designergal

So I was diagnosed with genital hsv 1 about 3 years ago. It was a devastating blow- I was extremely ashamed and never felt that I would feel "normal" again. I slowly came to terms with my condition and just started living day by day. Recently my fears and anxiety have returned and I'm feeling extremely low. I feel so angry, upset, betrayed...I can't shake how I'm feeling right now. I'm back on the dating scene again and I'm worried that this will prevent me from ever having a relationship again. Ive found some comfort in know that hsv really is nothing but a skin condition- the stigma is the worst part of having hsv...but I recently read an article where scientists are linking hsv with Alzheimers disease. So now not only do we have to live with this shame, scientists are also saying we have a higher chance of developing this horrible disease. I'm really struggling to keep it together right now and could use some support...any advice on how to feel better again?

Thank you so much Aimee and WCSDancer 2010. You're words are incredibly helpful in navigating "the talk". I'll keep you posted on how it goes!!

Thanks 2Legit! I definitely want to see where things go first. And you're absolutely right about not being ashamed- it's more common that people talk about and it really doesn't interfere with my life! I know with the right person it wont even matter...just the matter of finding that right one : ) Thanks again!

Hi All-- I've been chatting with someone I've met online and I'm excited to see where this relationship goes. We've been on 1 date (and a second in the works) so I'm not ready to disclose just yet, but if things continue to go well, I know I'll have to have "the talk". This is the first person I've had to disclose to post-diagonsis and I was hoping for some good pointers on having the talk. I've downloaded Adrial's fact sheet on disclosure and there are some great facts I want to include in my talk, but I was hoping to hear others experiences on what to do (or NOT to do). Thanks in advance!!

Thanks for the uplifting words and support! I've been trying to focus on the fact it will help me weed out men in my life that don't have my best interests at heart and aren't interested in knowing the real me. I put up a profile on a std singles website...I'm feeling a bit limited. Maybe I just need to give myself some time to heal and focus on myself. It can all be overwhelming, but I'm optimsitic

Thank you, thank you for posting this story. Im newly diagnosed with hsv1 and still trying to come to terms and this was definitely the story I needed! I hope things are still going strong. Just know that this story has really touched many of us. Thank you!

Hi All! I'm a 29 year old from Chicago. I was diagnosed 5 months ago and really trying to connect to others in the same situation. I would love to talk to whomever wants to! I really would like to pull myself out of this funk I'm in, I know I can find the good again, hopefully talking to others can bring that out again!

I'm 29 and I found out I had herpes about 5 months ago. I got HSV 1 from my partner, whom I was in a committed relationship for 2 years. He had cold sores on his mouth and it transmitted orally. We recently broke up and I'm still struggling with this. We were having a lot of issues besides this, but this definitely affected our relationship, at least on my end. I haven't felt sexy and I feel that sex really isn't enjoyable for me now. Now that we've ended the relationship, I'm so concerned for future experiences. Does anyone have any experiences they can share? I guess I'm just looking for hope that I can find someone out there that is willing to accept me with this condition. I want a husband and kids in the future, but this seems like it will be even more difficult to find. I don't know how to deal with this and the rejection that will come from it. I'm definitely feeling ashamed. Any advice?