Herpes in the Black Community

[sarahsfocus]

I think having hsv1 is better than having hsv2. you have more outbreaks with hsv2 and it's milder. I hope you a lot of good luck. I'm here if you need me.take care Sarah

[sarahsfocus]

never think your dirty because your not your a human being and made in God's image.God loves you and you have Purpose.people are immature about this. if you have Love in your heart for God that's all you need. please there is people out there that care for you.take care Sarah.

[sarahsfocus]

you welcome Loveage.

[Kacey]

You know that where i live hsv1 is not a big problem people call it night fever because even babies have it. They dont call it herpes when its oral even though it is but the genital herpes you will get slashed for.

[Lstgryl]

Hello everyone. I’m taking valtrex daily as suppressive therapy. Does anyone know of it should be taken around the same time daily? I couldn’t find any information online regarding this. 

[sarahsfocus]

well I don't know. I'm sure it's fine as long as you take it everyday.I hope this helps Sarah

[SeraLyn]

@Lstgryl

you do want to take it around the same time every day for most effectiveness.  

[sarahsfocus]

hey SeraLyn, do you take your suppresent everyday? just wondering.Sarah

[SeraLyn]

On 10/22/2019 at 6:35 AM, sarahsfocus said:

hey SeraLyn, do you take your suppresent everyday? just wondering.Sarah

When I'm on suppression, yes I take daily.

I take first thing in the morning so I don't forget. Bottle's on my night stand by my bed 😁

[sarahsfocus]

ok. I think it wouldn't matter as long as you take it everyday. Sarah.

[SeraLyn]

I'm sure it works, however, for most effectiveness, the once a day means once every 24 hours. If you're treating episodically, it's once every 12 hours (or whatever the medically professional recommends pending dosage provided).

The reason daily drugs are most effective when taken at the same time is due to the time release factor of the medication.  If you're taking sporadic times throughout the day, you may have more in your system or none in your system when you take the next does (essentially, starting over every day versus maintaining a consistent stream)

[sarahsfocus]

ok I understand. sorry for the misunderstanding. take care Sarah

[SeraLyn]

no worries sara, just sharing how my medical professional explained to me.  All learning right.

So here's a twist of story...has anyone had a partner/ex tell them you gave them HSV JUST so you'd stay with them?? 🥴🥴

[justbri.]

On 11/15/2019 at 12:49 PM, SeraLyn said:

no worries sara, just sharing how my medical professional explained to me.  All learning right.

So here's a twist of story...has anyone had a partner/ex tell them you gave them HSV JUST so you'd stay with them?? 🥴🥴

Wow! I have not been in that situation fortunately. Sounds like dude has some serious insecurities. 😬

[sarahsfocus]

No I Have Never Been in that Situation.. it sounds messed up. Sarah.

[IDONTBELONGTOYOU]

Hey Girls ❤️ 
 

I’m 26 years old diagnosed last year in May..with G1...Doing ok so far.. some days really good, confident, not worried about it.. other days wondering how am I going to explain this? When is the right time? Why did I give this person the benefit of the doubt? Lots of guilt and shame. I have no support from them or family. 

[Grow&Glow]

Hey ladies I found this forum and thread during my endless search on how to go about disclosing to a partner my status.

I was diagnosed about 7 years ago, late twenties, AA female living in Atlanta.

Responding to some of the things I’ve seen asked or mentioned.

- I don’t have frequent OB’s

- I feel like I’ve had one major episode years ago but if I recall when I went to my obgyn she said it wasn’t a outbreak but couldn’t really say what it was. All I remember is it was painful and took about 2 months to really clear up.

- Not currently taking any medication

- I took suppressants daily when first diagnosed. My obgyn at the time didn’t hesitate on the prescription. However recent years when I’ve asked they only want to give me meds if I’m having a current OB and it would be a 7 day supply. 

- I get waxed on a regular basis and it doesn’t result in OB’s. I exfoliate(need to be more consistent) and use tend/skin & witch hazel to avoid ingrown hairs and irritation.

- I’m a vegetarian and try to eat as clean as possible (work in progress)

- I fall off from time to time but for vitamins I take multi, evening primrose, burdock root

2 weeks ago I did disclose to my partner and it was probably the most nerve wrecking thing I’ve ever had to do. I told him via text and his response was “wow”. I honestly didn’t expect to hear from him again. A few hours later he wanted to know more, had questions and I answered. He said he needed to think about it and again I wasn’t sure what to expect from him. Fast forward and we’re still communicating as we were before. 

While I’m not sure what will happen with us. I’m glad I told him because it lifted a huge weight and makes it easier to disclose in the future. I would be lying if I didn’t side eye his reaction and start wondering if he had his own skeletons but we can’t predict how a person will feel and respond. Maybe getting to know one another and building the interest played a role.

I could go on & on about this but I’m glad I found this thread because it most definitely made me feel less alone in living with this.

[futdj19]

On 9/2/2018 at 9:52 PM, nance18 said:

Can't bring myself to respond to men showing an interest because I know that I will have to disclose. In addition to fearing their reactions, I worry that they will gossip about my status to others.

THIS IS ME 100%!!
i’m not sure if you’re still on this form since it was posted over a year ago, but if you are… Has your dating situation gotten any better?

[futdj19]

On 9/2/2019 at 5:56 AM, PhoenixRising_009 said:

kind of like a period, just get through it cause what else can I do (that’s another “incurable” situation I didn’t ask for). 

Lol REALEST THING EVER WROTE! 😂 like who asked for this?! I aint sign up for no damn period every month!! That was a great analogy… Thanks for making the comparison! 

