For pain relief during a severe outbreak, I suggest a topical application of ground up acetaminophen or Tylenol. I have had GH for years and have been trying natural remedies (including putting hydrogen peroxide, apple cider vinegar, and oil of oregano on the spots) which sometimes help and sometimes don't...the oil oregano was a new one and it hurt bad. My outbreaks are usually more annoying than painful, but this one woke me up at 3:30 am and felt like a blowtorch on my delicate female parts. After research, the best option sounded like using ground up Acetaminophen tablets (I cut them with a knife into pieces and then used a heavy bottomed drinking glass to crush them into a powder), then made a thick paste with a little water and applied it to the sores. I was in so much pain that I didn't expect it to work, but within a few minutes, the pain had gone down dramatically and I was able to sleep. Also, don't wear anything tight fitting and avoid underwear if you can...that helped me a lot too.