Home : Health : Remedies : Cold sores : Drying up a cold sore

Drying up a cold sore

Once you have a cold sore they can linger for many days. Just sitting there on your lip, glowing! It is probably too late to try the tips on this page so what you want to try and do is get the sore to dry out and heal as fast as possible.

I have had the following tip sent to me that will actually dry up the sore. Making it heal in 2 to 3 days. It is advised that you be a little strong, as there can be a rather intense stinging.

Grind some table salt with the back of a teaspoon.  Moisten your index finger & dip it in the powdered salt.  Press the powder into the cold sore & hold it there for 30 seconds. Don't rinse.  It will be quite uncomfortable but if done twice a day for 2 - 3 days, the sore will dry up.

Visitors comments

This works great! Comments By: John on 2004-09-11 I have been using this method to dry those nasty suckers out for a few years now, works good!. :D   I agree! Comments By: anon on 2004-09-18 Drys them up much faster than any other method I have tried! And although there is some discomfort it feels good to know the pain is making the thing go away!   Wow Comments By: Katie on 2004-10-13 This worked amazing! Better than any product I have tried. I have recently tried this after my cold sore had become essentially full blown. I believe this says 2-3 times a day for a few minutes, but I kept it on as much as possible and it completly dried up in about 6 hours. There was no weeping at all and I was basically left with a small scab.   its helping Comments By: Anon on 2004-11-01 i hav had a cold sore for a couple of days and ive just read this method and i'm trying it now. it appears 2 b drying the coldsore out, it stings quite abit but i think if you keep applying the salt it will completely dry out.. im hoping this will help!   oh the pain Comments By: Anon on 2004-11-04 oh the pain..... it burns it burns......this better work (i can see this being a practical joke or something). it does seem to be working though.   hmmn Comments By: agatha on 2004-11-26 okay i'm typing with one hand as i'm doing this, it doesn't hurt SO bad....maybe i'm not doing it right. right now i have like 8 cold sores on top of one another, and i look pretty hot. lol. i hope this works.   Works great Comments By: kay on 2004-12-15 i had about 4 cold sores yesterday and it was the first day. i put the salt on them pretty much all day and today they are only little scabs. this works great, it really helps them heal fast.   Amazing! Comments By: Jos on 2005-01-01 Had 2 cold sores erupted on my bottom lip on Tuesday this week, they are now drying up and it's only Saturday 1st Jan 05 - 4 days later! Used the bleach tip for the first day (somewhat uncomfortable) and have been using the ground up salt (organic) for the remainder of the days - yes, there was a sting - it is an open sore after all but as long as you are determined to get rid of those blighters then you can put up with the discomfort for 30 seconds. My cold sores have never dried up so quickly - the last ones I had took over 3 weeks to go and have left me with scarring. I am now using the crushed up salt once a day - in the evening about an hour before bedtime. One word of advice though, make sure you wash your hands well before and after touching your cold sores and don't use yours or anyone else's towels anywhere near your mouth - you don't want anyone else in the family to get them and you certainly don't want to get a secondary infection (which will mean scarring) or re-infect yourself with more cold sores. Instead, if your mouth gets wet (after brushing your teeth for example), gently dab the cold sore with a piece of clean toilet paper or kitchen roll and dispose of safely.   This is working! Comments By: Amy on 2005-01-11 I put the salt on my lip last night and left it on overnight. This morning there is a very dark scab. Usually it takes days for my cold sores to scab over. I have had this cold sore for only a day and now it is healing. I am continuing the salt treatment and also taking advil to reduce the swelling.   cold sore Comments By: skk on 2005-01-31 Im about to try this...it better work...i got this cold sore this morning and i need it gone in 4 days before second semester starts!   We'll see Comments By: Anon on 2005-05-04 I just applied the salt on my cold sore and at first it didn't sting but now it is. That's ok though because I know that the stinging means that it's working on drying the cold sore out. YAY   If this don't work I'm comin for you Comments By: Q on 2005-06-20 I'm about to try this and I pray it works becuase today is Monday and I take my Senior Pictures on Saturday and this damn cold sore is huge.   ow Comments By: jacqui on 2005-11-11 i've had this HUGE cold sore since thursday night, it's saturday today. it has been swelling up so bad. i can't even talk properly. the swelling hasnt gone down, i tried ice but it only worked for about 20 minutes then it started swelling again. i'm trying the salt thing right now. it stings but i don't care because i want this stupid cold sore to go away! ugh. any tips on keeping the swelling down?   I'll try anything Comments By: Roxanne on 2007-01-29 I have a cold sore that has taken on a life of its own. It is fully swollen and a beautiful hue is brown! GROSS! I hate these things and I have a birthday party for my son tomorrow, I'm afraid I will scare away all the kids! I will try this right now! Hope it works.   Scar? Comments By: Rachel on 2007-02-07 Is this going to leave a scar...I've read a lot of other techiniques and it said some of them left scars.   Mother this works!!!! Comments By: Michelle on 2007-02-24 I have this huge cold sore on the corner of my mouth, really big blisters and using abreva was not working so i saw this and decided to try it and... this realy works and stings like the firey pits of hell (lol) but i hung in there and now i have a beautiful scab which i can live with. so who ever came up with this thank you, thank you thank you!! cheers   yes it stings !!!!! Comments By: DE on 2007-03-19 I am only 10 years old and had to try this to see if it works.Dont Know yet if its going to work but just to let you all know it does STING!!!   Working as we speak! Comments By: Krystal on 2007-05-23 I woke up yesterday and it was tingly. So i looked online and found 2 driffrent tips. One was for ice and te other was a boiled tea bag. The tea bag dried it out a LITTLE bit. But Im using the salt as I type and I can feel it working. Doesn't sting that bad. Dried up in a couple hours. Thanks alot!!   This better work! Comments By: Shannon on 2007-07-13 Ugh..ofcourse I have a really really good date today and I get this cold sore the other day! This is day 3 and it looks like I got hit with a baseball bat on my lip! UGH!!! So I put this salt on my lip and at first itwas just fine..not burning..but now I have tears in my eyes I feel like my lip is going to burn off! But no pain no gain! UGH...it hurts!!!   Owwwwwwwie Comments By: Anonoymous on 2007-07-15 I started to feel the cold sore coming Wednesday morning, and started noticing the bump. It was bothering me a little, but, like an idiot, thought nothing of it. Than Thursday morning came around, and it swelled up pretty big. I was really embarrassed about it in front of my boyfriend, because he's never had one in his life...Lucky him eh? (And I've had numerous throughout my lifetime). Anywho, of course my boyfriend notices, and I was scared to talk to him about it...he figured out what it was, and was all weirded out by it. (I haven't had one in the 3 years we've been going out). He's all scared about getting one, but it's Sunday now, and he hasn't gotten one, so I don't think he will. We stopped kissing of course, but we were sharing a pop the 2nd day I got it. But, as I've said before, he didn't get one. I'm so embarrassed about it, I won't go out anywhere, but I've got 2 interviews coming up, one tomorrow and one Tuesday... The swelling was SOO enormous, the first few days, but it's finally going down now. Than I wake up this morning, and see 3 little ones underneath my lip, but they're a WHOLE lot smaller. I could deal with the bigger one, since the swelling has gone down, but now, I've got 3 other ones to deal with. So I found this site, and I jumped up and crushed up the salt. Yes, it did sting a bit, but I'm really praying it's gonna work. Anything else I can do?   This really works!!!! Comments By: Anon on 2007-07-24 This is a great way to stop a fever blister in it's tracks!! My outbreaks usually last 2-3 weeks but this time it was gone in 2 days. The salt dries up the sore and begins the healing process. It did sting a little but not as bad as I expected. I even put salt on a band-aid and slept with it on the fever blister over night. It does leave a dark brown covering but with gentle scrubbing that is removed and an antibiotic ointment like Neosporin helps speed the healing. Thank you, thank you, thank you for posting this remedy. Next time I feel the spot tingling or burning I am using clorox or nail polish remover the instant I feel it coming on.   This better work! Comments By: Gillian on 2007-08-29 ouch this stings like hell! but hey if it works its worth it! Be prepared it WILL hurt.   omg they are so imbarrasin Comments By: emzie on 2007-10-08 opmg i hate these things i put slat on mine n it stung a lil but i think it works same wid me bf lol i couldnt look at him anywys thanx for tip hehe love u   good idea Comments By: Anon on 2007-10-15 this works really good. i just applied it to my sore. i also read tooth paste and vinegar works. so i then tryed mixing all 3 together and it dryed up in about 3 and a half hours. ( but just try not to lick your lips)   my girl f need me Comments By: kasey hanlon on 2007-11-01 it has to work   OMG Somethign sooo SIMPLE! WORKS! Comments By: Kitty Von English on 2007-11-06 I got a bloody cold sore under my bottom lip, which made it really not noticable. Kinda gave me a Angelina POUT though. ;) Haha. But I know that if I just left it, it would scab the day of me actually GOING OUT TO PARTY WITH MY GIRLS! (I have a one year old son, so this is exciting for me.) So I put the salt on the sore and it burned and tingled but I swear you can feel the sore drying up! I tried Nailpolish REMOVER but it really didn't do anything. So I'm gonna see if it clears up nicely for Saturday Night... my husband is bring me home ABREVA so hopefully that'll help too. Thank god for salt. Garlic helps too, it's an antibiotic, but usuing POLYSPORIN would probably work too without the stink. Thank god... I am so glad it'll be gone! Thanks!   Trying it now Comments By: Cat on 2007-11-27 I am currently stuck in bed nursing horrible flu-like symptoms with the mother of all cold sores. It stretches from my top lip to my nose like a 'Hitler' style moustache. Nothing is working on it and as it is already massive there's no point in trying any preventative tips. I've got the salt conconction on it as we speak. Yes it hurts and yes it burns - but I hope it's going to be worth it. I have already called in sick for tomorrow as well so I will continue to try it and let you know what happens!   i am gonna tri dis bi putting some on a warm wet tissue with soap on to relieve the pain. i am only Comments By: akash on 2007-11-27 i am gonna try this by putting salt on a warm wet sponge and applying i am 11 and had 3 sores   Valtrex is the answer Comments By: sue on 2007-11-29 Best thing for me was a Valtrex prescription. If you take it just when you notice the tingle, you won't get a cold sore, but even if taken within the first 48 hours helps to block the virus and minimize its duration. Since I began this treatment outbreaks have been few and far between. I keep my prescription in my purse at all times just in case, so I can take it as soon as I notice an itch or tingle.   not good Comments By: Steve on 2007-12-02 I tried this technique over night and by the morning my face had swelled up and the cold sore had started to form a scab after bleeding. It looked much worse for 2/3 days. The best cure for me is to be healthy, try not to get it wet and don't smile (that goes without saying).   Hoping this works!!!! Comments By: Yaya on 2008-02-04 I have been dealing with these sores for a couple years now, they come and go. It's so imbarrasing! but the only thing to do is apply salt as i read. I've tryied a lot of creams but don't really work. I have applied salt now and it burn like hell......so hopefully is worth the pain. (crossing fingers)   but im not even sickk.... Comments By: Big Jeffery on 2008-02-12 okay.. i've got semi formal in like 3 dayz.. n this stupid ugly thing came on my face near my lips... well.. doctor gave my sister this skin infection medicine... coz she got a cut.. n im eatin that too.. [todayz the first tym i've ever got this in my life]... so first it was very itchy n very tiny.. almost nothing there. n today its very big... well i din really try anything.. buh after readin this.. this is wat i did.. I PUT A LOT OF SALT AND PUT A BAND AID ON IT... its been stinging for like... the past hour lol... buh i can take it... anyway i hope it goes away in 3 dayz... dun want it on my face for semi formal.. inshallah it'll go away   I HOPE THIS WORKS! Comments By: Anon on 2008-02-21 okay well i woke up this morning and had a TINY little cold sore at the corner of my lip, no big deal i thought so i get ready for school and when i get to school everyone tells me what happened?! so i look in the mirror and that thing is HUGE IN A MATTER OF 2 HOURS!!! so i get home and i read the salt thing so i have it on right now, it stings but not extrmely too much, i hope this works by tomorrow morning because it is EXTREMELY embarassing for me to have this and i dont want my boyfriend to see it! (crossfingers!!)   ouccchh Comments By: aly on 2008-02-25 trying this right now.. it stings a lot after u hold the salt on there for 30 seconds do u just let the salt sit on ur coldsore? when do u wash it off? TipKing says: The tip says 'do not rinse' so I would say that it is saying leave the salt residue on there as long as possible.   To scar, or not to scar? Comments By: Vampire Knight on 2008-05-02 Does this technique leave any specifc scarring?   omg i hope it works Comments By: mallory on 2008-05-05 well ive had the ugly cold sore for about a week and it still hasnt healed after putting alot of cream on it. so im doing the salt thing right now and it burns but i also feel a throbbing feeling too, is that normal? god i hope it works. =/   Seems to work Comments By: victoria on 2008-05-13 Ok, i hve a date today (wednesday) and i've had a cold sore since sunday (hts when i felt the iitial tingling) i've been using Zorirax - doesn't seem to be helping. Used this in desperation. Seems to work. Only done it once so far for 2 minutes, but aleady the coldsore seems a bit smaller. Awesome. Gonna do it couple more times before tonight. Doesn't hurt as much as i thought. And i'm the biget baby out there -especially when it oes to inflicting pain on myelf!   Does this work ? Comments By: James on 2008-05-23 Im not sure whether this actually works, iv tried saxo salt and crushed it up but im still not sure whether it does the trick cos i can feel a sting but its not really that bad and also the details arnt really that clear e.g how long to leave the salt on for when its a full blown cold sore,   sting? Hmmm Comments By: Stefani on 2008-05-26 I like this tip. It's fast, easy, and cheap. It is on my lip right now, and it a little hard to not lick your lips; esp if you like salt! Sting? I've had four babies; so not a problem for me! Suck it up :) I'm going to leave it on as much as possible, and I can feel it working. I woke up w/ the blisters this morning, and I have a nice botox look going on. Only the first day w/ a blister, because I didn't have anything but polish remover and carmex for overnight treatment. In between; I will also use neosporin; as I've heard how wonderful this is for healing as well. Good luck to us ALL!   hmmmmmm not sure Comments By: brit on 2008-06-15 im scared why do they say aviod salty foods? but yet everyone says it works and your sticking salt in the wound!!!   yhhh maaaan Comments By: Anon on 2008-06-02 this is actually pretty goood, my cold sore is pretty huge so i wna reduce the size of it....i am ashamed 2 look at my gf or go out newer because of it..but now hopefully this will work..considering i hav to go out 2moro!   OUCH!!!!!!! Comments By: Linda on 2008-06-11 Had this sore for over 1 week now and really getting me down so willing to try anything!!!. Found this advice and presently sitting typing with lip throbbing like mad....I really hope this works!   hoping it works (DALE) Comments By: Dale McDermott on 2008-06-12 this beter work...ther r a lot of positive comments here so im staying optimistic. aint stingin so bad...yet   Hoping This Works! Comments By: Tonya on 2008-06-13 So, I spent too much time in the sun at the beach the other day and low and behold my mouth is now circled all the way around with fever blisters! I have been using Aveeno oatmeal bath along with Campophenique and this crap has not so much as budged. I'm getting desperate because it hurts so bad and my whole face is swollen. I'm going to put salt on one side at a time so I don't put myself into shock and I will let you know how it turns out. Thanks for the tip if nothing else.   Valtrex Comments By: MJI on 2008-06-21 I still can't believe some Doctor can't find a cure for this horrible virus,i breakout 3-4 times a year and miss up to 3 days of work at a time,however Valtrex does help.   i hope this works!! Comments By: catrina on 2008-07-09 i think i've tried every remedy in the book and they all seem to make my coldsore worse and cause it to spread :( so i went back to using Zovirax cream which works ok, but not quick enough! i can't believe there is still no cure for them, i hope that day comes soon! i'm going to try this anyway, i'm not looking forward to the stinging, but its all good if its worth it!   Possible Cure Comments By: cold sore sufferer for YEARS on 2008-07-11 Did anyone else here about the possible cure? Does it make anyone else get that giddy feeling? like we won't have to go through these painful, tingling, swelling, deforming, depressing cold sores anymore? I can't get over it!! Last night I started using polysporin anti ich lotion. It really helped with the tingling pain. Now I am about to attempt salt. I am hoping in six hours this will be gone- dreamer- maybe a little bit!!   ... Comments By: madi on 2008-07-12 well I'm about to try this, but i'm a little hesitant. I've had cold sores since i was about four, and i get about one every other month or so. they suck. I should have known that this most recent one was coming. i got my wisdom teeth oout on tuesday. And it just popped up yesterday (fri) morning. I take valtrex, which usually helps, but it doesnt do much if the blister has already developed. My cheeks are finally almost normal looking, and i owuld like to get back to having a life. So i'm hoping this works... if not i will be upset.   ugh... Comments By: dummymummy on 2008-07-16 didnt even know i had a cold sore cuz ive never had one before so i though it was a crazy pimple or something when it first started. spent the first day trying to "pop" it till i figured out it wasnt even a zit... somebody told me it looked all gross like a coldsore so i looked it up and yeh tingling and whatnot. i guess it is. gross. now im all freaked out my son or partner will get infected. plus, everybody at work is staring at me like i'm a discusting freak. i feel like a discusting freak. i hope this works cuz if it doesnt im pretty sure im gonna crawl under somthing and die. i dont know how ppl deal with these on a regular basis. the thought of ever having to deal with it again makes me feel like vomiting.   cold sores suck Comments By: Trish on 2008-07-26 I have had cold sores for the past three years. I havnt had one for a year now cuz i usually catch them in time by using abreva when i feel that stupid "tingle." I HATE cold sores. Seriously i feel like a leper and feel like everyone is looking at it. I have really big lips and everyone always tells me how they like them and normally draw attention but when i get these effing things they for sure dont go unnoticed. I seriously feel disgusting. I too want to crawl under a rock and die. I find it interesting that everyone feels the same way when they get them. Why cant people just accept cold sores and they can just become a new trend?! Oh well i guess ill just be a freak. Mine wont seem to dry up they just get that white puss on them like when u have a scab and go in the pool. When i get out of the shower it is horrible and once i wiped it when back to a big gash again and i felt like i was starting back from the beg. Well i hope this works i dont care how bad it feels. I agree having a scab is better than any other stage as long as it dosnt break open and bleed. Thats always fun when your out and someone tells you that your cold sore is bleeding! AHHHHHH. How come doctors have not cured this?! What are they doing? The day that happens i will be the happiest girl alive. My boyfriend kissed me even with my cold sore and i begged him not and he said he didnt care. Poor guy, has no idea what he got himself into. This has got to be the worst thing in the whole world. Sadly i have no advice as to what can cure this the fastest. Unless you catch it at the tingle stage your pretty much screwed for AT LEAST a week. Say goodbye to any social plans you had!   OW IT STINGS Comments By: Stevie on 2008-08-02 I just put it on and its stinging like hell. OWWW IT STRIGS... Hopefully this means its working because if not im gonna come round there and put table salt in your eyes! HEHE only joking..   OUCH OUCH Comments By: COCOALVR on 2008-08-15 OMGOODNESS THAT FRACKIN HURTS!!!! WHO THE HELL THOUGHT OF THIS HONESTLY... I THINK ITS WORKING....DOES SETTING UR LIP ON FIRE AND BURNING A HOLE IN IT COUNT AS WORKING THOUGH??? HOLY SALT IN THE WOUND!   haha Comments By: Bo on 2008-08-20 I'm starting to think there should be a club for people with cold sores :P I'm about to try this . I find perfume helps alot with drying it out   PLease PLease PLease! Comments By: An on 2008-08-23 My goodness! It does hurt like hell! But i am willing to take ANY, ANY FORM of pain, because I have a YEARBOOK photoshoot in a few days. YEARBOOK guys. can u just imagine how mortifying it'll be to have that FOREVER there!? Please please work. I've tried it three times already tonight, and hopefully when i wake up, it'll be gone.   pop it first? Comments By: kandy on 2008-08-28 my whole bottom lip is swollen with the mother of all cold sores. i had to call into work today because of the humiliation..also because i work with the public, so the last thing i need to do is flash this bad boy around for all to see. anyway- should i drain it before i put the salt in it? that sounds like it would hurt like a mother, but maybe itll work faster? and do you let the salt sit on the sore, or grind it in there? im desperate for the answer. my crush of a year just proclaimed his love to me, and ill be seeing him this week...fantastic freaking timing. but- thanks guys for the salt remedy, im trying it for sure! and a seriously heartfelt f-ing prayer goes out to you all with cold sores. this sht is brutal.   ice ice salt baby Comments By: g on 2008-09-02 This damn thing..jus ruined my life..further more I work at a hospital..so if I go register a patient..their gonna take one look at thee lip and scorn me..smdh..trying the salt..hmmph..trying the salt..I feel like the phantom of the opera...cause im damn sure not going anywhere..until this monstrosity..is unnoticeable.   Trying it now... Comments By: Me on 2008-09-07 I hope this works for me! I have a huge lip right now and abreva isn't working as quickly this time. I think it is working some as the surface of my lip has a little scab but the lip itself is still big and swollen. So I am trying this salt remedy... I will post my results in another comment   You guys need to try THIS!!!! Comments By: Slammy on 2008-09-30 Folks, if you suffer from cold sores you need to go to your health food store and buy a supplement called Lysine. I take it when ver I feel run down, and also at the first sign of a cold sore, be that tingling, or the initial small bump. It's stopped most of my outbreaks in their tracks and usually, a blister won't even form. Even if you do have a blister it cut down the healing time by a number of days, so it's always worth having some Lysine around - I usually carry some in my work bag. Take a couple of tablets as a preventitive measure, but if you feel a cold sore coming on, then you ramp the dose up to around 6 or 7 a day.   Pricking the prick Comments By: Anon on 2008-10-21 Lysine never did anything for mine. I agree with the girl who said that she pricks it. I do the same thing, and mine are barely noticeable afterward. I just look for the tiny bump slowly filling up with liquid, and I take a sterilized sewing needle and poke it gently from the underside of it, and dab with a tissue to get out the rest of the fluid, and then I get into the shower to clean up, and wash it gently and dry it after. This has worked for me for many years now. I have been getting them ever since I was, I believe 7 years old. I remember when I first started getting them, my mom used to have me put on campho phenique, and sometimes Carmex, which never did anything for them. Later on, she had me use Lysine, both tablets and topical, and nothing. When I got older, they seemed to get worse, with hormonal changes and stress. I find that if you let it go for too long, then it just gets bigger, and bigger, and bigger, until it looks like you have this big, shiny friend on your lip. Abreva only let it get progressively bigger, but drier, and it didn't speed the healing at all. Ice only delays the agony, and household cleaners such as Lysol that say, "Kills herpes simplex virus", don't work either. (yes this is something I've tried in my desperation)I do intend on trying the salt technique though. This is something I surprisingly haven't tried.   y me Comments By: anon on 2008-10-25 i feel sooo i really don't no the feeling i go to school wit a fever blister and everybody keep sayin u have herpes it really hurts me but i'm thinkin like how did i get herpes i have a boyfriend but i don't kiss him.some of u may think i do but i don't like kissing.i cry because it don't go away and i no i got to go to school and deal with peer persure for another day. i'm only 15 idk wat to do   Aaaahhh............Here Goes! Comments By: Angel of Death on 2008-10-28 I bloody hate having a coleslaw. I do hope this works! I have a feeling it will be more effective than ye'olde aftershave technique. Another thing, Zovirax (chemist/prescription cream) etc. are pathetic, they always seem to do very little in every stage of the vile, vexatious virus. Although i have not tested this method, after an overall review of all the rating's above, i have decided to give this a 4.   Awesome Comments By: Infamous Butcher on 2008-10-29 Excellent method. Fully recommended!!   salt good for spider bites, too Comments By: Kellie on 2008-11-03 Salt also works very well to treat spider bites. I tried it on my mother-in-law's spider bite on her arm, it was GONE the next day, it works on the same theory. It dries up the tissues, and extracts the poisons.   try APPLE CIDER VINEGAR Comments By: christine on 2008-11-12 ive been dealing with cold sored my entire life. yes salt does work but ive found a more effective way to get rid of it. u can either poke the cold sore with a needle to get the pus out. hold a tissue on the popped sore until it stops leaking. then take a cotton ball or peice of tissue dipped in apple cider vinegar and tape it to the cold sore. leave it there for at least an hour. when u take the tissue off, the cold sore will look white and puffy. let it air dry. if its a bad cold sore, do this a couple times a day. the acv will dry it out and kill it. u dont have to pop the cold sore if u dont want to. i find it just works faster. good luck!   Im trying it...... NOW!!!! Comments By: Meg on 2008-11-12 OK.. yea it stings, but that stinging that you love thinking its going to work.. BEAUTY IS PAIN PEOPLE!!! BEAUTY ISSS PAIN! Well I hope it works. Its still stinging, but not alot.. and I sure pressed onto it for like 2 min. Thanks for the advice.. i will let you kjnow it if works. I have someone to impress tomorrow so i hope the swelling atleast reduces.   result! Comments By: JimBob on 2008-11-15 crushed up salt and toothpaste works well at night i must say but also if u want to help the coldsore dry up during the day without walking around with toothpaste on ur lip deodarant works too. also take b complex and vitamin c to speed up healing time   Trying this as I type Comments By: HerpesFace McGee on 2008-11-20 I read all the comments and thought I would give it a try. I dont know if it is going to work or not but I will post back about the results. I got my Gigantic cold sore yesterday when I woke up, and it got bigger and bigger all day!!. I took lysine, vitamin c, put a tea bag on it, Advil and sleep. Still there this morning so I am doing the salt trick. I do not get these very often but when I do they take over my lip and it's gross!!   TWO WORDS Comments By: IN PAIN on 2008-11-21 TWO MOTHER F-ing words......IT HURTS!!!! There is a reason why pouring salt in a wound is a world known painful experience.   givin it a go Comments By: anon on 2008-11-25 suffered from cold sores my entire life. Didnt no there where so many other people who HATE them as much as me! when i get them i just wana cawl into a hole and stay there until its gone. Had a job interview this morning and woke up with one on my lip and one comin just below my nose (JESUS I HATE THEM THE MOST, like a hitler!) then another one came on my bottom and i now have one comin on my chin! its the worst attack every! tried a few cremes and i just am in total depression at the minute as they are all over my mouth and i look like a freak! so found the salt idea and am giving it a go. its stinging alright so hopin it works. just leaving the salt on the blister at the minute might y poping it but dono if i will or not. good to see am not alot in how i feel about the bloody things! sooner they get a cure the better! I HATE THESE THINGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!   I hate these bloody things! Comments By: Dani on 2008-12-03 Ive had cold sore all my life, im 20 and ive tried so many things. I used to pop them with a sterile needle and dab dettol on them, which kind of worked, but once it got really infected so I havent done it since. I started taking lysine and It really cuts down how often I get them. I still get them when I'm run down and I have 2 now! Ive been rubbing aloe vera on them which really speeds up the healing once they've started to dry up. I'm trying the salt thing now to make it dry up quickly, it came up yesterday and i have an eventful weekend planned. I hope this works!   Ow!?!??! Comments By: Amelia on 2008-12-02 Ok, so I got 2 MASSIVE cold sores and I hate them so I searched some home remedies to get rid of them. I just came across this one and I am trying it... and I must say that it is stinging like a bastard! This better work! lol   owwwww Comments By: whitney on 2008-12-06 omg i just applied the salt on the cold sore and at first it didnt sting but right now my lip is burning oh it hurts   Hate these things! But this works!! Comments By: Brandi on 2008-12-14 Well firstly I read alot on using nail polish remover or bleach, and although I hate cold sores as much as the next person, I refuse to put something like that on my kissers lol. But what I did do that made the pain go away and felt oh so good was a hot green tea bag(i've also heard black, peppermint also)for about 20 mins, jus kept gettin it hot in water and pressing it on my top lip. Then after a ten min break I melted an ice cube on it. Made it hurt pretty good so next time I'm skipping that step. Since I'm snowed in I am alternating with toothpaste and lemon extract(anything to dry it up that is not a household chemical!) It's drying up and pain free!!   oh mama! Comments By: someone who knows on 2008-12-15 oh the burn! oww! oww! oww!it hurts but i guess its working. ok it kind of feels better now. beauty is pain....beauty is pain.   table salt Comments By: anon on 2008-12-22 can u use table salt??????   THIS WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE.. Comments By: Ava Marie on 2008-12-28 I have suffered with embarrassing Cold Sores since i was 8 years old; i am now 23. I usually get 2-3 a year. When i have one, i feel like my social life is completely ruined. I am one of the unlucky ones who doesn't feel any tingle, burn, itchy sensation before one pops up, I usually just wake up and..BAM..there it is. I just want to crawl back in my bed and hide under the covers for a week! I am certain you all know my pain! At one of my recent doctor visits (unrelated) I asked about Cold Sores and what the best methods for prevention are. STOP USING ABREVA... it is a waste of your money. Yes, it is one of the top sellers as an "on the shelf" product.. but, it is truly crap! My doc prescribe me Zovirax, it has worked wonders..You have to apply it ASAP..as soon as you notice those nasty itty bitty bumps. Just keep lathering it on! If you didn't catch it in time and it as emerged into a full blown nasty cold sore, here is what has helped me in the past: ICE IT..for as long as you can, get that swelling and redness down... First, i get a pin (clean it, soak it in alcohol, or pour boiling water over it) then gently poke the sore to drain all that fluid out. Make sure you have a tissue on hand to dab it all away (YOU DONT WANT TO SPREAD IT ANYWHERE!!) Get all that fluid OUT! Pour a bit of mouthwash, or rubbing alcohol on to a Q-tip and hold it on to the drained blister. This will sting a tad, but its the least of your problems, right!? Apply more Zovirax on it, all day if you can. If you dont have any Zovirax prescribed to you, then i recommend drying it out with the alcohol or mouthwash. DO NOT put Salt on it.. this has never worked for me, all it did was make it HUGE and way way WORSE. It actually turned my semi-scab WHITE...i think it was on the verge of becoming infected. The Salt literally fried my skin. Also, same applies with toothpaste..stay away! Next... If you don't have any Zinc tablets on hand, RUSH out and get some! Take Zinc twice a day... Zinc builds up your immune system and helps with healing. IT WORKS WONDERS. You can also try crushing up a Zinc tablet with a spoon and mixing it with a few drops of water, apply the paste to sore. Take tons and tons and tons of L-Lysine (ITS A MIRACE SENT FROM GOD!) You should see results in 2-4 days tops. When i don't have a cold sore, i take L-Lysine, 1 pill, every single night before i go to bed... you can find it at Walmart, Health food store..ect. I hope this works for you all. it changed my life. BUY L-LYSINE..take one everyday.. you will not be dissapointed. God Bless.   Trying right now Comments By: Aaron on 2009-01-29 Today at work I started feeling one on the bottom lip, in the middle (where lip meats skin) then one in the left corner of my mouth. I put some GermX on it to kill bacteria, and now I'm trying this, I'm leaving the salt on here, its kinda stings, but I want them gone!!!   omggggggg ! Comments By: anon on 2009-01-13 if this doesnt help im gona be sooo mad. i just used up almost all of our table salt hoping i could get these THREE cs to go away by tomorrow. my top lip is HUGE and sooo embarrassing. i even tried the pee method !! thats how bad it is !   hoping... Comments By: tim on 2009-01-15 im doing this as we speak... and it stings so much i feel like crying! but at first my sore was half blister half gooey... gross. and im not seeing anything yet... but im gonna do this as many times as i can today because im going out with my boyfriend tomorrow who i havent seen in a while. so ill comment this again in a couple of hours and let you all know !   Salt and peroxide work! Comments By: veronica on 2009-02-25 I never had to deal with cold sores until about a year and a half ago. I had no idea what it was under my lip...on my upper chin. I though it was a break out so I tried to pop it and treat it like acne. This made it way worse I was in so much pain I could not sleep. For weeks and weeks I had this thing on my face until It finally dried up. Abreva really didn't do anything for me. Just two days ago, one popped up in the same spot but this time I found this site with a buch of tips and I used peroxide and salt at night. When I woke up this morning, my cold sore is pretty much a scab and is in the healing phase. I think the salt works wonders and the peroxide is great to because it helps to clean it. Also, ice really helps with the swelling and the pain.   hmmm Comments By: tanya on 2009-02-25 i just applied this remedy and it does sting but is worth it. ill keep applying over the next couple days and i hope it dries out :) im so sick of cold sores. i get them every yr and there's nothing i can do about it.   cold sores are death. Comments By: ME on 2009-03-02 i literally used to get cold sores all the time, and i hadn't gotten one for 3 years. Then this morning it just popped up out of no where..and im pissed cause i feel hidous and embarrassed when i get them. I just tried the salt and it really didn't sting that bad, so i hope its still working. I;m gonna try the sterilized needle thing, even though i feel like thats gonna hurt like hell. I'll do whatever it takes..i didnt realize so many people hated them as much as me :) If anyone has any tips to cover it up let me know, cause going to high school with a cold sore is a nightmareee.   