I'm very new here....

First let me say that I am glad this site exists. It has been a tremendous help. I was first diagnosed in 1988 at age 22, by visual and swab (I think...it was a long time ago). I got H from a boyfriend that says he did not know he had it. I was immature and irresponsible with the diagnosis and did not always disclose. Dated a couple of guys and disclosed to one and not the other. I was so afraid I would lose him. Fell in love with him but the relationship ended and we parted ways amicably. I did disclose when I met my husband later and he was fine with it. Had 3 children, all vaginal births with no problems. Divorced several years later. Back to the dating game, in which I am not very skilled. Dated a couple of guys, disclosed but parted ways for other reasons. Fast forward to 2013..."that guy" and I reconnected. We communicated for several months and he came to visit 2 weeks ago. Not only did I have to disclose, I had to admit that I was not honest with him all those years ago. It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. He was very forgiving, understanding and patient. He admitted that he did not know much about the virus and wanted more information which I provided. After a long discussion about STI's in general I decided more testing was needed. I went to my doc today to be typed since those tests didn't exist back then and I really need to know in order to protect my future partner. I was very surprised that he was so knowledgeable about the virus testing and the process. "Oh...we do this all the time." Really??? Anyway, I credit the brave folks on this site for giving me the courage to even venture out to endure the process again. THANK YOU for the support and encouragement of so many of us!!

@fanC

I love it when someone comes on and tells us their success story....especially after they found the courage to disclose on here! Good for you for cleaning up the mess from the past... we've all done stupid things in our lives - what matters is that we acknowledge our mistakes and take responsibility, even when it means we might lose everything. Kudos to you my friend :)

(((HUGS)))

Dancer,

Thank you for the kind words. I love your wisdom and encouragement.