[futdj19]

Hi All! So happy to have found this thread! 34 y/o AA F in Houston, diagnosed 6 months ago. The guy that gave me herpes also gave me at least 3 other STDs...Yep, 4 STDs from ONE MFer smh 🤦🏾‍♀️ AND HE KNEW HE HAD IT!  This situation has been a complete roller coaster and I STILL wanna beat his azz everytime I have an OB! 👊🏾 💥 Anyway, my question today is simple… Does anyone know what I can do to stop the tingling? I have tingling in my neck, my back, my knees and my toes… It drives me absolutely INSANE!! Sometimes it’s difficult to walk and sometimes I have to miss workouts because of it. Hoping to find some relief soon!

[Askingmyselfwhyme]

On 1/20/2020 at 12:01 AM, Grow&Glow said:

Hey ladies I found this forum and thread during my endless search on how to go about disclosing to a partner my status.

I was diagnosed about 7 years ago, late twenties, AA female living in Atlanta.

Responding to some of the things I’ve seen asked or mentioned.

- I don’t have frequent OB’s

- I feel like I’ve had one major episode years ago but if I recall when I went to my obgyn she said it wasn’t a outbreak but couldn’t really say what it was. All I remember is it was painful and took about 2 months to really clear up.

- Not currently taking any medication

- I took suppressants daily when first diagnosed. My obgyn at the time didn’t hesitate on the prescription. However recent years when I’ve asked they only want to give me meds if I’m having a current OB and it would be a 7 day supply. 

- I get waxed on a regular basis and it doesn’t result in OB’s. I exfoliate(need to be more consistent) and use tend/skin & witch hazel to avoid ingrown hairs and irritation.

- I’m a vegetarian and try to eat as clean as possible (work in progress)

- I fall off from time to time but for vitamins I take multi, evening primrose, burdock root

2 weeks ago I did disclose to my partner and it was probably the most nerve wrecking thing I’ve ever had to do. I told him via text and his response was “wow”. I honestly didn’t expect to hear from him again. A few hours later he wanted to know more, had questions and I answered. He said he needed to think about it and again I wasn’t sure what to expect from him. Fast forward and we’re still communicating as we were before. 

While I’m not sure what will happen with us. I’m glad I told him because it lifted a huge weight and makes it easier to disclose in the future. I would be lying if I didn’t side eye his reaction and start wondering if he had his own skeletons but we can’t predict how a person will feel and respond. Maybe getting to know one another and building the interest played a role.

I could go on & on about this but I’m glad I found this thread because it most definitely made me feel less alone in living with this.

Thank you so much for sharing! Have you had any successful disclosures since being diagnosed or was that your first time? Also, how long did you wait to disclose? How did you know it was the right time? Sorry for all the questions! I’m 21 AAF diagnosed back in June and I’m terrified to start dating again. 

[nance18]

On 1/22/2020 at 10:18 AM, futdj19 said:

THIS IS ME 100%!!
i’m not sure if you’re still on this form since it was posted over a year ago, but if you are… Has your dating situation gotten any better?

Hi futdj19! I wish I could say that my dating situation has improved greatly but it hasn't.  I've gone out on dates. Dated a couple of people for 2-3 months but when it started to get serious I cut it off.  Just could not bring myself to disclose.  Haven't dated much over the last few months. I know I'm still not at a place where I'm confident to disclose.

[Teach28]

Hi all . It’s been a while since I posted back last summer but I just wanted to give an update : 

I am in a much much better space and I can truly say opening my bible to read and understand how God views me and how He intended for me to think about myself has truly helped. I had to devote EVERY SINGLE DAY to changing my mindset and the thoughts going through my mind ! If you’d like any devotional options or messages that really helped me I’d be glad to share ! 
 

also had my FIRST disclosure two days ago and I literally almost threw up before i sent a text (Couldn’t bring myself to do it face to face because I’m way too emotional). To my amazement it actually went well. He told me that he appreciated me telling him and how he had dealt with other females in the past with HSV-2 and was ACTUALLY able to give me some pointers he learned from them. Not sure where this will lead but wanted to share that disclosures won’t ALWAYS be an unpleasant experience. I’m just glad my first one went smoothly so now I would be more inclined to do it again if need be just off of this experience. Hope this helps someone ♥️
 

 

 

[Livinglife2019]

On 3/21/2020 at 1:51 PM, Teach28 said:

Hi all . It’s been a while since I posted back last summer but I just wanted to give an update : 

I am in a much much better space and I can truly say opening my bible to read and understand how God views me and how He intended for me to think about myself has truly helped. I had to devote EVERY SINGLE DAY to changing my mindset and the thoughts going through my mind ! If you’d like any devotional options or messages that really helped me I’d be glad to share ! 
 

also had my FIRST disclosure two days ago and I literally almost threw up before i sent a text (Couldn’t bring myself to do it face to face because I’m way too emotional). To my amazement it actually went well. He told me that he appreciated me telling him and how he had dealt with other females in the past with HSV-2 and was ACTUALLY able to give me some pointers he learned from them. Not sure where this will lead but wanted to share that disclosures won’t ALWAYS be an unpleasant experience. I’m just glad my first one went smoothly so now I would be more inclined to do it again if need be just off of this experience. Hope this helps someone ♥️
 

 

 

I would very much appreciate any devotional messages you can share. Thank you 💕

[sarahsfocus]

I'm happy for you. I'm glad you found someone that accepts your situation. I really hope you find happiness. I think relationships are hard anyways. best of luck. Sarah