Cold sores, which affect 30 million people in the UK, can undermine confidence and have a negative effect on dating for single people.

However one lady, Jenni Donato, 32, an environmental consultant from Berkshire lives with her partner Rick, 32, conquered her cold sores and soon found love.

Jenni says

"In the past I have dreaded Valentines night as I almost always have cold sores in February. While my friends were getting all excited about going out and maybe finding the man of their dreams on Valentines night, I would stay in and watch a TV in my PJ’s as I was too worried about my cold sores.

Three years ago I was single and looking for love. All my friends were married and I didn’t seem to be able to find Mr Right through my friends or just meeting strangers at parties or clubs so I joined a dating agency.

[quote]While I was single I was having a nightmare because of my cold sores. I’d meet someone on line and we’d arrange a date and then often I’d get a cold sore a few days before the date, probably due to the stress of it all, and I’d end up having to cancel the date.[/quote]

I expect I lost of a lot of opportunities with lovely guys because they probably thought I didn’t like them or something when in fact I was cancelling because I couldn’t bare them to see me with a cold sore.

Guys can be weird about cold sores. Most don’t understand what they are and just think you are scabby or dirty or something. In fact I have had cold sores since I was a toddler. My sister gets them too. We both had them passed on to us from our mum, who also has them. So its not my fault I have them and they have been the bane of my life.

It’s hard enough going through puberty and then university as a young woman as you feel quite insecure about guys and yourself at times, but when you get cold sores, it makes everything worse. Dating at University was hard as I used to get a lot of cold sores and it made me very self conscious and shy. If I had a cold sore I’d either not go out at all or if I did and a guy tried to talk to me I’d often run away.

They make you very self conscious as they not only hurt and are contagious when active but they look dreadful. And at the end stages after they blister mine often bled when I smiled so I was always worrying that my lips were bleeding so I’d never smile when I had one, which is enough to put anyone off speaking to you anyway.

When I was single and dating on line I’d often have to end up cancelling an arranged date because I could feel a cold sore brewing. It was very frustrating and felt unfair as trying to find a relationship is hard enough as it is, without cold sores making it even harder. However there is no way I’d go on a new date with a cold sore.

Every big social event I have been to where I might possibly meet someone seems to have been ruined by a cold sore. I was a bridesmaid at my sister’s wedding which should have been a time when I might have had a good chance of meeting someone but instead I spent the whole time hiding away in a corner as I had a massive cold sore. They make me feel ugly and undermine my confidence.

I have tried everything over the years to get rid of my cold sores. I have tried all the usual medications like Virax, I even tried neat vodka on them once as I read this could help. Obviously it didn’t. I also tried freezing them with ice cubes. Nothing worked.

[quote]After my sister’s wedding and after cancelling several dates due to my cold sores, I decided I had to try and take control of my cold sores as they were ruining my chances of finding love. I began researching all the blogs about cold sores and eventually I found Liquorice Balm from Skin Shop.[/quote]

Several people with cold sores seemed to highly recommend it so I ordered a pot just to see if it worked for me. That was six months before I met my partner Rick.

Within weeks of using the Liquorice Balm I knew it was working. I was using it every day but if I felt the familiar tingling of a cold sore I’d put it on several times a day and to my amazement when the cold sore came it was much smaller than it usually was and only lasted a few days rather than weeks.

The next time was the same and also the time between my cold sore outbreaks was getting longer and longer. In the six month prior to meeting my partner Rick I barely had a cold sore and suddenly my life changed and my confidence grew.

I found I was much more sociable and less worried about agreeing to go to parties or social events. And dating somehow felt so much easier as I was confident that if I went on a date I would not have to worry about cancelling it and could simply look forward to it.

With my new found confidence I joined a new dating website and on my first weekend date I met Rick. That was two years ago and we’ve been together every since. My cold sores were never an issue either during our first dates or even once we began a relationship as I barely get them now and if I do I feel in control of them. I am much less stressed about them and if they do appear they are very small and they are gone within a few days.

[quote]There is no doubt that Liquorice Balm helped me find love as it restored my confidence and allowed me to enjoy dating without worrying about my cold sores.[/quote]

This year Rick took me on a romantic weekend to Cornwall for Valentines and we had  dinner at Rick Stein’s restaurant as we both love seafood. I had a great time  and the last thing on my mind was worrying about my cold sores, although of course I had my pot of Liquorice Balm with me at all times!"

For our review of Liquuorice Balm click here