Dam!! Comments By: inspector yash on 2009-03-04 woke up this morning with a golf ball on my lip so i am trying the salt method. never had a cold sore before and i hope it never comes back but i need to get rid as my girl is coming back and i am not in the mood for what have u been doing while i was away looks. The salt stings slightly probably more so as i dabbed with dettol before applying salt on a band aid ah well lets hope for the best   it must be doing something Comments By: Donna on 2009-03-06 I have contacted this stupid cold sore from my ex-husband 15 years ago. It pops up whenever I am stressed. I have two huge cold sores that are now scabs--but...they keep opening and re-scabbing. It is a pain. I take Valtrex--a prescription medicine as soon as I get that tingling feeling--but, this time the Valtrex did nothing. I am trying the salt remedy--it stings--but I will do anything--fire if need be....I have a reunion in a week, and I have already had this for a week. So...we will see. Thanks for the tip.   Cold sores are about the worst Comments By: Tina on 2009-03-09 Thanks so much....I have a cold sore now and I'm so mad and depressed so I'm going to the kitchen right now to try this method! I am so much hoping this works for me. : )   it hurts Comments By: pink on 2009-03-15 all i know the salt thing hurts and i so want this gone because i need to go to school 2 morrow pleas make this work   Question Comments By: Carley on 2009-03-16 Ok so i havent done this yet but im prolly gonna but before you do it do u have to like break open the cold sore or like prick it so that the salt gets into it???   Stinging... Comments By: Toni on 2009-03-20 So, I'm hoping I did this right. Am I suppost to rinse it off after 5 minutes or leave it?   It may work Comments By: Liz on 2009-03-24 Well I just got 3 cold sores last night. I've been putting ice on them ever since, it has kept the swelling down and helped it dry up. I've also been taking Lysine supplements and vitamin C (it was only $4 and is good for your skin). I also got some Valtrex. Valtrex works the best, even though its about $70 but my other methods have been working pretty good, lets hope it continues. Cold sores take time to heal, so be patient, stress never helps keep that ice on them so they don’t swell up. I might try the salt thing. I heard baking soda and water mixed together, put on the cold sore for a few a minute and washed off can help. But it hurts to much for me.   healed Comments By: inspector yash on 2009-03-23 i tried the salt remedie and sure enough the cold sore dried out and scabbed over however the scabb took at least a week and half to dry out and then left me with a pinkish blotch which only now i am slowly getting my original lip colour back. The healing process took far to long   amazing Comments By: Anon on 2009-03-27 Okay. First i have to say that you guys made me feel so much better..i have a few coldsores right now and they are disgusting and frankly make you want to hide. But after reading how everyone is going through the same nasty thing..it kinda makes you feel better. So thanks! But yah..im trying the salt remedy as we speak and I really hope it works..and QUICK! goodluck everyone :)   Does this actually work?! Comments By: Laurenn X on 2009-04-04 I wanna try it like now, im wanting to go out tonight, monday night, tuesday night, wednesday night, thursday night! But this damned coldsore thought it could just come out! OMG, i was sat here with a ice cube (in the shape of a beer bottle!!) against my lip, i used two, and it hasnt gone down, its just stopped the tingling, a good start, i want to try this but im scared it will make it worse cause were all different so different things work for different people. Oh god if this doesnt work im going to CRY! No pain no gain :D - Will say what happened once i have gone through with it! Wish Me LUCK! XX   yes it does work Comments By: cindy on 2009-04-17 the salt helps if you already have small blistering but releve is great to prevent them from coming out at all. salt is great for an outbreak though   oh help me!!! Comments By: lidi on 2009-04-19 ok my little sister had a friend round (how sweet) Not. she had red lumps all around her lips and they looked nasty but when my mum told my sister to ask her what they were all she said was they are scratches, scratches!!!! yeh right. well now I have come up with this little red lump about the size of a pencil led and it's quite painful. So I say to my sister thoes things on your friends mouth were not scratches and she denied it so my mum called her mother up and asked her what they were and it turns out they were cold sores. Lucky me. So it is sunday and I'm supposed to be going to school tommorrow and if it gets worse I will scream before they make me go in. Anyway right now I feel like s#*t. So please just remember we are all in this together   SALT AND VINEGAR Comments By: Hannah on 2009-04-26 Everyone says to use all these remedies as soon as you feel the tingle, however for some reason i never feel a tingle, my cold sore just appears!! I have tried absolutly EVERYTHING to try to get rid of my cold sores - ice, nail varnish remover, nail varnish, garlic, toothpaste, zovirax, salt, vinegar.. seriously you name it i've tried it! Anyway.. my point is that out of all these remedies.. the ONLY one to work is mixing vinegar with salt! It works a charm and my cold sore is in the healing process with a scab after a day of using it! Salt is the main one to use, i just use vinegar to make it easier to apply the salt as it makes a sort of paste Of course it is going to hurt a little (salt in the wound and all that) but if you're anything liek me youll do ANYTHING to get rid of it! i applied it with a cotton pad and pressed it up against my lip, sometimes for a short amount of time, sometimes for longer, i wasnt specific. i also just used table salt with normal fish and chip vinegar! Hope this helps! Good luck!   ummm Comments By: joe on 2009-04-26 wow guys and gals we are in this together and just smile love life and not let this ruin our social lives   This seems to work for me Comments By: Lily on 2009-04-29 I had a coldsore pop up on Monday morning. I found putting ice on it made it swell more. Tea bags do not work. I put a bit of acyclovir and abreva on it about every 2 hours. I read this on Monday after work, so I washed it with some soap and water, and popped it with a sterilized needle and put tissue on it immediately, otherwise I learned it spreads and more pop up. I dabbed it with a q-tip soaked in rubbing alcohol, then put the salt/water mixture on my lip. I left it on for about an hour, brushed it off when dry and did it again. I did this about 3 times. Before bed I washed it with soap and warm water, and dabbed it with alcohol again, followed by a bit of the acyclovir, and a thick layer of the abreva. I woke up Tuesday morning and did the salt water thing again, and washed it, and rubbed in the acyclovir and abreva and went to work. I continued to put the abreva on about every 2 hours. I did the salt water thing again when I went home for lunch, followed by washing and abreva, and same thing after work. I continued with the acyclovir and abreva through the evening. I didn't do the salt water last night cause I was out, but I woke up this morning and have continued with the salt water and abreva. Its only Wednesday, but it just looks like a few small bug bites on my lip. It's not swollen, my bf hasn't even noticed, but I did avoid him Monday. As for vitamins Mon morning I took 2 vit c, 2 tylenol, 1 zinc, 1 vit b12, and 2 l-lysine, mom nite I took 2 more l-lysine. Tuesday morning I took 2 vit c, 2 tylenol, 1 zinc, 1 vit b12, and 1 l-lysine and 1 l-lysine at night. I am continuing with Tuesdays pills till completely gone.   i dono Comments By: Gitty on 2009-05-10 I just put salt on ONE of my cold sores. I Have two. It's aready been days since i had them and there already kinda dry and scabby but have gaps, one was bleeding. So i put salt on the one that was bleeding earlier and it decently stings ha. It's already been a couple minutes and it's still stinging lol. I dono if this will work.. I feel like now i just irritated and angered it and will pay now. It sucks having to ditch school cus of cold sores. I missed 2 days last week and don't plan on going tomorow (Monday) Yup this is sucks. Hope it dries it up and falls off or something   ugh! Comments By: ouch on 2009-05-22 i have been getting cold sores since i was4 and now when i get them my face erupts like Mt. St. Helens! it looked like dry skin below my lips yesterday and then totally took over. I have nice full lips normally and try to walk around pouting so you can't notice what it is. it already burns because i popped it and put abreva on it. (that works sometimes if you catch it at the right time) I can't wait to leave work and try this. My boyfriend (who has never seen me with one and I don't know if he's ever had one) want sto come over and I won't let him! try explaining that one! Isn't it horrible that we have to be ostrasized (sp?) for no fault of our own? It's not fair, I feel like a leper!   First Timer.... Comments By: Lena on 2009-05-25 I'm putting one star for now and will return if I get results! I hope all these comments are acurate!! I just put the salt on...I've read elsewhere about this remedy and you don't need to grind. I wet my finger, put it on. But at first it did nothing. but NOW It's tingling and throbing like now other. Of course it's tolerable nothing that you need to hold someones hand to take the pain. I hope this works!! Fingers Crossed, and I will be back for my results ;) :)   Fat bottom lip!!! Comments By: Mr. Reno on 2009-06-04 I am glad I came across this site. I woke up this morning and my left side bottom lip was sort of puffy. Not that bad, but a bit swollen where you could feel it with your tongue. I believe mines was caused by two things. Number 1: I shaved my face with an unclean razor and didnt realize that I didnt change it. Anyway, after shaving in the shower, I got out and started going over my chin and bottom lip area to get those stubborn stubbles of hair. After about 2 hrs later, I saw little white bumps appear around the bottom of my lip area in the left corner of the lips lining. Usually when this happens, I ignore it and continue shaving everyday and it goes away. This time, I actually put a razor bump treatment on the pimple like sores. BAD IDEA.. This ointment was only for razor bumps on your neck. I put it on the outbreak near my bottom lip lining hoping the bumps would vanish. Well, it was the next day that I noticed the bottom lip swelling. Right now, the little white head looking bumps have seem to disappear a little, but my bottom lip is still a bit swollen and the 2 small bumps under my lip are now red and not white pimple looking. I beleive shaving with a bad razor under my lip area is what caused this to start off as pimples. Then when I applied the razor bump ointment on the pimples, thats when all hell broke loose. Now im sitting here at day 2 with a fat bottom left lip with two small tiny red bumps underneathe the lining of my lip. I did the Beynadril thing as well as Abreva and still no help. I did the the ice bag thing but still no help. Now I will try this salt remedy to see if it works. I will let all you folks know my outcome. Keep in mind fella's that you can cause this problem from shaving around your chin and lip area with a bad razor!   Wow... Seems to work! Comments By: Michelle on 2009-06-05 I got the mother of cold sores from too much sun the other day and am in serious pain. Can't even talk right...lol... Anyway, trying this tip as I type and I can acutally see it drying up. Awesome!   going to give it ago:) Comments By: roxane on 2009-06-09 im going to try this as people all say it works great another tip ive been doing which works stright after i did it is : get a bowl put a little bit of milk into it , get a cotton ball and sock it into the milk apply it to your cold sore as many times as you can in one day it dosent get rid of it but it takes the redness down and dosent seem as big :) works for me , and hopfully the salt with get rid of it :)   owwwww!!!! Comments By: DIINA on 2009-06-10 wow I went to the beach on sunday and got SUNBURNTTT!!! ofcourse now i have like 7 cold sores 5 on my top lip and like 2 on my bottom..omgggg its stingsss soooo baddd but if they go away itsss worth it. It better go away because i looke like a ogre!! =(   ?? Comments By: ColdsoresSUCK! on 2009-06-14 Does anyone know if it helps to put salt on it after it's scarring? I got it on Tuesday and it's now Sunday. It's at the scabbing phase but i don't want to pull it off as it could bleed. Would salt help the scab heal or fall off naturally without scarring? Please help!   oookay... Comments By: chrissy on 2009-06-13 this hurts like hell! it better work cuz its 11 a.m. and i have a date tonite!!!!!!!!!!!!   my cold sore popped Comments By: jhan jhan on 2009-06-15 and this method seems to dry it up... i hope i dries up all... =)   OMG ITS MY FIRST COLDSORE EVER AND I WANT TO SCREAM CUZ IT HURTS!!! Comments By: ME on 2009-06-17 Ever since I started my menstruation cycle my skin has been very bad and scary like I never went through acne and I never went through the PAIN OF CRAMPS FOR LIKE TWO YEARS LOL LUCKY ME!!! but anyways i was so scared like i didnt know what to do... So all this time I have basically been depressed calling my self slut and stuff because i thought i had some uncurable form of like an std or herpes.... and i am so scared now... cuz i tried the toothpaste idea and the toothpaste was so strong that i literally wanted to die my whole lip was like cut up and bleeding like i scraped it on concrete. Never doing that again and it made the pimple hurt at first the pimple didnt hurt or anything now it is sensitive whenever i touch it. I tried cocoa butter but holy cow i look like a grease monkey now... i mean i love cocoa butter but it didnt do anything but make my lips pretty everwhere but in that spot. :( well now im going to try the salt idea hope it works lol. :)   PLEASE HELP Comments By: MEL on 2009-06-27 I to have been getting cold sores since I was a child. I usually get them about 3 times a year. My mom has told me to trying various ointments. I have tried them and nothing really seems to work well. I am glad I found this site and it is good to know that I am not alone. This does make you feel like an outcast. IT IS TOTALLY EMBARRASSING. I had to do some shopping today and I hate being asked questions because it draws attention to your lip. I would rather just write notes on a notepad and give it to the person I am in dialogue with. I am praying and crossing my fingers that this will help. I'll let you know   We Shall See.... Comments By: Ouuuch on 2009-06-30 I'm currently trying this, and let me tell you, it sure as hell stings. But, at this point I'm willing to try anything! I called in sick to work and skipped class yesterday and stayed couped up in my room---I can't do another two days of that! I'll let you know how this works out....   we'll soon find out... Comments By: h8er on 2009-07-01 I get cold sores regularly, always just under my nose/ above my lip which looks great... anyway I got this one on Monday morning, normally I use a cream called fenistil at very first signs which prevents any cold sore appearing at all but this one got through over night! The cream is not helping, I have been trying hot teabags on the sore and now the salt, which does sting but I'm willing to give it a go seeing as so many of you reccommend it! I think once you get to the ugly blistery scab stage the creams are useless and it needs to dry out to heal up so anything that can speed this process up has gotta be good...right? If I was a scientist I would work on a cure for cold sores....   OMG THIS STINGS SO BAD Comments By: why the eff me? on 2009-07-01 but it's fourth of july and I can't see my boyfriend and his family with a cold sore! I know better too, I spent a lot of noontime in the sun over the weekend. DANGED UV RAYS. it was a monster, lysine did not even help AT ALL, just a huge cluster of blisters, that popped, and left a yellow scabby thing, when I tried vyoxin. Just too big to handle!   Answer please Comments By: erin on 2009-07-06 no one has answered this. But how long do I leave the salt on before rinsing? I dont want to take my face off here and thats what it feels like!   Does Work. Comments By: Kylie on 2009-07-08 I have had coldsores forever. And this works!!! Salt really does dry it up! Sure it's painful, but like everyone said, it feels good to know the pain is making it go away.. =)   ??? EXPLAIN! Comments By: Anon on 2009-07-10 I haven't tried this tip yet but this information may suprise you. I bought an airhead extreme yesterday and my first coldsore EVER popped up immediatly after I had one bite and I'm NOT alergic to airheads! WHY? I've had it yesterday and today now and am using carmex it stings! Maybe I'll try this...   PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE Comments By: darla. on 2009-07-13 hey, I hope this works. for a few weeks I've been planning this holiday to see my cousins and yesterday i awoke to a cold sore that goes from the crese in my lip to half way down my chin. It's so dicomforting and completley got my confidence down, it's tuesday night and im going to try this, im going to see my cousins on friday and i was hoping (since i havent seen them in years) that they would see me as a pretty girl, but now i have this, it's roughly going to heal on about tuesday and i was hoping that someone else could give me some other advice on what to use incase this doesn't, i would really apprecitae it, also this coming monday I'm heading back to college! much thanks guys. :/   Noo !! Comments By: Anna on 2009-07-24 Can i just say i think the salt and vinigar thing is painless and i have only had it on for 2-3 minutes and a can already feel the difference it is making but it is different for everyone . god pray for us ! x   holy s**h!!!!!!! Comments By: GILLY on 2009-08-11 IT HURTSSSSSSSSSSSSS !!! SO BAD !!! WORKS THO HAVE IT 4 AS ITS SO GOOD BUT COZ OF THE PIAN IT AINT GETTING A 5 LOL   omg so did no work Comments By: lala on 2009-08-15 i freaking tried this 2-3 times every day for 3 days and now it justs looks even worse...i mean its drying up..but its going to take 3 or 4 more days to be gone..it just makes it look even worse and nasty   Best, best, best method ever! Hands free! Comments By: Neels on 2009-08-25 Okay, so some times it stings a bit more than other, but TRUST me its worth it! This is by far the best remedy for cold sores there is! I would have reccomended some tissue oils to help the healing process.. But for THE BIGGEST OUTBREAK I HAVE EVER HAD, there wasn't even as scab! I got this on sunday night, and it was bad, i couldn't sleep, and monday at 10am i read this and applied till 12am, and at 4pm until tuesday morning 11am. And its GONE! Nothing else works! I'm turning 19 in a few days, and i've had cold sores since i can remember. My advice is to wear a hat in the sun, its better for your skin aswell, keep a healthy diet, keep fit, don't smoke and don't get sick as this will all help to reduce outbreaks. And if you get one, use salt as much as possible! Now i'm super confident again! Safari train rap sessions!   just tryed it Comments By: tamara on 2009-08-27 umm i just tryed this method and it didnt sting at all..but then again it hasent popped open yet..was i supposed to put the salt on it when it is an open wound or does it work eather way?   Wow! Comments By: NWilliams on 2009-08-27 I woke up with cold sore,freaked out a little and went to my trusty internet. Found this and didn't hesitate. It stung, but not that bad, it started feeling better fast. When I woke up half my lip was swollen, a couple hours later it was back to normal size and now 5 1/2 hours later it is dried up and has a small scab! Awesome! I told my grandma because she gets outbreaks that are really bad!   Dried up cold sore - now white bump??? Comments By: Help! on 2009-08-31 I used the nail polish remover idea and, yes, it worked great, but now I have a semi-clear, semi-white bump on my lower lip. I'm wondering if the nail polish remover burned my lip? What do I do now???   eeww cold sores !! Comments By: pain is love baby! :( on 2009-08-31 oohh!!!! i just got a cold sore and right before picture day!! i felt like everyone was starring at me today at skool!! in 13 and already have a cold sore!! the salt thing is working great thank you thank you thank you so much for this remedy!! ahhh!!   works great Comments By: anon on 2009-09-02 i find that if you mix a paste out of salt and water and apply it to the cold sore like you would a cream, and let it stay there for as long as you want, it dries up very fast   Laugh out Loud Comments By: Sarah on 2009-09-09 Well if you felt depressed before reading all this I hope you don't now. If anything I've done nothing but laugh for the last hour. I'm dying to try the salt but mines really small so I'm not sure I want to make it worse!   Wedding in a week. Comments By: Amanda on 2009-09-11 Quite a few comments about people getting a cold sore and being embarrassed at work or on a date.. I've definitely been there. But isn't this the icing on the cake? I am getting married in a week and have a cold sore. Gross. I have a topical RX that I put on immediately when I felt the tingling. Normally that prevents it from ever really appearing, but not this time. Joy. :P Trying the salt thing now. I hope this speeds up recovery. I don't care what happens between now and then, I just want it gone by next week!   Wow...finally a solution! Comments By: Lippy on 2009-09-15 I googled "dry up fever blister" and this site came up. Why do I feel like I stumbled on lost family members? lol. Thanks so much for posting this and all of your comments. The salt is on my lips as we speak. I've tried Abreva, Campho-Phenique and that crap didn't work. I was at my wits end a few hours ago until i found this place. (Also the person pushing that prescribe med costing $70+ must work for the pharmaceutical company - GTFOH! How can you say DO NOT PUT SALT ON after so many folks have testified that it worked???? whatever...) Anyhoo, thanks again. It didn't burn as I thought it would, it did a lil' but I have a high tolerance for pain so I guess I was expecting more. It has dried up a bit and I hope by 8am (about 2 hours) it has dried up enough so I can go to class. I just wish there was some way for me to cover up what's there, but oh well. I know for next time when I feel a tingle or see sight of a lil' formation or bump to use the remedy posted here. Thanks a billion folks! (P.S. Nail polish remover heh? Another good one. I feel armed for the next outbreak! :-)   I'm going on a trip tomorrow!!! Comments By: Ann on 2009-09-23 I started feeling the tingling sensation around my upper lips (between my lips and my nose) on Monday morning. Then bang Monday afternoon a massive outbreak of cold sore. I was so embarrassed going outside with a peanut size cold sore! Real insightful! Now is Wednesday night and I'm flying off tomorrow night. I've done a lot of reading on the net, tried a few cream but none seem to work. Stumbled across this site so I'm applying the salt now. Gonna leave it on over night! I hope it works cause this is really my last resort. I don't want my holiday ruined cause of this annoying cold sore that just popped out of nowhere. Cross my fingers!! Please please please let it be smaller tomorrow.   Waste of time Comments By: undecided on 2009-11-06 So I woke up the other morning with this fatty ball of grossness was sitting on my bottom lip. My fiance wont even kiss me :(( So I tried to get rid of this fast! I came upon this site and I tried it, it burned like hell, and it really red. I did it for a few days and it didnt make it any better or any worse. All it did was cause pain. I guess it just depends on the person.. and the herpe sore :p   ouuuch Comments By: jenny on 2009-10-03 i just put the salt on and holy crap does it sting! i expected there to be a pain but it was super intense. luckily it did not stay long & my lips still feels tingly, i can definitely tell its doing something.   Tryin It Comments By: anon on 2009-10-14 Im givin it a try..... doesnt burn to bad....hope it works... read about online everywhere... mainly good comments   So Far So good Comments By: Amanda on 2009-10-09 This was the first sight i stumbled upon. I felt my sore coming on yesterday afternoon, but was at work, so i couldn't really do much about it at the time. So by the time i got home it was already at a blisterish stage. Its not a huge one, trust, I have had much much worse, but its enough for me to want to hide half my face over. Last night i tried to puncture it and clean it with some poroxide, it got a tiny bit bigger this morning. So today I punctured and drained it again, first cleaning with some bactine as well as icing it, and then applied the salt using a q-tip drenched in the bactine. It seems to be gone already..I mean not completely, but there is no swelling left, just a little spot. hardly noticeable. I just hope it stays that way. I think because i used the bactine and ice, I didnt feel the pain of the salt at all...I would try it this way...less painful i think. Good Luck   love this feeling Comments By: missy on 2009-10-28 i am a dermatologist in the making so any thing your up to im thinking the same way never thought of this though was going to make a blackhead scrub with salt but havnt got around to it this feeling of burning sometimes will be the ticket ^_^   WOW Comments By: Mary on 2009-11-04 O man this works SOOOOO good! I get cold sores regularly, like twice a year and they SUCK. I tried this last night and by the morning my cold sore was completely dried out!!! Stings a little, but at least you know its working :)   I've done this for years Comments By: anon on 2009-11-04 I've always done this method. As soon as I can feel the blister I pop it, then put salt on it. After the salt I will take a alcohol prep pad and hold it over it. The salt/alcohol combination really dries them out quick, and the alcohol helps prevent it from spreading so much.   I cried but it worked Comments By: hurtlikehell on 2009-11-08 I started with a big crusty yellowish nasty mess, you know the weeping kind, anyway the salt hurt worse than anything I have ever felt, made my mouth throb to the bone, I left it on for 15 minutes, dabbed it off with a paper towel then repeated the process, it lokks 100X better already just an hour after I started!   another way is Comments By: Nikki on 2009-11-09 this really works! but another way is mixing toothpaste with salt then putting it on ur cold sore for an houre take it off and ur cold sore is gone! if it doesnt work the first time it has to work the second time ! ps it may sting   !! o my gosh!!! Comments By: TASHA on 2009-11-17 SO I THINK I HAVE A COLD SORE..... MY LIP IS SWOLLEN SINCE YESTERDAY.....I'M TRYING IT OUT RIGHT NOW. MY LIP IS BURNING!!! I WANT TO WIPE IT OFF BUT IT'S EMBARRESING TO GO TO WORK LIKE THIS. I WORE A MASK ALL DAY. REALLY HOPE THIS WORK. IT DEEL LIKE I IS....OUCH!!!   First Cold Sore in 10 years!!! Comments By: Marcus on 2009-11-21 I've had several coldsores when I was a kid but haven't had one since about 8th grade. I was really sick and my lips were really dry when I woke up and I did a HUGE yawn. I could feel my upper lip tingling and new the coldsore had risen :( I believe that the HSV-1 that lays dormant within our bodies releases itself when we have a tear in our lips. Or I should say my lip. It would explain why so many of you get them in the corners of your mouths like where freezies would cut us as kids! I am 24 years old now and haven't had one of these in about 10 years. It really sucks and its so embarassing. I haven't even left my room yet and its after 1pm. On Wednesday I was out all day and it was quite cold and I forgot my vaseline. I was licking my lips ALL day. The wind dried out my lips and by the time the evening came I could feel the tenderness and new I'd have scabbing. Low and behold this morning I woke up (Saturday) and I started scratching at my upper lip. Its as if when I just wake up I'm dumb and forget that if I get a cut or irritate my lip the bugger will show its ugly face. I've applied the salt from reading this but it didn't sting probably cause mine hasn't been punctured. I'm thinking of puncturing it cause I want it gone ASAP. I can't even rememeber how long it took to go away as a kid cause it was so long ago.   After 2+ months, I'm ready for a cure! Comments By: Anon 1 on 2009-11-22 I haven't had a cold sore in many years, but I got a doozy that started with a crack at the corner of my mouth that wouldn't heal more than two months ago. I put antibiotic cream on it to help it heal, but it didn't work. Then anti-fungal cream because I thought it was a fungal infection; the I mixed some cortisone cream to take care of the inflammation, but nothing worked. And after each application it seemed more inflamed and covered a larger area. That's when a friend told me about the white vinegar cure for fungal infections. So I put some white vinegar on it. It burned like crazy, but I persisted with two more applications. I stopped when I saw a large blister inside my mouth from where the very acidic vinegar had run into my mouth, I decided to stop the vinegar treatment. It was then that those tell-tale little blisters appeared. The corner of my mouth by then was completely raw with a big crack now. The virus had no problem spreading to all of those inflamed areas. The mother of all Herpes blisters was born! I got some Abbreva, which helped some I guess, but it's been over a month now that I've been using it and the wounded area continues to weep and threaten to produce more blisters. It just won't heal. I can't tell you how happy I was to find out about this salt treatment! I've got it on now. The burning isn't too severe and I can't wait to be finished with this!   After 2+ months, I'm ready for a cure! Comments By: Anon 1 on 2009-11-22 I haven't had a cold sore in many years, but I got a doozy that started with a crack at the corner of my mouth that wouldn't heal more than two months ago. I thought it was a bacterial infection so I put antibiotic cream on it to help it heal, but it didn't work. Then I applied anti-fungal cream because then I thought it was a fungal infection; I mixed some cortisone cream to take care of the inflammation, but nothing worked. And after each application it seemed more inflamed and covered a larger area. That's when a friend told me about the white vinegar cure for fungal infections (which I thought it was). So I put some white vinegar on it. It burned like crazy, but I persisted with two more applications. I stopped when I saw the crack widen and deepen and a large blister form inside my mouth from where the very acidic vinegar had run down the crack into my mouth. I decided the vinegar treatment was not the way to go. It was then that those tell-tale little blisters appeared. The corner of my mouth by then was completely raw with a big crack. The virus had no problem spreading to all of those inflamed areas, including the blister inside my mouth. The mother of all Herpes blisters was born! I got some Abbreva, which helped some I guess, but it's been over a month now that I've been using it and the wounded area continues to weep and threaten to produce more blisters. It just won't heal. I can't tell you how happy I was to find out about this salt treatment! I've got it on now. The burning isn't too severe and I can't wait to be finished with this!   Mixing up a solution.. Comments By: not feelin so hot on 2009-11-26 I read about half way down, figured that maybe I will try making a paste of Apple Cider Vinegar and ground up sea salt and putting it on the bugger... I turn 25 on Sunday and Saturday is my big party, so of course.. Monday i have a little cold sore ebrupt.. I put Lipsorex on it to try to stop the bugger but it ended up sprouting into a dime sized beast on my upper lip, almost moustache like.. lovely.. so Im trying everything to get this thing to smarten up, the main problem is it wont stop weeping!! SO ill see if this salt and vinegar will stop that and if at least it has stopped weeping by saturday then i can put cover up on it and hide it somewhat.. Stupid things, had one for Halloween too...   ochie ! Comments By: vetta on 2009-11-27 oh man , okay i was gunna saw it doesn't burn that bad . after a couple of secondsits crazy - haha ! i hope this works cuz i feel ugly with this nasty thing on my face =/ i will be back in 2 - 3 days . btw , fever blisters suck =P   Why isnt it burning? Comments By: Pierre on 2009-11-27 I dont know why its not burning? There is a puss bubble. Do I pop that and then do it? Idk what to do, Im desperate :'(   If salt doesn't work, try nail polish remover... Comments By: SandyST on 2009-11-29 I posted a while ago about my terrible cold sore in the crack at the corner of my mouth that started months ago and would never go away. I tried the salt therapy and, for the first time, it looked like I was in control instead of the infection. I put it on the sore many times a day before and after work, and it started to dry up. It seemed to pull the blisters up from deep under my skin where the virus was hiding from the Abreva and Campho-Phenique I'd been using. After some days of this, however, I started to get worried that the virus inside my lip would not get the benefit of the salt because it was inside my mouth. I ran across another remedy posted on the web that people were swearing by: Nail Polish Remover! I'm sure you know that it's really acetone. It's applied with a Q-Tip to the infected area. I held the Q-Tip on the sore until the stinging stopped, for about a minute. I told myself that the stinging I felt was the virus dying so it made me happy to feel the stinging. I have to say that it really worked on my terrible cold sore! Within a couple of days, the virus was dead. You might think that acetone is poisonous, but I had to put the stuff on the inside of my lip and nothing bad happened. It evaporates so fast, I think, that it doesn't stay on the surface of your skin very long; it goes inside the tissue to kill the virus. I would be careful about letting it run into your mouth during application. I just leaned forward and let gravity help. Surprisingly, it doesn't strip the oils out of your skin too much so my skin feels healthy. I think this acetone treatment is a good option for those who feel the salt is not strong enough against the virus. I am so thankful for both the salt and the acetone treatments that I discovered online because I had been fighting with this virus since the middle of September! I was worried because the virus was so entrenched in my skin that it was morphing into something that would always be there! Now it's gone! Thanks to everyone!   Just Stop It Comments By: MP on 2009-12-04 A doctor that I used to work for told me to take L-Lysine. It's in the vitamin section. When I feel the first tingle, I take about 1000-3000 mg of L-Lysine on day 1 and they STOPPED developing. L-Lysine is a vitamin for the skin and lips.   My second cold sore ever Comments By: Brandy on 2009-12-02 I mashed up the table salt, dipped my index finger in water and then in the salt. I applied it to my cold sore and nothing. I stood there in the mirror thinking dang Ive been scammed again. And like magic it started to tingle and burn. I have never been happier to be in pain..lol We will see how it looks in the morning. By the way my cold sore is huge at least the size of a dime. Wish me luck. 12/02/2009   I HOPE COLS SORES BURN IN HELL!! Comments By: someone on 2009-12-08 So husband is graduating from college Friday. Caught him texting a female classmate in college about 5 months ago. (we've been in counseling ever since) and was really looking forward to seeing her in while I was person dressed nice, looking good in a new dress! Woke up Sunday with a medium sized cold sore on bottom Left side. Same side it ALWAYS appears. Haven't had one in about 8 months. GRRRRR WISH ME LUCK! 12/8/2009   The best Comments By: Chrissy on 2010-01-07 The best thing so far that i found is the salt. It hurts so bad but giving birth hurts more and i made it through that! Also taking 400 mg of axclivor help heal the critters away also.   ouch. Comments By: hannah on 2010-01-12 this hurts. alot. im 14 and my bf and i have been together for two months. i hope when i wake up tomorrow my four cold sores will be almost gone.   