KayCurls

Hi Buttercup and Optimist so I have knowingly been apart of the (H) club for about two months and like your stories I also discovered my status through a blood test and I have never had an outbreak or any noticeable symptoms. For weeks I felt like I had been betrayed by my body ..... how could I have not known? Then I became angry because I had been receiving std testing annually but had no clue that Herpes was not included the normal battery of testing .... how could my doctor let me think she had tested for everything when I could've had HSV2 my entire adult life ..... After having my break down and disclosing it to my boyfriend.... I decided I needed to know the facts. Everyday I would wake up and search for a answer to the first Herp question the would come to mind.... (I was scared that I couldn't even swim in a public pool) yes I tend to have a dramatic flare ! But the more I researched and the more FACTS I learned the more acceptance I gained for myself. I was determined to not this take over my life or ruin my relationship..... Now I completely understand Buttercup when you said it's easy to almost dismisss it because you and I haven't had any physical symptoms.... but I know when ever I'm around a group of people and STD's become a topic of conversation I still feel a since of uneasyiness come over me...I'm torn between trying to educate them and doing my best to erase the stereotype without disclosing to the whole world . But for me living with HSV2 is something I've decided to tackle slowly but surely... it helps that my family friends and boyfriend have been completely supportive! Disclosing to them literally empowered me and gave me the courage to actually work through my diagnosis instead of ignoring it until I maybe one day have an out break !!!! I simply decided I'm still me... nothing has changed about the person I am and the person I'm becoming my goals are still the same and having herpes doesn't change that.