Incubation period

When a person becomes infected with one of the herpes simplex viruses (either HSV-1 or HSV-2) that cause herpes, the virus begins to multiply within the skin and nerves. Right, symptoms do not immediately occur.
HSV-2 lives in the nerves of the body. When it is active, it travels to the surface of the infected area (mucous membrane or skin) and makes copies. This is called “shedding”, as these new viruses could rub off on another person at this time.
Then the virus travels back down the nerves to a ganglion which is mass of nerve tissue, usually at the base of the spine, where it will lie dormant for a while.
This period between herpes transmission and the genital herpes symptoms is called “incubation period.” In some cases, the incubation period for herpes could be as short as one day or as long as about 26 days.

Genital Herpes Outbreak

After six to eight days, on average, signs and symptoms of genital herpes could appear. At the beginning of 4-5 days, early redness might be seen in a small area of skin. This area might be itchy, sensitive, or painful to the touch. And there is some small area of swelling, which might not be noticed.
And then small blisters filled with fluid (clear, whitish, or red) form on top of the area that had early redness and/or swelling. There might be one blister, a few blisters, or groups of blisters.
After a few days, wet ulcers appear when the tops of the blisters come off. They might look like red, swollen areas or small cuts. These sores might feel tender and/or raw to the touch. There might be a tiny sore, a group of sores, or several large ulcers. Dry crust , which also called scab, forms over the wet ulcer, as the sore begins to heal. The crust hardens as the sore dries, and new skin will grow underneath the scab. Symptoms of a primary episode of genital herpes vary widely from one person to another. They usually occur within 2 to 10 days of exposure and typically involve small red bumps that might develop into blisters and open lesions. These “bumps” appear at the site of infection, which might be in or around the vaginal area, the cervix, the penis, urinary tract of both men and women, and around the anal opening, buttocks or thighs. Some sores also might appear on other parts of the body where the broken skin has come into contact with HSV.
Over a period of days, the sores become to be encrusted and then heal without scarring.

Most of people who were infected by genital herpes may have very minimal or no symptoms or no signs of their disease. The first attack of herpes usually follows this following course:
* Skin on or near the sex organ becomes inflamed. Skin might itch, burn or be painful.
* Blister-like sores will appear on or near the sex organs.
* Sores open, scab over, and then they heal.
Symptoms that might also be present when the virus first appears include:
* Swollen glands
* Fever
* Headache
* Burning when passing urine
* Muscle aches
The first outbreak of herpes could last for several weeks. After the outbreak, the virus will retreat to the nervous system, where it remains inactive until something that triggers it to become active again. Usually, the first outbreak usually is the worst. And some people might have just one or two outbreaks in their lifetime.