COLD SORE HEALING THIS HELPS!! Comments By: SHOTS on 2010-01-13 DAB BLEACH ITS STINGS BUT IT KILLS HTE BACTERIA OR LISTERINE, WHICHEVER YOU CAN STAND, I WOULD TAKE A PAIN PILL FIRST OR LOTS OF ADVIL. IT REALLY WORKS   Ice remedy Comments By: Christine on 2010-01-18 Whenever I feel that first tingle I put an ice cube on the area and hold it there for about 30 seconds or as long as I can stand it... the cold sore never comes out if I catch it in time. I have a nasty cold sore right now and will definitely try the salt remedy:) Thanks Dad for your great genetics!!! :)   Can salt really get rid of it quickly!? I sure hope so!!!! Comments By: .nikki.pooh. on 2010-01-19 I started out with one cold sore on the left side of my top lip. People kept notincing it so I would pop it with needles, thinkin that it would hopefully go away quicker. Now, i have an ugly-looking scar?.. And on top of that, another cold sore popped up on the right side of my top lip but I dont want it to scar like the other one. I tried camphophenique, about every home remedy on the internet, and im currently using abreva (althoug it doesnt really seem to be working much?) ..It does make me feel alot better to hear everyones stories, because I felt like I was the only one who got these ugly sores (& at the worst possible time too). I really want to try the salt because of all the positive feedback I've heard, but im terribly scared because I have school tommorow & I dont want them to get any worse. Being in high school & having a cold sore is such a pain because you feel like everyone is watching & judging you. I REALLY HOPE THEY COME UP WITH A CHEAP CURE FOR THIS THING SOON, i dont know how much longer I can deal with them.. AHH, wish me luck. I need it. P.s. Thanks for writing this article!   OUCH ! Comments By: Douglas Wilson on 2010-01-27 I'm a 46 year old Male - and, like all of you, I HATE these things ! I just put the salt on....a tad painful, but I've dealt with worse pain. Keeping my fingers crossed....   slight stinging sensation Comments By: Dee on 2010-02-03 I am 42 had outbreaks of cold sores all my life, tried everything under the sun, all the expensive creams and potions, feeling desperate and ugly!!!! so found this site .....the salt cure?? thought I would give it a go, what have I got to lose but an ugly sore lip! put the salt on and a slight tingle nothng more..... hope this works I shall continue to apply the salt to my nemesis every 2 hours and will document the reaction, if I sound somewhat clinical that is because I am! I will of course inform all of the out come.   FROM THE VOICE OF AN EXPERIENCED COLD SORE VICTIM Comments By: Alysha on 2010-02-04 i've had cold sores since i was about 4 years old... thanks dad. i've tried everything, and gotten pretty good at preventing them.. 1) Valtrex - if i have it 2) ice ice ice ice ice once they break out (usually overnight)... i want to hide in a cave for a week until it's gone; its so embarassing! this salt thing si something i haven't tried before. I would like to recommend NOT using your finger to apply it. I just dipped a Q-Tip in finger nail polish remover (also very good for drying it out), dipped that in the salt, and pressed it against the sore pretty hard for about 3 minutes. It stings but not too bad. Valentines day is next weekend and i'd really like my BF to not have to deal with this hideous slug on my lip. GAH!   WOW Comments By: Confused on 2010-02-03 I thought I was the only one that hid in the house while I have one. I go out shopping and see people with cold sores and they don't seem to be bothered by them. Wish I was like that. Well I have gotten cold sores for as long as I can remember, both Mom & Dad get them....Thanks for sharing that with me have tried Zovarax, salt, alcohal, campo, ice, needles, lisine, caramax....ect, even once Preperation-H for swelling (doesn't work). My rutine I take Lisine 7 500mg tablets ant night and use caramax before bed. I still got cold sores, so asked the doctor, she gave me Valtrex....it was a miricale. Now the have generic valtrex, which my RX gave me. I got a bump Thursday and took the dosage- 2 tabs another 2 in 12 hours....all weekend place just looked like a little zit. I woke up Monday the place was itching and had changed I took another dosage of the generic valtrex. It started drying up and no swelling. Woke up today (Wendsday) new little bump no swelling...hmm...took needle and popped new bump and took 1 Tablet. Now I am confused why the valtrex did not work so well on this one? Still luckly no swelling, that is the part that I hate the most, I think.   WOW Comments By: Confused on 2010-02-03 I thought I was the only one that hid in the house while I have one. I go out shopping and see people with cold sores and they don't seem to be bothered by them. Wish I was like that. Well I have gotten cold sores for as long as I can remember, both Mom & Dad get them....Thanks for sharing that with me...I take Lisine 7 500mg tablets ant night and use caramax before bed. I still got cold sores, so asked the doctor, she gave me Valtrex....it was a miricale. Now the have generic valtrex, which my RX gave me. I got a bump Thursday and took the dosage- 2 tabs another 2 in 12 hours....all weekend place just looked like a little zit. I woke up Monday the place was itching and had changed I took another dosage of the generic valtrex. It started drying up and no swelling. Woke up today (Wendsday) new little bump no swelling...hmm...took needle and popped new bump and took 1 Tablet. Now I am confused why the valtrex did not work so well on this one? Still luckly no swelling, that is the part that I hate the most, I think.   SO ANNOYING Comments By: FML! on 2010-02-07 ok so Ive had theese cold sores since tuesday ( its sunday ) it started out as 2 little bumps on my lip and you couldnt really see them so i went to school and in about an hour i looked in the mirrior and they had gotten so big and red and my whole lip was swollen since then ive been using abreva and salt and bolied tea bags they kinda work ... now its sunday adn i have 2 big scabs on my lip, is theyre any way to help the scabs to heal faster ?   cold sore face Comments By: Hopeful on 2010-02-09 This tip worked like a charm for me. I got this horrible cold sore on my chin on Friday morning. When I woke up, there it was. I tried everything I could think of to try and stop it but it just got bigger and bigger. By Sunday I had this huge scab on my chin that was yellow, brown, swollen and blood red around the edges. Monday afternoon I peeled it off. Big mistake. It started spilling out fluid and became more aggravated then it was before. This morning when I woke up I took the dreaded walk to the bathroom mirror. There it was staring back at me huge, lumpy and raw. I stumbled accross this web site and decided to give the salt a try. Why not, I have nothing to loose but this terrible sore that is making me into a hermit because I don't want anyone to see me like this. This is what I did. I crushed the salt, put water on my finger and put it on the open wound. It burned some, but not that bad. Then I put some germ X hand sanitizer on it. Within 30 minutes I had that brown ugly scab back. 2 hours later I did the salt thing again and followed with the hand sanitizer. Every coupled of hours I washed that area with eqate or neutrogena facial wash and then heated up my wash cloth with hot water and held it on the scab for about 2 minutes followed by the hand sanitizer. Now it is 6pm and my brown scab is about 1/4 the size it was this morning. I am hopeful the scab will be gone by tomorrow or Thursday so I can go back to work. THANK YOU!!!!!!!   With all this pain, It has to work !! Comments By: RT on 2010-02-15 OMG . . I am doing this right now and it feels like somebody is taking a jagged knife and slicing my lip open slowly. I really hope this works. Ive been havin these cold sores (4 of them) for about 3 days now and I want them gone by friday. ( Today is Monday). I pray that this work.If it does, I will be using this method from now on . Ive been getting these bad boy ever since I was a little girl and I hate them. They ruin my life. Uuuggghhh !   GRRRR.. Comments By: jessica on 2010-02-16 lol..i hate coldSore Omg why do people get them wat wierd creatorz lol they look alive Man.Im glad i found this salt thing because at first i didn't know what to put on i was going crazy with abeva smhh'that dont barely work than porcription from the doctor but that wasn't going to good either crazyyer right haha Well im 16 and been gettin coldSore or should i say things for awhile now i didn't even see my boyfriend today you would think im use to its but no this is my week off and its ruinin cuz of some dang SOR ahhh'well i have the hugest chuck of salt on my lip for about an hour now it dont hurt that much but just know dnt be suprised with the sting.Hope it heals fast enough because im going out with my boyfriend and he hole family saturday out to dinner and its tuesday now its soo weird how i just wake up with this its been awhile since i had 0ne tho best thing is Salt indeed :D   GRRRR.. Comments By: jessica on 2010-02-16 lol..i hate coldSore Omg why do people get them wat wierd creatorz lol they look alive Man.Im glad i found this salt thing because at first i didn't know what to put on i was going crazy with abeva smhh'that dont barely work than porcription from the doctor but that wasn't going to good either crazyyer right haha Well im 16 and been gettin coldSore or should i say things for awhile now i didn't even see my boyfriend today you would think im use to its but no this is my week off and its ruinin cuz of some dang SOR ahhh'well i have the hugest chuck of salt on my lip for about an hour now it dont hurt that much but just know dnt be suprised with the sting.Hope it heals fast enough because im going out with my boyfriend and he hole family saturday out to dinner and its tuesday now its soo weird how i just wake up with this its been awhile since i had 0ne tho best thing is Salt indeed :D   please work!! Comments By: ms.meka on 2010-02-20 Thanks for posting this nothing ever dries them up fast enough I hope this works im going to do this through out the night!!   This works Comments By: ms.meka on 2010-02-22 I had one to appear on Saturday and it was dried up completely by monday!!!!!whoooo-hoooooo   It's not stinging... Comments By: Jennifer on 2010-02-28 It's not stinging...am I doing it wrong? Hopefully, this works!I will comment again, when it does! J   step 2 Comments By: Jennifer on 2010-02-28 okay, so I wasn't feeling any stinging, so I figure you have to pop them before you put salt on them, just your basic needle...I put it under a flame for 30 seconds to get ride of any additional bacteria...then I popped them. I put salt on and now it's stinging, but nothing unbareable....   EHHHH Comments By: Payton on 2010-03-01 this isn't that painful to me hm..well that is for now eh eh eh the pain is coming this better work ahhhhh the pain lol not really im ok but i hope this DOES work   lame. Comments By: anon on 2010-03-04 yeah this def doesn't work. my fever blister kept filling up after the salt dried it up and it got reallly red and noticeable. i have spring formal tomorrow and my cold sore is still here. sweet.   I just used sea sal Comments By: Megan on 2010-03-05 I just used sea salt and then I dabbed it with a paper towel afterwards. It didnt sting while I was doing it, but it kinda stung aftwards and I can feel it tingling now. When I get home in an hour, I will try with table salt. Ive been putting prescription medicine on it allllll day, and I also penetrated it with a teezer end... I'm probably making it way worse.   Omg It's Burningg.!! Comments By: Lizethhhh on 2010-03-06 I hope this workss, i really don't want to show my face at school with a cold sore on my lip. I'm trying this tip, and it's burning(: Haha. i hope it workss,.   scared it will make it worse Comments By: anonymous on 2010-03-11 ugh.. a junior in high school and these nasty things pop up every now and again. Not only do they pop up but they spread down my mouth like crazy.. i cant help ut want to touch it and pop the suckers.. they last forever and i just want to crawl up in a ball and dissapear. I WAS SO EMBarrassedd to show my face to my ne boyfriend i thought for sure he would look at me as a walking disease. i feel everyones pain!   Trying it now Comments By: Melissa on 2010-03-23 OMG it stings!!!! I really hope this works...i will post by tomarrow to say if it did...god burning!!!!   OW OW OW! Comments By: Anon on 2010-04-03 OUCHHHHHHHHH! it burns, it burns, this better work, i already have a little scab on there so im hoping this will speed up the process and the scab will fall off! BUT DAMN OUCH!   yeah boiii Comments By: sweetcakes12 on 2010-04-09 omg guys it burns but guess what it works. i leave it on there for ten 2 twenty minuets its day to and i already see a big difference =)   Stinging ! Comments By: nikki on 2010-04-14 Tried this and put loooads of salt on the bloody thing now its stinging like hell so hoping it works, i put salt on my mouth ulcers and they clear up pretty quickly that stings like mad too but it works, stuff like bonjella and that are just poor and dont do any good!   lysine/valtrex/carmex Comments By: anon on 2010-04-14 ive been getting them for a long time as well and i too feel like i wanna hide when i wake up with one. my advise is- get a prescription for valtrex- it really will help and take lysine- i take 4 pills, which i think equals 2000mg like twice a day and i also use carmex topically. my theory is you to treat it inside and out. and i used to pop them but found that when i did, it helped it spread- if you cant get the rx for valtrex, use the lysine- let it pop on its own and once it pops, itll start to heal. i hope this helps someone- good luck   This will really help - I promise! Comments By: Christine on 2010-04-16 After years and years of suffering with cold sores, the absolute best methods are as follows: Get a scipt for VALTREX(so worth it to have on hand when you feel the first tingle). Next best thing is TEA TREE OIL - put some on at the first tingle and continue to apply throughout the day. Avoid getting any excess around your mouth or going overboard with it; it's pretty potent stuff and can irritate your skin easily. I always pop the sore with a sanitized sewing needle as well to speed the process. Take extra LYSINE, ZINC, Vitamin C, A, and E. I also drink 3-4 packets of "Emergency" a day mixed liquid Echinacea (which is also nice to use as a topical ointment - it reduces swelling and quickens the healing process). Check this site for diet: http://www.herpes-coldsores.com/diet_and_nutrition_with_herpes.htm   Worth a Shot. Comments By: Ray on 2010-04-25 Okay so I ran out of carmex the other day. Turns out my boyfriend had a cold sore, and I continuously kissed him, until he finally said hey I have a cold sore. Good, thanks babe. F U too. Here's the thing...I been doing the salt thing all day, and it seems to be getting smaller but I'm not real sure. I want to pop it but I'm kind of scared. For the women: I've heard popping it causes scars...who cares? pick one: Huge Sore, or small scar, in which case you can cover with lip gloss. Abreva worked like once, carmex always worked the best for me, but since I'm out of it and kinda broke, I'm stuck with household items. I'll probably just pop it and put alcohol, or hydrogen peroxide on it to dry it and clean it. It has to be gone by tuesday (today is sunday)because I have to work...I called out of work today because as a waitress...thats disgusting to serve food with this thing on my face. I don't know...we'll just have to see. In my opinion, carmex is the best..Especially if you drench your face in it...and always re-apply constantly. It will go away pretty fast.   so far so good Comments By: give it a try on 2010-04-22 I wet my finger, poured salt on it, and left it there for about 30 minutes. The cold sore--or whatever the hell it is--shrunk after 30 minutes of application. Hopefully tomorrow it will be fine. I have presentation for my capstone course tomorrow, and the thing could not come at a worse time, that is besides graduation!   Thanks Comments By: Mindy on 2010-04-24 I have had cold sores for many many years now. But about 2 years ago they got very very bad. i mean bad... not just 1 or 2 blisters, i mean my whole mouth, top and bottom lip swollen and red and weeping. This would last for a month at a time and with only 2 or 3 weeks break between outbreaks. I could not get just a normal cold sore anymore.. i tried everything and have taken Valtrex/Zovirax/Lysine But nothing worked well enough to keep them from coming back and no being so bad. But i went a chinese medical doctor and i take natural chinese herbs everyday and i havnt had one for about a year and if i have they had only been small and short lasting. I also use alcohol wipes to help keep the area clean and it also helps it dry out. I will be trying this in the future. I do recommend some natural remedies this has worked wonders for me and i recommend it highly. It has done more for me then any other drug or medication cream i have tried. I wish everyone the best of luck. Ps. Everyone is different what works for one may not work for others but i think its a matter of trial and error. Find what works for you. Or a combination of things.   Been 30 Minutes already see the difference! Awesome Comments By: Mike on 2010-04-27 so i am trying this as i am typing and have been doing ti for the last half an hour and it does sting a bit but not to bad. i wet my finger dip it in the salt and place it on there. if you hold your finger on the sore for about 10 seconds and let go the salt just sticks there. So far seems to be working really well hoping in the morning it is nice and dried up   thank god! Comments By: reed on 2010-05-01 I have used this for years, what also works.. yes it hurts like a complete bitch. But not water and salt.. nailpolish remover and salt together! Mine have dried up in a matter of hours   just do it Comments By: dan on 2010-05-03 you have to dry the sucker out so this is the best method. should be gone within 2 days... just keep putting on table salt and it will scab up. just find a way to deal with the STING...but its worth it ! sucking a lolly helps..   yh it works but add toothpast. its better Comments By: anthoney on 2010-05-09 i tried the salt thing and it worked but it didnt realy sting that bad. but u should mix toothpaste and salt together. its 10000000 times better but it stings like hell. lol HAVE FUN WHILE TRYING IT.   yeah ok. Comments By: rach on 2010-05-09 i have been getting cold sores since i was little and i'm now 17, iv tried everything and i mean everything even this. best way to get rid of a cold sore is letting it go through its cycle which only last 7-12 days, it will dry up and scab on its own time. best things to use are these invisible pad things that go over the sore and hide the cold sore and u cant even tell your wearing one! there pretty good. I no cold sores are a pain in the but and hurt like a hell, but seriously let it go through its cycle.   