Genital Herpes and Pregnancy?????

We are both diagnosed with genital herpes. We are also trying to get pregnant. I was just wondering what the risks are to the baby if I were to become pregnant. Is it a bad idea to even try to have a child? I couldnt live with myself if I harmed my child. Please tell me the risks and what I can do to reduce them.

I AM a midwife so i deal with this all the time. Your baby will be fine. The only time the baby is at risk is at delivery and when its time to give birth we simply do a ce-section if you are having an outbreak,otherwise you can have a vaginal birth.Please do not feel any different from any other woman in the world trying to have a baby. Herpes is such a common virus that we know how to deal with it. People with aids are able to have children,medically anything is possible. You will be just fine sweetie,just express your concerns to your doctor then you can make a decision that best siuts you all.And as for the nursing student above we only suggest using protection during an out break,not all of the time.Your baby is protected inside by the closed cervix. Good Luck Source(s): CNM

Yes, it can be harmful to the baby. The child will likely be born with the Herpes virus.

Talk to a Dr.. it's really important because there are many more dangers.
Genital herpes can only affect the baby during delivery. Your doctor would want to do a C-section if you have any active signs or symptoms of an outbreak when you go into labor. He might want to do a C-section just to be careful. Don't worry! You can't harm the baby by having herpes during the pregnancy.
It is safe to get pregnant with herpes, if you have an out break at delivery they doctor may choose to do a c-section. Risks are passing it to the baby and I believe somewhere I read it can cause blindness if doing a vaginal delivery with an out break.
See your doctor as often as you can especially if you get pregnant. Any STD can hurt an unborn baby but sometimes everything turns out ok in the end. As a matter of fact I do know someone who has Genital Herpes and had a baby. Everything was perfectly normal. The baby and the mother are doing great, and the dad is too. So just as long as the doctor gives the ok then maybe you should have a baby. Take meds, that are prescribed by the doctor of course, to treat the Genetal Herpes and at the same time will be ineffective to the baby. Good Luck.
It is rare for genital herpes to affect your pregnancy (such as passing to the baby through the placenta) but would likely affect the labor and delivery. If you have an active outbreak or symptoms of one as you are going into labor they would do a C-section. Herpes can be passed to your unborn as it travelled through the birth canal. Also having herpes puts you at risk for preterm labor. There is nothing to reduce the risks during pregnancy other than paying attention to symptoms and reporting them to your doctor. You would need to be very careful when you had intercourse..use condoms and abstain when your partner has an active outbreak or symptoms of one.