Hi everyone,

After having some time to think and get my head on straight (again) I decided to delete my last sharepost and post this one to pass along some hope. Last weekend, I told the guy I was dating that I have herpes. He reacted well at the time but is now treating me like i have the plague. I saw him once since I told him and he wouldn't even hug me. Since that we haven't talked. Originally I was devistated. It hurt, and I felt as though I was diagnosed all over again.

After talking it over with my best friend and my doctor, they both opened my eyes to something really important to remember: herpes is a stigmatized condition. Even though I knew this before, keeping that in perspective is key to keeping our sanity. The point of the matter is, thinking in long-term relationships...if someone can't accept you having herpes, how will they ever accept any other medical condition that may occur as you get older? Things go wrong with our bodies over time...herpes is very minute compared to potential things that could happen in the future. Find someone who will accept you unconditionally and there is a strong likelihood that no matter what happens in the future that person will be there for you. I think the hardest thing to accept about this rejection was that the truth came out about what he actually wanted. He probably didn't want me in my entirety, he wanted a physical connection (I could be wrong but at this point, that's all i can infer from actions). But that's ok, after thinking about it, Im glad I told him when I did...even though the last week was awful, now Im back to a state of rebuilding and I know I have the best friends I could possibly ask for who are so understanding its incredible. Surround yourself with people who really care about you and who you really care about...nothing else really matters.