Newly diagnosed

Hello all! I came across this site a couple of days ago and have been reading some posts. I decided I would join so I could become more informed and possibly get some advice/kind words.

On January 15 I went to my gynecologist to get a standard sti panel done. I received a call on the 17th and was told that I had a "prior exposure" to hsv2. I was shocked. I have never experienced symptoms, at least none that I knew of at least. I was unsure what "exposure" really meant or if I even had the infection.

I went in for a consultation on the 19th. I opted to be retested although I don't believe that there's a chance of a false positive. I think I was just trying to find anyway to make this not be true.

My doctor went on the discuss treatment with me. She gave me the option to take the medicine daily or to wait for a first outbreak and to see how often they happen. I'm just curious what everyone else does for treatment. I am sort of leaning towards daily medicine. I am a little iffy on that since I'm not sure when I would even encounter an outbreak or if it would happen in 10+ years.

I do not know for sure who I got it from and I'm not really mad at them. I know it's very common and most people don't know they have it. I think I'm more mad at myself. I just feel like I should have been more careful and taken my time with things.

I am not sure exactly how I feel at the moment. It has only been about three days since I got the call. But I have my ups and downs. When I was first told I did go through the "I'm dirty" and "my life is over" and "no one will ever love me" phases. I know none of this is true but it's very hard to actually accept it. I also was mad that I was tested for it to begin with. I almost wish I didn't even know. But I know that's a ridiculous thought and it's better to know than to not.

I can't help but think when I'm in a room full of people that I'm probably the only one going through this. I feel very alone. I don't want to tell any of my friends or family because I just feel like they will look at me and treat me differently. I wish the stigma wasn't what it is because it makes it so hard to want to talk about it. Especially when people make what appears to be harmless jokes about it.

I am open to any advice on how to learn to deal and accept this news, or what everyone else has gone through.

It's nice to know that there are boards like these. I am looking to educate myself fully on this infection and how to live a normal life.

Thank you.

It seems like you are in a relatively positive state of mind, and that's great!

I would say that from reading your post that you seem to rate very high in resilience, that's something to be proud of!

As a particularly forward-thinking person like you seem to be, I would recommend that you be aware that your mood and attitude toward your diagnosis will probably bounce up and down for a while, and that's okay.

Some days will be easier than others, and a tough day doesn't mean that you're falling apart.

You will probably find that over time your mood will be good for longer and longer. So don't sweat it if it seems like you end up feeling down for a little while, just try to stay focused on the future and how you're going to have a really great one!

I personally take the meds daily, as the side effects are mild for me, and I take comfort in knowing I'm doing something about my situation. Having insurance helped sway me toward it, seeing as a month of pills costs less than a month of netflix on my insurance plan. If you are fortunate enough that it is affordable, I recommend it if you find yourself stressing about having an out break in the future.

Stay positive and forward-thinking! That is your best defense against getting down about things.

@regularguy thank you so much for the reply! I definitely have had those typical bad feelings about my diagnosis but I do try to get past that because what's done is done. I can't go back now! I know that I will continue to struggle with it but over time I will be more accepting. I am interested in taking the medicine daily. I am scared of experiencing an outbreak. I feel like it might also put me at ease. If you don't mind me asking, what kind of side effects do you experience while on then? I am hoping it won't be too expensive with my insurance!

Welcome, @daisy215. I’m about two years away from my own diagnosis, but I could really relate to what you wrote....it was like having flashbacks! Everything you’re feeling is very common, especially early on.

What helped me most was learning about HSV—including reading these forums a lot—self care (exercise, eating well, doing activities I enjoy, journaling, a few sessions with my therapist, etc.), and time. I also had an opportunity to take a 10-week workshop last year about shame resilience which was a huge help. Aside from telling my therapist, my ex-husband, and the guy I was casually seeing at the time of my diagnosis, I only told one friend. She was nice about it, and didn’t make me feel worse, but I don’t think she really knew how to best be supportive or empathetic either. I’m still glad I told her, as it was a relief to tell someone I trust and have them still treat me exactly the same. There are plenty of people, including some very close friends and pretty much all of my family, who I would never tell in a million years.

My symptoms were always very mild (I had no idea I had both strains for 20+ years before my diagnosis), but I started taking Valtrex right away because I was pretty freaked and felt I needed to DO something. Valtrex really didn’t do anything for me except give me frequent zingers (tingling prodrome symptoms). I stopped for six months, and then tried acyclovir. I wanted to see if I could find an antiviral I tolerated well in case I started a new relationship. About two months after starting acyclovir, I suddenly had none of the itching that I had always attributed to yeast infections (no zingers either). So even though I’m not dating (although I hope to once I get moved and sell my house this spring), I continue taking it because I love being itch free! I haven’t experienced any side effects and with insurance, pay $20 for a three-month supply of acyclovir. (It was $50 for Valtrex, but I think you’ll find prices really vary widely by insurance.)

It’s really a personal decision. If you’re not having troublesome symptoms and you’re not concerned about transmission, there’s really no reason to take them.

@HikingGirl thank you for the reply!

I have told my roommate about this and he is the only one. He has been very kind and there for me. I feel like there's times when I want to blurt it out to a few of my friends who I know wouldn't judge me but a little part of me can't do it and keeps thinking that I'll be looked down on and judged even if they don't mean to be that way.. I'm hoping that getting to know some of you on these boards will really help since everyone knows what it's like.

I am not sure how long I have had this. It might have been 6 months or even years. I'll never really know. A couple months ago I struggled with yeast infection symptoms that I had a hard time getting rid of. Now I'm not sure if it had to do with this or if I just had a stubborn yeast infection. (Tmi?) The first culture for YI came back negative but the other recurring times it was positive.

I am leaning towards taking the medicine daily because I want to not feel like I'm constantly shedding an infection. I'm not currently seeing anyone and honestly the thought of getting to know someone now with this news is really unappealing. But when I come to terms with it and decide to put myself out there I want to not only be protected for me but for them too. I don't want to transmit it to anyone. I sort of feel like if I could avoid an OB why not.

I was never offered medication. In adult trying to find out why

If you have never had signs or symptoms and were diagnosed with a herpes select test (IgG) test for HSV2 it may well be a false positive. False positive are not uncommon with the herpes select test. What were you values recieved if you don't mind me asking?

@Jack101 my results were a 6.23

I normally would say that you have HSV2; however, in the last few months, there has been a uptick of high false positives with the Herpes select test. I would defintively recommend a Western Blot test for confirmation. This can be obtained though the University of Washington. You will need a physician to order the test. This can be obtained by your current physician or Terri Warren at Westoverheights.com can help.