Herpes Medication Use and Dependency

QUESTION: I was recently diagnosed as having herpes and was given medication.
Just how dependent will I become on this drug? Will I be taking it forever?
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ANSWER: Any doctor worth his salt knows that for any drug therapy to be
effective in the treatment of herpes, there must be a period on and a period
off the medication; and this is how it works.
A first bout with herpes demands immediate action and medication. It is
called a primary episode, meaning it is the first time you have been exposed
to one of the two herpes viral strains. You feel rotten, are in pain, and
have genital lesions. Your doctor prescribes a drug that will shorten the
period of illness and hasten the drying of the lesions and sores. At this
juncture when the active phase is over, and with your physician's consent, you
can now safely stop your medication.
But keep it on hand in your medicine cabinet. Herpes recurs: these
frequent outbreaks are called nonprimary, because they're not the first time
your body has dealt with the virus. Your timely use of medication can stop a
full-blown attack in many cases (prevent lesions from appearing at all in most
cases). If you can tell when your herpes will show itself (you might know for
certain that you have bouts with herpes every four to six weeks) again take
your medication before it is due to appear. If there is some important
occasion in your life--business trip, honeymoon, vacation--take the drug in
advance as a precautionary measure to spare yourself undue embarrassment. So
the answer is no, you won't be on the drug forever, but it can be at your
disposal, under your physician's guidance, to stop the severity of recurrent
bouts.