On first read, it might seem improbable someone could contract more than one STD at a time, but the reality is it’s quite common. Remember, once someone has contracted one infection, they are at a higher risk of contracting additional infections. Couple that with the inability to test for all STDs and how often they […]
HSV2 & Chlamydia – I’m Feeling Pretty Alone – STI Interviews
From our initial email exchange as a result of her anonymous submission via the contact form to the interviewee’s follow-up message describing ‘The Talk’ she had with a new beau, this reader experienced the full range of emotions that often accompanies an STD diagnosis. What’s more, from being alone literally and figuratively after her late […]
HSV2 & HPV – Learning How to Deal with a New Type of Anxiety – STI Interviews
This interviewee reached out to me directly via the contact form. After exchanging a couple of emails, she asked how she could help and/or support The STI Project, so we asked her to share her story. What follows is a remarkable and insightful look into dating with an STD, the mental battle one undergoes when […]
Chlamydia, HPV, and HSV2 – STI Interviews
As an anonymous submission via the contact form, this interview touches on some pertinent issues which affect all of us who’ve contracted an STD – no matter the type of sexually transmitted infection. Across the board, stigma negatively affects all of us, and a lack of education surrounding the pathophysiology behind these infections sometimes elicits […]
HSV2 – Accepting the Virus, the Flaws, All of Me – STI Interviews
This interview came in as an anonymous submission via the contact form. The author tells a beautiful story of how an HSV2 diagnosis has helped her reflect upon her past, and how her infection has inspired some necessary, positive and self-empowering introspection. As I put these interviews together, I find most remarkable the similarities in […]
HSV2 – What I Have is Not What Defines Me – STI Interviews
This interview came in anonymously via the contact form and touches on a number of excellent ideas surrounding STDs and HSV2, in particular. While living with an STI/STD, we all encounter some of the same obstacles, and discovering we’re not alone via this kind of anonymous storytelling is a great way to learn how to […]
HSV2 – He Made Me Feel Alienated – STI Interviews
Submitted anonymously via the contact form, this interview does an excellent job of touching on the self-analysis one undergoes after getting diagnosed with an STD. It’s never easy sharing an honest perspective like the one below, as it requires an interviewee to courageously ‘look their situation in the face’ in hopes of healing and not letting […]
Herpes: If So Many People Have It, Why Is Everyone Afraid? Part 2
If genital herpes is usually so minor, should we even test for it? This is a debate that I often have with my colleagues. The medical community does not agree on the answer to this question. If someone has a painful genital sore, we all agree that testing is appropriate. It also makes sense if […]