Genital Herpes Expert Penelope James shares Genital Herpes management news and commentary at HerpesConnection.com. The HealthCentral Network, Inc. (www.HealthCentral.com) is one of the top health destinations on the Web, with more than 35 condition-specific, wellness and general health Web properties. http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559 http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/rss self application/xml en-us 15 120 19 http://www.healthcentral.com/images/hc_logo_sm.gif http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559 http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/34495/alternative Mon, 21 Jul 2008 01:39:57 -0400 Penelope James After doing suppressive therapy for two years I finally decided it was time to see whether my body could fight the herpes virus on its own.  I had just broken up with my boyfriend, moved to a new city, and was looking forward to the single life again.  I assumed I wouldn’t be having as much sex as I had while in a relationship, so if I had frequent outbreaks at least it wouldn’t affect anyone... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/34495/alternative http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/33554/cold-sore Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:43:00 -0400 Penelope James According to various recent news articles, researchers at Duke University have made a discovery that could make cold sore sufferers very happy.  They have found that HSV-1, which is very common and typically causes cold sores on the mouth, produces microbits of genetic material, called LAT RNA, which cause the virus to lay dormant in one’s body.  When someone has an outbreak only part of the virus comes to the surface... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/33554/cold-sore http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/32714/breaking Thu, 03 Jul 2008 01:39:00 -0400 Penelope James Have you just met someone who you'd like to be (or have already been) intimate with and want to tell him/her you have herpes?  Once you've educated yourself about herpes and picked the ideal location/situation to discuss your disease, then it's time to let the cat out of the bag.  Although everyone reacts differently to this type of news, there may be some things you can do to have a successful discussion.   Most importantly,... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/32714/breaking http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/32323/setting Sun, 29 Jun 2008 10:41:28 -0400 Penelope James Possibly the hardest part of having herpes is telling a partner about it.  I spent the last few weeks discussing whether and when it may be appropriate to tell a new partner, now I’d like to spend a little time taking on the subject of how it can be done.  I’ve seen a lot of people discuss their fears about this and I hope that some of my experience and insight can ease the situation.  I’d also like to... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/32323/setting http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/30038/casual-sex Thu, 05 Jun 2008 15:30:00 -0400 Penelope James I'd like to use this week's SharePost as a way to start an open discussion about issues relating to my last SharePost.  Although the comments I received last week were negative, I'm happy that I generated a response from a couple of readers and would like to keep that momentum going.    To sum up, in my last SharePost I discussed the issue of casual sex and in it I disclosed that there are occasions, although certainly not... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/30038/casual-sex http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/29041/ii-business Tue, 27 May 2008 11:59:00 -0400 Penelope James While contemplating the difficult issue of when to tell a partner about herpes, I realized there's one situation that is truly an ethical obstacle course: one-night stands.    For some people, this is a no-brainer as they find such sex meaningless, and therefore avoid it.  For others, however, casual sex was a lifestyle that won't stop because they've been infected with an STD.    Obviously I can't recommend... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/29041/ii-business http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/28376/tell-tell Tue, 20 May 2008 11:57:00 -0400 Penelope James If you're a Herpes sufferer, and especially if you've been diagnosed recently, you may often think your love life, and sex life, is over. But I assure you it doesn't have to be that way.  In fact, I am living proof that one can have both love and sex post-Herpes diagnosis, while still walking the higher moral road.  (Ok, so I'm not perfect, and sometimes my impulses lead me to be less than responsible.  But I'm working on... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/28376/tell-tell http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/28371/outbreaks Tue, 20 May 2008 11:24:00 -0400 Penelope James I'm always amazed at the amount of misinformation, or lack of information, that people have about Herpes. Often when I tell a new partner that I have Herpes his response is a simple "I know nothing about that, so it doesn't really bother me". I also hear contrasting information from doctors. For example, just a couple weeks ago, a friend told me she was concerned that she may have picked up an STD from a casual fling. Her doctor gave her... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/28371/outbreaks http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/27662/diagnosed Mon, 19 May 2008 18:02:00 -0400 Penelope James I'm convinced my Herpes has a mind of its own.  The nasty little guy always seems to know when I have an important deadline, get a new job, and of course, meet a potential lover.  And even when none of the above is happening, the jerk just decides to pop his head out and give me a hard time about once every two weeks.  Yes, I'm one of the *lucky* ones who have recurring, sometimes constant, outbreaks.   We are the... http://www.healthcentral.com/genital-herpes/c/18559/27662/diagnosed