medical treatment for your oral herpes symptoms. Following a positive oral herpes test, antiviral drugs can be prescribed to limit the recurrence of outbreaks.

Finally, keep in mind that sores on the lips and mouth aren’t always oral herpes symptoms. Only an STD test can definitively identify oral herpes, and unless you’ve received an official diagnosis, you should consider STD testing before you begin to explore your options for treatment.