How do you know if you have genital herpes?

What does it feel like and look like? Can you be mis-diagnosed?

The only and best way to know is get tested for it. I have Genital Herpes and the first time I had an outbreak I literally ran to the doctor and they took a swab from it and it came back positive. About being mis-diagnosed I dont really think so but, then again anything is possible. Have you ever had ingrown hair in your genitals? Well it somewhat feels like that and looks like a blister. It hurts like crazy when it pops and it just very sensitive down there. Especially when you have a cluster of them. I've had 5 outbreaks in 5yrs and out of the 5 outbreaks I've had about 3 outbreaks in where I had more than 1 and its hurts like a b*tch. Good luck hopefully you dont have it and you are confusing it with a ingrown hair. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me =)

Go get tested if you are in any doubt.
genital herpes depends, id do a search on google images for some pics but its basically looks like nasty sores on your genitals obviously, they tend to be very uncomfortable with itchy and burning feeling, they can be controlled using medicine from the doctor and genital herpes are known to have sudden outbreaks, meaning that one day you'll look like you don't have them and the next they will be back. Not so sure you can be mis diagnosed as this is a pretty easy to determine std when you have an outbreak.
The answer is different depending on whether or not your are unwell.
If you are unwell: active genital herpes causes small painful blisters that burst and turn into small ulcers. If you have type 2 virus, that is probably bad news because it tends to keep coming back again and again for years. Every time you get a flare up, you notice the pain first (usually for a day or two), then the rash appears; some people also feel tired and faintly feverish with it. If you have type 1 virus, that may make you unwell a few times, but that tends not to go away after a few flares. The best way to diagnose it is by seeing a doctor who takes a viral swab of the active lesion.
If you are not unwell, it is still possible to be a "carrier". Carriers are completely well but still shed virus into their genital secretions and can pass the infection on to other people. The only way to diagnose this for certain is to have a viral swab taken.
There are two main ways of processing the viral swab: the best and most sensitive test is PCR (but also the most expensive).
A less sensitive test is viral culture: if it comes positive then you can be confident that the result is correct; if it comes negative, that can be a false result because the test is not very sensitive. With viral culture, you are less likely to have false negative results if the swab is taken from a fresh active rash (your doctor may have to burst a blister to get the freshest possible sample); the viral culture test is also much less likely to pick up carriers.
As to misdiagnosis, that depends on what you mean by that. If you mean the test is positive (either on PCR or on viral culture) but you think it should be negative, then I am sorry, but it is very unlikely that the test result is wrong: you can be pretty sure that you have genital herpes. However, making a diagnosis of genital herpes does not mean you cannot have something else wrong as well (sexually transmitted diseases travel together). As part of a routine sexual health screen, you should usually be offered testing for syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia, trichomonas, HIV, and hepatitis B all at the same time.
If you mean that the test came back negative, but you think that you have genital herpes, then you need to ask your doctor what sort of test it was. If it was a PCR test, then it is less likely that the test was wrong: you should be looking for an alternative explanation first before asking to be tested again for herpes. If it was a viral culture test, then it is worth getting tested again, because viral culture can miss cases. If you do decide that you should be tested again, then timing is crucial: you need to have the swab taken the first day the rash appears in order to maximise the chances of the test becoming positive.

If you previously went to see your family doctor for help and are not satisfied with the opinion you got, then I advise that you see a specialist in genitourinary medicine or sexual health to be checked out instead.
The only way to know it to go get tested when u have an outbreak and have it analyzed.
ive had herpes for a little over a year.

you can only get tested for it if you have an outbreak. they need to swab the sore for a culture. blood tests CAN be misdiagnosed.

these are signs and symptoms you can look for yourself...

of course the sores.
they are white in color and ulcer like. they are extremely painful and itchy.

back pain. (normally lower back pain)
the virus is harboured in the spine and travels through the nerves.

fever
especially with the first outbreak. its normally pretty mild.

also painful, burning urination.

so there you go.
wish the best for you.

in case your are positive for genetial herpes...just know its ok.

1 out of 4 people have it and most people have no idea just because theyve never had any symptoms.

its also isnt terrible.
yah those symptoms are bad but they lessen as time goes on.
ive only had one other outbreak since i was diagnosed over a year ago.

best wishes.
You see a doctor