Good! Comments By: Ken on 2010-05-15 this works pretty well but over the years ive found that rubbing toothpaste on it then putting a plaster over it does the trick pretty much every time. it should be gone in like 10-12 hours. if you add the salt trick i would expect more like 6   oh my god! This Hurts! Comments By: nicki on 2010-05-15 There are several different stages a cold sore goes through. 1st stage: tingling stage (when u feel a slight tingle and a tiny bump and u know its coming) 2nd stage: the big cold store lump that feels completly 3 dimensional, like either a golf ball or marple (depending on the cold sore), 3rd stage: the goey healing stage (where u know the cold sores stoped growing but it goes from thin bumpy scap to yelowy slimy wet gooeyness-goes back and forth every 1/2 hour), 4th stage:the more-common-scap stage that cracks when u smile! this whole 1-4 stage ordel can last from 2 weeks up to an entire month. i think whoever wrote this tip was entending for it to be used on stage 3, which if used on this stage, yes it will hurt like hell. and its not a good idea to dry it out too many times when its trying to heal cuz it needs that moisture. so what i did was i'd do the salt thing like 2-3 times in a row (3 times only if i could stand the horrific pain) and after the 3rd time, wash it with sanitizer and then let neosporin sit on it for several hrs then do the whole salt thing again and then neopsporin and over and over the same cycle. grhhh! cold sores suck so bad. id rather have a zit any day.a lot of people commenting on this were talking about popping their cold sores w/ needles. i think there are 2 cold sore categorys. the kind that are filled w/ puss and can be popped and then the kind that are big thick dense marbles that cant be popped. i get both, but the one i have right now is the 2nd of the 2. i swear this kinds worse cuz i really wish i "could" pop it. oh well):   Just trying it now Comments By: Jenni on 2010-05-28 I have had cold sores since I was a kid, and I honestly believe they are the worst thing anyone could possibly have, I would take a zit any day over this. They are not only a pain in the butt, but they are embarrasing. I am trying this salt thingy now, and I promise I will come back and let you know what happened. A lot of people said they would return but havent. It is stinging at the moment, and I did have to use a sterilized pin to pop the sore in order to allow the salt to soak in, so we will see what happens. I agreed with the one post that they tell you to stay away from salty foods, so I am thinking this could be a total waste of time only making the process longer. I will let you know. I usually take valtrex, two pills everytime I feeel one coming on and they never appear... I have done this for five years and never had a break out, unless..like now, I let my medication run out, since I havent used a pill in so long and wasnt able to get my prescription filled before it broke out, so I was left with this cold sore that I am kicking myself that I didnt just go to to get more Valtrex sooner. Believe me, Valtrex works...its the pills your suppost to take 1 everyday to keep them away, but I dont, I seriously take 2 when I feel it coming on, itchy or redness, and then two more the next day..and no cold sore. Check into it, it might work for you. I will keep ya posted on the salt.   The best thing to ever happen Comments By: anon on 2010-05-28 I saw this site last night and tried it. When I first applied it to the sore it burned like fire but i kept doing it every couple of hours and while i was at work today i noticed it was scabbing and u couldn't tell that it was there. I'm going to keep doing it until its gone.Whoever thought of this is amazing!   Nothing!! Comments By: Rachael on 2010-05-30 Nothing happened, I feel no pain I feel nothing!! Does that mean it is not working, what does it mean? Please someone help me answer this!!   i'm counting on this method Comments By: lindalo on 2010-06-01 i crushed the salt and everything...WISH ME LUCK   Fingers crossed Comments By: Anon on 2010-06-04 Yowie, this really does hurt. But the pain usually means it's healing, so thank goodness! I have cold sores over my entire mouth and the skin surrounding it. I've had them since January, yes that's right, for nearly 6 months. I'm so dumb, not going to the dr, wished I'd listened to everyone now. I didn't even know I had a cold sore, so when I used my lipbalm, that's how I spread it all over my mouth. I'm finally going to a dr next week.. but I thought I'd try this in the meantime, because I am sick to death of having my mouth like this, it's so tight and it's hard to eat.. and for 2 weeks, I could only open my mouth wide enough to fit a small straw in, so I lived off of chocolate milkshakes... which ended up leading to other health problems. Anyway I'm going home for a long holiday in a month, and I really want these gone, so fingers crossed, this will work, but it's throbbing and stinging so much I'm sure that it is.. I don't mind the pain, I just want these gone!   ? Comments By: John on 2010-06-10 Why are people giving this 5 stars and they haven't even tried it yet???   never fear !!!!! cold sore murder KING Comments By: serial cold sore killa on 2010-06-16 CHECK THIS...Forget about any creams,forget l-lysine innerhealth tablets ...If you gonna get a cold sore,your gonna get it,and thats just how it is...VALTREX? Well one problem,the more you use valtrex the less impact it has and wont work aswell as your body builds a tolerance for it...zovirax all that jazz,don't work...i been gettting them ever since i was 3,thanks to dad,im 33 now,this is my answer for anyone who gets serios amounts of outbreaks..FAMVIR 500MG TAKE 3 WHEN YOU FIRST NOTICE,if popable,pop that ugly muthr,mix up a tad a scotch,vinegar and crush up heaps of sea salt,using a cotton whool soak up the mixture with heaps of crushed up sea salt on the whool,and push as hard as you can for as long as you have the patience for,forget the pain,no pain no gain yeah,just do it...This works everytime,no outbreak no blistering no scabbing,apart from the size of a needle prick...Vectir,is the best cream on the market,just rub a tad bit of that over the area,that shit iz clean...   The salt hurts so bad Comments By: ema on 2010-06-16 The salt hurts so bad! I got my cold sore like...2 or 3 days ago. I used cucumber masks and aloe treatment. It didn't help too much. I'm trying the salt right now and I'm hoping and praying it works! I always get it at the worst times! I have a party to go to this weekend and I don't wanna show up with this ugly thing.   Stupid coldsore.. i hate you so much! Comments By: Desperate makeup artist. on 2010-06-18 This is my first coldsore ever and it is extremely embarrassing as I am a makeup artist. I have a 45 hr working roster this and next week with only one day off each week. I haven't been able to do too many applications of the creams or the salt when working because it seems to make the coldsore more noticeable which is sooo embarrassing when i'm doing a clients makeup. But at night I am applying everything i can to it. I shall do it again in a minute. I have named my coldsore after the mythical greek god "Chernobog" which means "black god of evil" haha. I HATE THIS COLD SORE! DIE DIE DIE!!   Whoops... Comments By: Cold sore veteran on 2010-06-24 So I think o did this wrong, I mixed rubbing alcohol with the salt which definately dries it put but burns the skin around it:( I wish I had come across this method before as I have had them my whole life. This works..but it feels like your lips have been thrust to helll if u do it when they're open. The longer u leave it on the better in my opinion, just as long ad u keep the rest of your skin moisturized. Also I kissed my boyfriend then developed the cold sore like an hour later...so I know he didn't give it to me bit I'm wondering if I might have given them to him. Are they contagious even before they appear?   Cold Sore Comments By: Ashlee on 2010-06-25 All I did was go out in my backyard and play with my puppies. Then I came inside and felt like itching my face. As soon as I went to itch, I felt this bump on my chin and a pimple-like bump on my lip. I popped the bump on my chin and eyed the pimp-like bump on my lip in the mirror. That's when I realized, I have another cold sore. This is why you don't kiss your dogs on the head or cheek, because they give you cold sores. I've been having cold sores since I was in Kindergarten and I'm 13 now. I'm going to the beach on Monday and I don't want to be looking a whole mess. I'm trying this remedy now, and at first I felt nothing and looked pretty stupid. Now I feel a little something while I'm typing this. No pain at all. God Bless my ColdSore friends. (:   It does work..but... Comments By: Jessa on 2010-06-25 Hi y'all, the salt crushed up method does work I already did this (kinda) before I read this article. Wednesday I got a cold sore, and last night (Thursday nights) I found another helpful hint. Get a pinch of salt, mix it with half a cap of peroxide and stir it with a q-tip...afterwards apply it. YES, it will BURN but, it dries up in matter of minutes. I have been reapplying this since I discovered it last night.   Ditching school and work Comments By: mandis on 2010-07-07 Trying this just now (while at work) stings like a stingy thing but hopefully dry it out. Can i just say - so many people on here are ditching school and or work because they have a cold sore - i have never heard anything so rediculous in my life - would you skive for a spot? a blemish? where doeas it end? Of they are annoying but suck it up - do your job go to school and put up with it!!   Perfect Comments By: Lachlan on 2010-07-01 Hey, long, long tie sufferer of cold sores right here. The Australian sun really does a number on one's lips. I have tried every medication. You name it i've tried it. I started taking Lysine tablets every day and they reallllly helped reduce breakouts. Also they do reduce the severity of breakouts and reduce the pain. Every time I have an important event coming up you can bet your arse I will get a coldsore. They are indeed the devil's minions and when it comes to minor illnesses, they top the list. But let me say this: This salt technique works. if you are not able to stop your breakout before the "no return point" of fullblown blister, this method will help. In my opinion you must pop the blister, break it open, dab the fluid away and salt that bad boy instantly. if it stings to high heaven, you're doing it right. It will dry your cold sore out in a matter of hours. if you have trouble making the salt stick to the sore, add a tiny bit of water, to make a salt paste. Keep this plastered on your lip. No pain no gain. I would rather break my legs than have a cold sore right now, so pain is nothing. Once the scab forms (over perhaps 24 hours since first salt application), wet it in the shower and peel it off, and apply lip balm. Your cold sore will be gone.. This has worked for me this time. I will use no other method. Also, take Lysine at every opportunity, and Vitamin-C, which actually tastes quite nice in 500mg tablet form. Just OD on those two medications, as pretty much too much can do you no harm. I really hope this helps as I know what we are all going through.   OMG I cant believe it!!!!! Comments By: terry lou on 2010-07-02 Ok so i went to the beach and of course the next day my entire bottom lip is like all blistered. I usually like to dab rubbing alcohol on it as soon as it starts to help speed upthe drying process so I can get on with my life. I decided to try this salt thing. I put some on and holy mother of gawd it was the worse sting I have ever felt in my life 10x worse than the rubbing alcohol. anyway after about 10 minutes i went to the mirror to check it out and it looked awful all white and really noticable i was pissed so i wiped it off. about 2 hrs later i went into the bathroom and couldnt believe my eyes all the white was gone and my lip looked 10 times better If you can deal with the pain I say try it It worked great on my cold sores and its fast too my lip still brns a bit but Ill deal with it its much better than a blistered lip.   How to get rid of one fassst. Comments By: Anon. on 2010-07-04 I've been getting coldsores all my life. I always use this technique to get rid of themm. When I first notice it, i don't touch it. I give it a few hours to fill up with the juice (ew) then i take a clean tack and just slide it in just to make a hole and i drain it by dabbing it with a napkin. don't let the juice drip anywhere, it will start new cold sores. and then a few hours later, just do the salt thing as much as you can. they'll go away in a day or a few days. depeding on how big it is.   Hmmm lets see... Comments By: G on 2010-07-05 Ok so I just put the salt on and... I feel nothing. I had these neat little sticker things you put on your lip over night and the cold sore is gone in the morning but I ran out and now need to find something to sub it with. I'll see the turn out tomorrow morning...   Hmmm lets see... Comments By: G on 2010-07-05 Ok so I just put the salt on and... I feel nothing. I had these neat little sticker things you put on your lip over night and the cold sore is gone in the morning but I ran out and now need to find something to sub it with. I'll see the turn out tomorrow morning...   So far so good Comments By: Tn chick on 2010-07-12 I just tried this for the first time. I thought at first it was not working as my lip kept weeping. Turns out the salt was drawing out the yuckie stuff and has started drying my lip right up. Ive got a goos feeling about how it is going to look tomorrow!!!   It really does work!!! Comments By: April on 2010-07-15 I have been doing this method since I'm a teenager. I am 33 now, just came back from Florida and got very sun burnt.... So of course I got a cold sore or fever blister... This time I got a bunch of them.. I usually put strong block on my lips, but I didn't the first day. When I came home they popped up. I had to call in sick from work. I bought all the drug store stuff.. But then took a pin to pop and drain them... Then I pressed salt into them for several minutes. It burns a lot... But in a few minutes it calms down. Leave the resedue on even when u sleep. Your lip might puff up-but I promise it will calm down. Now I am left with a dried cut like thing on my lip. At least it's flat. It looks much better. Keep it DRY at all times. Don't put anything on yur lips...it will heal fast. I'm sure vitamins help too.   Oh boy this actually works Comments By: SR on 2010-07-16 I've now tried this (well about 4hrs ago) and am very pleased at how it's crusted on the cold sores and I must say I have always compede patches on them. I applies the powdered salt to it about 4hours ago and I haven't washed it off and kept checking it every half hour and kept it seeing changes from the salt being white on upper lip to now looking very off white and soaking up all moisture from the sore. I am a little tempted in washing it off now as it is now 17:15 but intend to re-apply the salt about an hr before I get to bed. I shall be back on here tomorrow to post the new improved changes. Bye for now   Burn baby burn!!! Comments By: Anon on 2010-07-18 Oh yea, it hurts sooo good. It seems to be drying quickly. Ive been getting these evil things since I was a baby and nothing works. as sooon as it starts to heal another appears and another and another. This seems to be working and im so glad I found this!! Thank youuuuu!!!!!   OH MY GOSH, Comments By: Adrienne Nava on 2010-07-21 the salt remedy really does work! I was so excited reading all these comments hoping it will work & I just did it a couple minutes ago & it already looks better! I believe I can go out tonight without being embarassed about this stupid coldsore. (: thxxxxxx super sizeeeeee <3 lol   1st timer:( Comments By: nique on 2010-07-21 i am 27 this is the fist time i have one of the horrible things and i know lots of people get them but they just look so bad but yesterday my lip was itching now i have the sore so i have the salt on now its been 5 mins not that bad hope it works   Works great! Comments By: Maegan on 2010-07-22 I have been getting cold sores since I was 3 years old and my most recent cold sore was the first time I ever put salt on it, it worked better than abreva did, the cold sore was gone in 2 days, that's the fastest they've ever healed up, this technique works great!   DONT DO IT Comments By: CLARKE on 2010-07-22 I have a coldsore and the scab bit came off but was still not completely heeled underneath, it was still pink and fleshy/wet so i used your tip and it actually felt like my lip was being scoulded. I have previously used this method and it was ok, but obviously not this time. It is now realy throbbing and ive got a cold wet cotton-wool pad on it to try and ease the pain and get the salt of. I can normally take pain but thu=is felt like it was burning and im just hoping it didnt do any damage.   NOT WORKING! Comments By: Alima on 2010-07-28 I got up this morning an just when I though my birthday cant be ruined anymore it is! my b'day celebrations start on saturday today is wednesday, it NEEDS to go otherwise I do NOT want to celebrate out with this thing! First I used the toothpaste and salt did nothing, then ice cube yea that stung now the salt whihc is not stinging! what! will it sting the next time I do it or what.   salt heals Comments By: jedi on 2010-07-29 Just think about this,when you have a cut and you get into the ocean what happens?A little sting then guess what the cut gets better faster!Same thing for a cold sore.Just a teaspoon of salt with a tablespoon of water, apply with a cue tip several times a day.It will take at least 2 days.Then no more cold sore.   Beauty is pain Comments By: Kingsley on 2010-07-30 So, I am 23 years old and I have only had 3 cold sores. I felt the tingling yesterday and the last few times as long as I put carmex on it right away, it never fully came to a full blown cold sore. I've been sitting here for 3 hours putting salt on it every 15 minutes. Little tip for you guys, it totally burns but put the ice cube on it first and it will not only numb it so it doesn't hurt as bad but it will moisten it so the salt will stick. I have already seen great improvement. Thanks. I might be able to get through my 14 hour bartending shift tomorrow!   