This is my first post here, so please forgive me if it's not in the right place. I have had a sore/irratated throat for about a week now, and also a sore tongue, my tongue was covered in white stuff (thresh I guess) over the weekend and its now just kind of raw and irratated. I notice I have a couple small blisters on my lip, i'm worried this might be herpes, though I have no real reason to suspect having the virus. I plan to see a doctor within the next couple days (the 11th) but in the meantime I guess I was hoping for some peace of mind that it's not what i'm worried about.

I've looked online for symptoms of oral herpes and they actually vary it seems, some sites say you will have an outbreak within 3 weeks tops of coming in contact with an infected person and others make it sound like you could have it forever and not know it. Also I have confusion about what the sores would look like and what I should watch out for, obviously after being ill for about a week I would expect some chapped lips and even maybe a cold sore or two. What I have seen pictures of when it comes to herpes sores on the mouth looks like big scabs, which I do not have. If someone could maybe break it down to me what exactly I should look for and so on, it would be very helpful.

Oh I have been with a steady boyfriend for 8 months now and this is the first time I have had any sort of sore or mouth problem, I have been faithful to him and I trust he has been to me, is there any chance it might have been laying dormant in my body or his for these past 8 months?

Thanks very much!