Best home remedy ever! Comments By: Jenna on 2010-08-01 I started getting a cold sore yesterday morning and read this remedy online and decided to try it. I know it says do this 2-3 times a day for 30 seconds but I have been doing it as many times as possible throughout the day, including doing it over and over again last night and I woke up this morning and it's almost gone already. It really doesnt sting too bad either, I anticipated it being a little worse. Also, other things I've been doing as well as the salt is keeping Abreva on it and mixing the powdered salt with the Abreva and putting a dab of rubbing alcohol on top of the two mixed. :). My 21st birthday is Wednesday and with the scare of having a cold sore on my birthday ive been staying on top of this thing and thanks to this salt remedy I'm sure it'll be copletely gone by then. Thanks!   notthelook Comments By: queendrury on 2010-08-06 i am desperate so im trying the salt remedy.as a service assistant i am apprehensive to go to work.i pray this works and i will let you all know.BTW,i feel like i found my lost lost family while reading all of your comments-knowing im not the only cs victim helps my self-esteem much.thnks   local pharmacist Comments By: alcohol anynomous on 2010-08-07 a local pharmacist here in my hometown makes this stuff called virocide and puts it in a syringe. its red algae from alaska and it dries fever blisters faster than anything.   this better work Comments By: bambie13 on 2010-08-08 i have had cold saws quit a lot i hat them i hope this works$   Amazing! Comments By: Anon on 2010-08-09 I have been getting cold sores since I was about 5 and this is the BEST "remedy" I've ever tried! I felt the tingle and saw the beginning of the cold sore on Saturday morning when I woke up. I used Abbreva immediatley. Abbreva does not seem to "shorten the healing time" for me, but if used right away it does stop the cold sore from growing. Mine used to get HUGE...like the size of a dime or more. Now that I put the Abbreva on at the first sign, they never even get close to that big. But it doesn't seem to help it heal...it would still be a week and a half to two weeks! I read the salt tip last night (Sunday) and decided to give it a try. I left it on for about 5 hours before bed. I have a small scab now! It would usually take at least a week to get to this stage! Next time I will use the salt on day 1!   Next time Comments By: Steve on 2010-08-15 I'll try this one next time   Older and Wiser Comments By: Anon on 2010-08-15 I discovered this trick with the salt when I was in the hospital at age 25 for pneumonia. I had a whopping cold sore and they refused to give me anything for it. So, I saw the salt on my food tray and figured there was something to the old saying about pouring salt in open wounds and figured it would draw out the infection and so I used that... worked great!   ***** Comments By: Aishwarya on 2010-08-18 Well...I just started trying this out. It hurts quite a lot(but not enough to bring tears to your eyes, don't worry). Applied and kept it on for half an hour. I see only a 2% change in my cold sore. Didn't work any big miracle, but I'm sure it needs more time. Applied it once again now, and have decided to keep it on overnight. Will post updates tomorrow.   you can also use.... Comments By: Dayna on 2010-08-24 I got one yesterday and the Abreva I bought the last time I had one didnt help at all..and it was expensive. My Mom told me to use a Qtip and dip it in bleach(this also stings...bad) it dried up comletely in a day. This time, I used bleach a few times and held a water saturated tea bag(regular black tea)to it(which felt good considering I used ice water) and its already peeling(the scab) to reveal smooth skin underneath :) Just another suggestion :)   AMAZING Comments By: caitlin-cold sore on 2010-08-25 So i read all these and didnt know what to really think. my cold sore is on day 7 and was still in the stage right before scabbing over, were the blisters have popped and weeped and ur left with loose skin waiting to scab. so i tried this. IT HURT SOOOOOOOOOOOOO BAD. the firey pits of hell is one heck of an understatment. it is going to make you not want to do this, once u feel it do it again! mine is now getting nice and hard mine was a little bloddy when i did it so its red where the blood was but it is dry! i could almost put cover up on it at this point. and thats 20 MINUTES LATER! i can only imagine how it will be tomorrow. and ill be sure to fill you in.   curious Comments By: layla on 2010-08-29 i have a huge blister that has half of my upper lip swollen. i am convinced this will work. will update with results.   Trying this now!! Comments By: Girl Who Wants To Rip off her lip on 2010-09-01 I think this is hilarious that we are willing to try ANYTHING to make sure this disgusting sucker goes away! Whenever I feel like this thing is coming because of the tingling I use ABREVA ASAP and until now its actually helped but this one just grew and is out of sight! I figured it would go away in a few days but, NO it keeps growing! This morning I woke up and it looked like someone punched me in my bottom lip because there is dry blood all over it! I even called off work because I am SO ashamed/embarrassed! Especially since I work in a hospital everyone KNOWS what it is and I could not face it! I also am too afraid to see my boyfriend because he hasnt seen me with this the 10 months we have been dating and he doesnt understand why I am so embarrassed! You don't understand until you have it!! I am praying this tip works! It hurt like a BITCH after the first 10 seconds that my eyes started to tear haha but if it works then I will happily endure the pain.. but if not I am joining the others to beat up the person who gave this advice.. LOL jk :)   so far so good Comments By: david on 2010-09-02 i've had cold sores for ages. not too oftenly tho, once or twice a year. My current one popped up yesterday. I kept it iced and took lysine, like 4000mg, but it still popped up. i just poked a hole, drained it, rubbed the salt on and am now holding a qtip with rubbing alcohol to it. it hurts, but i've noticed a diffference in the past hour   almost perfect solution. Comments By: GodLikeParallax on 2010-09-02 first off, it is fact the if you have HSV1, any burns, scratches, or cuts on your lip, can cause an outbreak. I got this recent one from popping a tiny blood blister. I felt the tingling and thought nothing of it since i only get these once or twice a year. Once it reared its ugly face, i immediately started downing Lysine tabs. the article about how Lysine blocks the virus from using Arginine to duplicate is absolutely true.I usually start with about 8-10,000 mg spread throughout the day. This is the first time Im using salt, but after a couple hours, it seems to be drying up pretty nice. It forced all the liquid from the blister, so i used a small piece of toilet paper to suck up the liquid. Im sure this crap would spread if you let it drip down your face... Today was the fist day I thought to cut a small piece off a flexible fabric band aid and put it right on top the sore throughout the day. Even though it might slow the healing process by about a day or two, at least i was able to talk face to face with people and not feel so horribly embarrassed. When they asked, i told them "the first rule of fight club is you dont talk about fight club."   works like a charm! Comments By: Kristine on 2010-09-03 I've had cold sores my entire life, and I've tried countless ways to heal them!! This really worked for me. I think its something to do once the cold sore has developed fully, if done before that it may aggravate it.   how bout on your nose?!! Comments By: red rosey nosey on 2010-09-03 Well I think it varies with people. My mom tried the salt thing and it worked. She had a blister with the puss still in it. It didnt seem to help mine any, but it stung like a muther!! Bad thing is I don't get fever blisters much on my lips anymore as I use to when I was younger. I have a problem with this herpes cimplex breaking out on my nose!!!! YEAH!! SUX BIG TIME!!!! I tried the salt but it didnt seem to help so I did try the Apple CIder Vinegar, somewhat helped....but the best thing for me was the fingernail polish remover with acetone. It dried it up and i have a spot on my nose still but not as bad. I try to avoid people when I get these nasty things. If anyone else gets it on their nose let me know...I know I can't be the only one. Hearing how everyone else feels when they get them makes me realize I'm not alone in the embarrasment!!   IVE FOUND THE CURE. Comments By: WellWisher on 2010-09-15 Well i had this nasty cold sore come up on a Sunday. i tried everything and by that i mean, honey, alcahol, sulphur, ear wax, pee, nail polish remover, salt and even zovirax. So then came monday, the coldsore was horrible big and nasty. FINALLY on Tuesday i had enough so i decided to make my own MIXTURE. all you need is ..alcahol, salt and Lanacane powder (irritated skin powder). mix all these and apply it....in 2 days..my cold sore healed and scabbed. this mixture will sting like w#$#$@$%#%@#~!!!! but hey... 2 days.... wish i discovrd this one before :) its thursday and my cold sore is gone. :) BTW APPLY THE PASTE LIKE EVERYTIME U GET THE CHANCE. like after every 30 mins. the more u do it..THE FASTER IT WILL HEAL.   ???? why Comments By: yeah ok on 2010-09-19 well pulling a noise hair hurts more lol but i been playing with mine all week trying to have it go away nothing working so i tested it seemd to be ok wash salt off and put a ton on both lips so i dont miss any spots   burn baby burn Comments By: Mike on 2010-09-25 i got the salt on it now... seesh it burn woahhh.. i pray this work, i got the salt just sittin on it right now don't kno how long i should it though! help me out people!   Feeling a lot better !! Comments By: Stan on 2010-09-29 I am glad to have stumbled across this, can sympathise with everyone here it is a terrible feeling of not wanting to face anyone.. and looking for hiding places.. I have just applied some salt and can feel it taking affect almost instantly, feeling a lot better than I did half an hour ago.   It works!!! Comments By: Meilin on 2010-10-07 I tried this last night and it really didn't work. So what I did was I popped the cold sore but hydrogen peroxide on it to clean it (burns a lot) and after I did the salt. Very painful but so good, I berly have it anymore it's a little thing now and every chance I get I put salt on it and just leave it on until there's no more and I reapply. It will burn but if u wanted out of the way pain is the way to go lol. Mine started this Tuesday and it's almost completely gone. Good luck hope my advice helps (:   hope this works. Comments By: hopeful prospect on 2010-10-06 i currently have my cold sore covered in sale haha.... It doesn't like everyone says. maybe its because it hasnt actually burst open yet.... but none-the-less am i doing this right? this is literally the first time i've ever had a cold sore. went 19 years and now i have one. im livid. hope this works.   Omg... Comments By: Meilin on 2010-10-07 I'm trying this right now and it burns like a b!/$# I hope it works. Btw I'm leaving it on to go to sleep hope it's better tomorrow in the am!!!   JOB INTERVIEW Comments By: anon on 2010-10-08 OMG. have a job interview on monday and now i have this nasty disgusting looking cold sore. I want to try this remedey but im too SCURRED what if it gets worse? IDK about this.   impressed! Comments By: Some Girl on 2010-10-08 so this is my first cold sore and i'm going insane! i got this disgusting thing yesterday, it creeped up overnight...and i raced to the computer to find a remedy. i kept reading about salt so i mixed some hydrogen peroxide and salt and applied it all throughout the day and now all i have only a scab!   Salt wow! Comments By: Cold Sore Amateur on 2010-10-13 I'm 23 and broke out in my first cold sores in August. It was hideous because my whole mouth was covered in sores and it was swollen. I literally looked I like a duck. I think it might have been the fact that I really like this guy and I stressed myself out because i felt i was out of his league. Anyhow, I'm so happy i found this sight because this is the second time i get an outbreak (not as bad as the last one btw). I found four little blisters on the junction of my upper corner of my lip/skin. I really hope this works. I dabbed the salt on the blisters without popping them though. I hope it dries it out anyhow. It does sting a little but I hope really goes away. I do now sympathize for those who do suffer from this. Well keep your heads up, you're not alone, and I pray for every here and hereafter who come up with cold sores! ^__^   Cold sore free! Comments By: Meilin on 2010-10-14 It's been 7 days since my cold sore and w/ this salt treat mention my cold sore was completely gone in 4 days! Super awesome (:   Please oh please let this work!!! Comments By: Darcey on 2010-11-10 Okay, so I just tried this for the first time. I'm not gunna lie..... It hurts like no other!!! I put the salt on my gank nasty, blistered up, pustules, oozing, and no good for nothing, except a lot of embarrassment and pain, cold sore....and, for a brief second, I thought I was going to be one of the lucky ones that felt little or no pain. Shortly after the brief second, the pain of 10,000 miniature warriors running up my chin, and onto my lips, with burning torches being dragged behind them, began to become apparent. Shortly after that... the pain began. I wanted to scratch the blister off with the cheese grater that I was eyeing in hopes that the pain would subside. The "salt", which by its self seems harmless, turned into a nuclear bomb for the lip. I am pretty sure that when someone came up with the phrase, “rub salt in you wounds”, they had tried this remedy. I would have yelled for someone to come pull the pin on the fire extinguisher, but, I couldn’t get the words out loud enough for anyone to hear. (It was like being paralyzed with fear in a bad dream.) I was never so thankful for the freezer in my entire life. I shoved my head into the freezer faster than you can say “Popsicle.” I took the first thing that I could find, which was a ½ opened bag of peas, and slammed those babies on my lip SO fast. I did however forget that my lip was wet from the water and salt mixture (if that’s what you want to call it. From now on, I will be referring to this as, “self mutilation.”) that I had just put on my lip. The bag of peas stuck to my face so hard that when I realized what I had done, I thought to myself, “Maybe this isn’t a bad thing after all. One swift tug of this bag and all my problems can be solved.” I was hoping that when I jerked the bag off, that the blister would love the peas more than me, and just go with it. Once again, I was wrong. As I used a Chuck Norris move that I had seen in several movies, my blister decided that it was me that it loved more. Lucky me! I am so fortunate that it chose me. I decided at that moment that the original pain of the “self mutilation” mixture that I had applied earlier wasn’t so bad after all. A took a short break, and then reapplied the “you know what” mixture. I will let you know how it works out. I am currently lying in my bed with my head propped up above my heart to lessen the throbbing pain that is radiating out of my lips. Please oh please let this work!!! :D   Where's The Rest Of The Pain lol Comments By: V on 2010-11-16 So I have the HUGE sore on my lip that takes up half, if not most of my top lip. Its very swollen and has been hurting a bit but I just want it gone. I'm hoping this salt thing works. And FYI its not as painfull as I thought it would be. Where's the rest of the pain? Lol   trying it out Comments By: k on 2010-11-16 i just woke up with a cs and im going to try this..i will write back and tel yall if it work are not...wish me luck   QUESTION Comments By: Cade moore on 2010-11-22 right now its a big white bubble. im talking big. i put the salt on it and its just sitting there. do i have to pop it and then put salt inside it??? cus right now im not feeling anything because its just a bubble.   wooorkkkk Comments By: Cade moore on 2010-11-22 i only have one arm because i dislocated my other and then i just got this huge cold sore. i have salt on it and not really feeling any thing. need it to be gone. thanks giving is in 3 days.   ummm Comments By: rissa on 2010-11-22 Kinda worried to try this. I really hope it works. I have a date tomorrow night and my cold sore is huge...the pain is not that bad.i really hope this works   Just tried it.... Comments By: Anonymous on 2010-11-30 So this is my third time getting a cold sore. The space between the first two times was like almost a year and the space between the last time and this one is 3 years. I got this one on Monday morning. Its now Tuesday and I just saw this article. I normally use Aciclovir 5% Cream and it dries it up and cleans it out in like 2 weeks or so but it leaves an almost invisible mark. I Have the salt on it right now and it feels like its working....it burns but it is manageable. Cold Sores are sooo disgusting. It makes you feel so ugly and like everyone is starring right at it. It makes you sooo self concious. OMG its starting to burn more...ok its working.   50/50 Comments By: GeeT on 2010-12-01 well i tried it got and out break today when i woke up(damn i hate that) so i decide to give it a try i poped mines got one on my lower lips and upper lip, kinda stings but not to bad, the one on the top lip is gone away it worked, but on my lower lip not so much so ima let it sit over night just to kill the crap out of it. hope my lips are still in tack by the morning.   THANK YOU ALL! Comments By: Sunbaby on 2010-12-01 HOLY PAINFUL! After spending a minute writhing on the floor clutching the side of my face in agony while my BF laughed his butt off, I am now eagerly awaiting the good results so many of you have shared (while dreading having to do it again). PLEASE WORK! I really want to thank all of you for sharing your little stories and making me laugh at an otherwise not funny topic (especially the one about the Hitler mustache). I have a disease that requires me to be on a massive immuno-suppressant and so am now all of a sudden getting these little bastards a lot (after having only had 2 my entire life...I'm 40). While I wish NONE of you was dealing with it, knowing that you have the same emotions and reactions that I have have gone a long way in making me feel better about myself just in the short time it took me to read your comments. Humor helps everything. If we can't laugh at it we will cry, and whats the good in THAT! Cheers to all <3   DARCY Comments By: Sunbaby on 2010-12-01 I just saw your post. I have been laughing hysterically ever since and I have forgotten the fact that the side of my face feels like its being twisted and wrenched off slowly by a pliers-wielding psychopathic cold sore collector! you're the best. Thank you! :)   HELP!!! Comments By: Anon on 2010-12-09 I woke up with my cold sore this morning i started using neosprin lip treatment trhoughout the day had to go to work and by the time i got home and looked at it AAAHH the blisters are coming! Do i need to pop them before i put the salt in??   wow........ Comments By: eleanor on 2010-12-09 omg i just tried this because i just now got my cold sore today while i was at school i guess anyways so i tried it and it stings like MAD! how long does it usually work if got it the same day u found out?   omg :o) Comments By: princesspeach on 2010-12-13 i woke up after having a 'fun' evening and i had a nasty cold sore (super pissed)and i got some Blistex thinking that would help but two days later it had actually gotten bigger. i used a needle to break the top most layer of skin then pushed a q-tip soaked in fingernail polish remover agaisnt the sore for about 5min. after that, i put an ice cube against it to kill the virus. after that i used the salt technique listed above. my cold sore has dried up and its only been a few hours.   so far! Comments By: Jan on 2010-12-13 i'm trying it out right now... I have a cluster of cold sores on my bottom lip that go onto the skin below my lip. I also have one near the corner of my mouth and one on the inside of my lip. I steralyzed a needle, a safety pin actually, and popped each one. There was one spot that i pricked that turned out to be just lip so i successfully put a little hole in my lip. Wonderful. But anyway, after i pricked them all, i made sure to get all the fluid out by dabbing it with tp. Then i got the powdered salt and smothered it all over. and it STUUUNNNGGGGGG. After a few seconds it starts to get better. I have the salt still on my lip right now, still stinging. But i'll do anything to get these little horrid monsters off of my face! I seriously would do anything, I'll light my lip on fire if i have to. But its good to know i'm not the only one. hah. Although i do feel bad that all you people get these too. I rated a 3 cuz I'm not quite sure if it's working yet. I think it is. They seem a bit smaller. If it works i will forever be thankful!!!! WHoever came up with this, i will freakin love you forever. Going to high school with these things is a freakin nightmare. I had one girl ask me if i got punched in the mouth once. And i've had people ask if i got burnt. Hah. I always say yes though :P anyway, best of luck to all you!! :)   It doesn't hurt me??? Comments By: Mark on 2010-12-14 Interesting that I put the salt on my cold sore and it doesn't sting at all. Do I need to open the wound for it to work? I pressed hard against it. One thing for sure is that stress is my number one reason I get cold sores. Most of the time I just get one in center of top lip but this time it's over a little.   works! Comments By: Kay on 2010-12-24 This treatment is best when the sore is oozing (slimy, pus). Think of it as a snail on your face. Salt is used to kill those disgusting things. Dab your finger in water and then salt, apply to that grossness on your lip/face :)   I tried it and its working Comments By: Caren on 2010-12-19 I have been using salt for about 6 hours now and it is starting to work and dry up the cold sore. Every couple of hours I was with hot soapy water pat dry and then place the salt on it. I got the cold sore yesterday and today it is drying because of the salt and is starting to scab. It does help!   I tried it and its working Comments By: Caren on 2010-12-19 I have been using salt for about 6 hours now and it is starting to work and dry up the cold sore. Every couple of hours I wash with hot soapy water pat dry and then place the salt on it. I got the cold sore yesterday and today it is drying because of the salt and is starting to scab. It does help!   Trying it out !!! Comments By: anon on 2010-12-21 i popped the ugly littlr bastards on my top lip and crushed the salt and added some water. placed it on my blisters. burns a bit.not too bad Hope it works everyone at work is starring at me and it sux   Made it worse! Comments By: Shelby on 2010-12-21 Mixed salt & rubbing alcohol & applied it to my cold sore with a q-tip for about an hour. Now it's almost twice the size it was, & has a white ring around it! I washed all the salt that I could off, tried squeezing out all the liquid that I could, re-applied the alcohol for a minute & put abreva on it. We'll see where I am in the morning. Just thought I should let you know that for some it CAN make it worse, use at your own risk! (I've always popped my sores with a pin & kept alcohol on as long as I can stand. That usually works alright but this one was much larger than my normal cold sores & there was nothing to pop. Thought I would try this treatment)   Huh??? Comments By: Anon on 2011-01-04 Okay...so i was reading what is cold sore and they say to avoid chocolate (ouch!), table salt, sugar, soybean, soft drinks, most meat and coffee. Alkaline forming foods include sea salt, stevia, asparagus, garlic, mineral water, wild rice, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, olive oil, flax, and, believe it or not, most citrus fruit....   Yow! Comments By: Sharon on 2011-01-05 Trying it...can picture the pain!Trusting this will work...but I read lots of people writing about the pain being a sign its working, even oven cleaner would burn!Or a match!lol ps dont try the match or oven cleaner.   pop the blisters with a pin Comments By: anon on 2011-01-08 wen i get a coldsore and and the blisters are just appearing i get a pin and pop the blisters and put a tissue on the blister straight away to get all the liquid.this reduces the look of the coldsore straight away and it dries up quite quickly. leav the coldsore alone after this and it will be gone before u no it.the more u ignore it the more likely it will soon go   I just can't get rid of it:( Comments By: Karina on 2011-01-10 I got these two cold sores one on top and one on the bottom lip. There huge and my lips r swollen to the extreme. I skipped school cuz it was so bad and embarrassing. If I keep itnon for a long time will it be gone by tomorrow ??   I love it!!! Comments By: Dominique on 2011-01-13 I love it but it stings like CRAZY!!!   It Works You Know Comments By: LmX on 2011-01-25 it worked, and it really didn't sting that much... the sore dried up pretty quickly and didn't mature past the point at which it was already... Great Initial Post!!!   Good idea but this is better Comments By: Tommy on 2011-01-15 I know this might sound extreme but i use mentholated spirits, on a cotton stick thing.... i heard it from an old bloke ages ago. i've used it ever since. works great.   Hope this works... Comments By: Kane on 2011-01-21 My gf gets back from holiday tomorrow, I don't want to face her with this monstrosity on my lip I will comment results tommorrow   go away damn thing Comments By: noname on 2011-01-25 my doc gave me antibiotics butt i wont be gettin them till tmrw night and i hav 2 go 2 school tmrw so i'm gonna try dis thanks!!!!!   Here's hoping... Comments By: K AZ on 2011-01-28 So the stupid cold sore started a few days ago. Used tons of tips from http://www.myhomeremedies.com/topic.cgi?topicid=235&page=7 but even though the bottom one is now dried up I have 2 more big ones on my top lip. One honking' one on each side. I agree the comments here have helped, some are so humorous :). So, had iodized salt and sea salt (couldn't choose so used both) on hoping it will reduce the swollen gross blisters. I have one appt. To do at the salon, but really worried about tomorrow because I have a whole wedding party to style and make up. Yeah, monstrous looking stylist probably won't make the bride think, yeah never met her but she's awesome.   i really hope this works :) Comments By: amy on 2011-02-24 So I just tried it left it one for about five mins and I hope this really work cause if not ill cry the pain is not that bad actually but I will continue doing this throughout the day thanks for the tip guys :) before I go question, how long should I leave the salt on there for?   It works Comments By: Anon on 2011-02-20 Oh joy. 34 years on this earth without cold sores and as a wonderful Valentine's Day/ Birthday gift, this guy I'm seeing decided to give me a life long present. Grrrr... thanks. Anyway, screwed up first by popping the stupid thing and didn't realize the fluids can cause the cold sores to spread. I found this site, and the salt thing appears to work. I also bought some lysine and am taking 2000 mgs. Now if I can only get rid of this sore throat. This thing is a beast!!!   Trying it now Comments By: Jeff on 2011-02-23 Dante was an amateur when describing the burning pits of hell, or he hadn't tried this method. However if it works then I will endure it. Salt in an open sore isn't the most pleasant method of ridding yourself of something as unsightly as a coldsore, but once you've had one for a week pruning sheers become a viable option in my mind. Let's see if this method works, if so then I have a new organic remedy for an age-old problem!   giving it a try Comments By: cory on 2011-02-27 tonight is sunday night, felt it late friday night and it showed up saturday morning. trying this salt trick right now. hurts like hell, but i can feel some tingling also.   Still Burning Comments By: Anon on 2011-03-08 My cold sore erupted on Sunday and I have avoided work and school. I found this site because it got to the blister stage quickly in 3 days (after leaking in front of a client-I could have died!!!!) I decided I won't go to work tomorrow with a blister. I tried the salt and apple cider vinegar after reading all of the posts--it is still stinging and burning but it seems to be drying up!!!!! If so, I can go to work. THANKS for the tips and reviews!!!!!   question.. Comments By: Cecily on 2011-03-11 i tried the salt...it didnt hurt that bad..but now can i use a cold sore treatment medication after using the salt? (its not abreva, its called campho-phenique) plz reply   Hope it works!!!!!! Comments By: Anon on 2011-03-19 I have 3 cold sores under my lips, and one on my lip. I hope this method really works because I sure wouldn't want to go to school lookin' like crap! I grow fever blisters alot!!!! About every month, but this month I grew it more than once.. ): I hope it works pray for me to be well and hopefully it will work. Thanks for the info guys!!!!!!   Antibiotics Comments By: Elvis on 2011-03-25 The salt method together with the antibiotics (e.g. Azithromicyn) work like magic. three to four days and the cold sore healed. it worked for me.   what if??? Comments By: Roxie on 2011-03-29 I got the blister from a lip piercing does this still apply???   FASTEST and BEST solution Comments By: xoxo27 on 2011-03-30 i've had cold sores all my life. so i've tried about everything: from meds, to over the counter products, tooth paste and popping, you name i've probably tired it and many products do help the healing and pain but nothing works fast enough. Recently i read about nail polish remover. i didn't really feel safe trying it since my cold sores burst right next to my lip but i needed fast relief. it works like a charm!! its fast and practically painless. my cold sore is almost all dry with a small thin scab. it didn't leave me a dark circle like toothpaste did or salt. For best results i would recommend using 100% pure acetone the one i use is onyx professional you can easily find it at sally's or walmart and the small bottles is just a $1 i would highly recommend your try this if you want fast results.   No salt! Comments By: Ash on 2011-04-04 A lot of people do not know this but salt can cause a cold sore, that's why the doctors say to avoid salty foods when you have one. Salt may dry it up but it is likely to cause another. I wouldn't advise anyone to put salt on it unless your looking to breed cold sores.   OMG Comments By: Abby on 2011-04-08 IT HURTS SO BAD! But I don't care as long as it gone, I have my 15s next week and i need it gone before then   what if? Comments By: josh on 2011-04-11 what if i hold it on there for like 5 minz? then just let is sit there without my finger???   Ahhh Comments By: Anon on 2011-04-23 Jeezz it stings. Is it supposed be like pulsing?   Speeding up the healing... Comments By: Gladys on 2011-04-26 I have yet to try to salt remedy because I think (fingers crossed!) that my current sores are on their last day. But I have some tips for getting rid of these confidence killers: use cutips to apply any product and when cleaning to reduce the chance of spreading the infection and to prevent constant handwashing, also my mom has always told me to use mouthwash to help kill the cold sore and they never last more than 4-5 days anymore. It doesn't burn but does the job. I recommend oragel sore healing wash or listerine. I also find that applying Abreva constantly helps a lot as well guzzling tons of water! I got my cold sores Friday afternoon and it's now Monday afternoon and they're tiny and dying. I HATE cold sores sooo much. I hope I can help someone, I've gotten good tips from this blog so I hope I returned the favor. Good luck!!   Grrr Comments By: Bailey on 2011-05-03 Ok,so I just tried this. I'm not really felling anything but a little tingle. What if you pop it, ice it, then salt it? And what if it is already in the scabbing stage, but the scab isn't exactly there yet? Will this still work the same?   Tried it just now... Comments By: rayne on 2011-05-03 ...and it didn't burn. I don't get cold sores often, maybe once a year, if I even get one at all. I usually get one small-medium sized one, but I woke up this morning and it has spread into a few other ones. I noticed the tingling itchy feeling last night and immediately used some rubbing alcohol on the area to dry it out and placed some bacitracin zinc ointment on it. Usually rubbing alcohol dries it out, but for some reason it's not working now. Definitely going to pick up some 100% pure Tea Tree Oil. Last time I felt one forming, I placed the tea tree oil on it three times daily and it barely formed. It stayed small and went away in 2-3 days.   SWEET MOTHER OF GOD! Comments By: Deda on 2011-05-05 This buuuurrrrnnnns sooooo baaaadddd! If it doesn't work,I hope whoever came up with it gets a GIANT fever blister on their BUTT!!! LOL!   Carmex Comments By: tony on 2011-05-27 try carmex its only 1.99 and heels in 1 1/2 days good luck.   salt drying Comments By: brandy on 2011-05-25 i woke up with a cold sore, and had no signs from the night before. I usually know what to look for. So after trying ice and witch hazel and rubbing alcohol all day I am tryin the salt. I pray that it works quickly!!!, it does sting but not bad. I am leaving it on for a long time then taking off and applying new. I hope it doesnt make it worse. I will lwt you know!!!   grrrr Comments By: joshie on 2011-06-29 so i'm reading everyone's posts and i'm going to try this. i'm using the salt/water mixture and i'm gonna leave it on my cold sore until it feels like its all dry. after that i'll wash it up and apply my abreva for the night. hope it works!   virgin cold sore Comments By: soreface on 2011-06-30 3 weeks ago i experienced my first cluster of coldsores on my cheek. I didnt know what they were so it wasnt til a week or so later that it was diagnosed and then i was prescribed aciclovior, Im english. Now 3 weeks later i have a huge scab and i am scared as i dont know what to do to make it heal. can anyone suggest any remedies?   Not to bad! Comments By: Amy on 2011-07-01 Well, I went to bed last night thinking that my lip was sore because of a pimple, but no. It turned out to be a cold sore that showed up this morning,on Canada Day and I have a big BBQ tommorw for people. It never fails...anyway I tried the salt about, ohh 5 minutes ago. I popped the blisters first and then added the salt. It stings a little but its not unbearable or anything. I hope it works!! I'll let you know what happens.   It works! Comments By: So over it! on 2011-07-10 FML I just had a cold sore a few weeks ago, and after coming back from vaca 2 more appear! Ugh, so I became frantic, thank goodness I had a frozen soda can filled in the freezer for an ocassion like this, I also took lysine, olive leaf extract, and vitamin C, and right before I went to bed, I crushed salt, applied it to my sores, and covered them with liquid band aid. When I woke up this morning not only was the cold sore dried up, it didn't get crusty! It just looks like my lip is a little swollen, and that's it. Thank Goodness! This is day two, so I'll have to see what happens tomorrow. I hate this, when I feel horrible and like a freak, I remember all the disfigured people that have to be self conscious everyday. Good luck!   I just tried it... Comments By: Scotty on 2011-07-14 Well, I just tried it.. I smashed the salt with a spoon, dabbed my wet finger in the salt and applied it to my lip, and held for 30 seconds.... And nothing, it didn't burn one bit, but now I've had the salt on my lip for about 5 minutes now and I can kinda feel it burning, it more of slight burning tingle really and as I'm writing it's getting more intense...   didn't work.. Comments By: anon on 2011-08-20 i put the salt on my cold sores and nothing happened....   Better work! Comments By: Ali on 2011-08-09 Im trying this as i have a cold sore in the middle of my upper lip! doesnt seem to work but ill still give it a go!! Tip from me: You can pop it and then add the salt it would dry up very fast but it'll leave your lip swollen a bit. lol   nothing has worked for me :( Comments By: joespphine on 2011-08-11 I woke up 2 days ago with a massive out break of cold sores from my lips to my chin it just looks like I've been scollded,I tryed the toothpaste,ice,t,bag and the proper cream off the doctor and they are still red raw I feel and look shocking,I have often suffered with them but never this bad my chin has swollen and I can't go to work plz help me to find something to heal them.   Super Lysine + @ Whole Foods Comments By: SuperLysine+ on 2011-10-25 Go get this immediately - combined with 800 mg acyclovir and taking 500 mg lysine pills, my cold sores are usually gone within 2-3 days. Â