Herpes Opportunity community guidelines

Confidentiality. By being a member of our Herpes Opportunity community, you agree to exercise discretion and sensitivity when re-sharing or mentioning anything shared by others within the group. As a trusted member of this community, you agree to assess if what you will share could be embarrassing or harmful to the original poster, and if so, you agree to seek their explicit permission first.

No judgment or shaming (a.k.a. "everything is okay as it is"). These are the main guidelines of the Herpes Opportunity weekend, too. Magic can happen when we all agree to not judge or shame one another OR ourselves.

Your emotions are welcome. Being true with what is (anger, sadness, excitement, etc.) is fully welcomed here. Being accepting of how we are in the moment is a huge step toward self-acceptance and ultimately deep healing. Just be aware to not take out your emotions on others community members.

Be compassionate. Starting with yourself. Be compassionate with yourself. If you're not doing that, that's something you should post about here and get some support. Then move on and be compassionate towards your brother and sisters here as they post about their experiences.

Show empathy. Get their world. Put yourself in their shoes. Get curious about what they're feeling and thinking. Reflect to them what you see.

Be authentic. Share your experience or the impact someone else's experience had on you. Don't hold back. Be alive.

Group betterment. Hold the intention to leave any interaction in the group better than you found it. (This is a good rule to follow in real life too!)

This is NOT a dating site. This site is for community support, not dating or hookups.

Leave posts in place. Please do not delete (or Dirty Delete) your posts. If things go sideways, reach out to a moderator. Many people put in a lot of effort in their comments, so deleting yours disrupts the conversational flow of topics. If there are certain posts you would like to edit due to privacy concerns, reach out to a moderator with the proposed edited text so we can preserve the original conversation. 

No postings on cures or vaccines. If a cure or vaccine is promising, it will be huge news. For as long as any of us "veterans" can remember, there have always been false promises of a cure/vaccine, and to promote them here gives false hope. Even worse, it has people put their lives on hold. Live your life fully now. And if a cure/vaccine comes, be pleasantly surprised. 🙂

Link to reputable sources. If you post a link to a source that is not reputable or is trying to sell something (especially a herpes treatment or cure), your post will be deleted or you will be banned.

Name your posts descriptively When you post something, make the title descriptive so others know what it's about upon reading the title. For example, if you have questions about the herpes talk, instead of naming your post "Questions!" name it something more descriptive to exactly what you need help with, like "About to have the herpes talk and need support!" If you are vague, I may just help you out by renaming your post, just a heads up. 🙂

This site is mainly to support people with herpes. If you do NOT have herpes, your membership will be accepted or denied on a case-by-case basis. If someone in your life has herpes, the best support you can give to them is to send them to this forum and encourage them to join so we can support them directly. But in the cases where the person is unwilling to seek help, then allowing non-herpes members to join in direct support for their loved one will be considered.

No solicitation. Posting of external links that are not well-established, trustable entities in the field of sexual health are not allowed. No links are allowed that in any way advertise or link products, or are promotional in any way. This includes fundraising of any sort or petitions. You're free to post your opinions and responses to the posted topics, provided they are not focused on "promoting" yourself, a third party or a product, and don't include links to them. We ask our members not to use the membership lists to sell to members using private message. Any of the above behavior is grounds for removal from the group.

Love and support. See the possibility and lovability in one another. This is really the lynchpin of everything I outlined above.

Do your own research. We are not doctors or therapists. NOTHING on this site is to be followed as medical or psychological advice. This is not in place of your medical doctor or therapist. Please consult a qualified doctor or therapist if you feel you need that kind of assistance.

Privacy Policy & Terms of Use. The Herpes Opportunity as a whole (weekend workshop, blog and this forum) operates under the following:

https://www.herpesopportunity.com/privacy-policy

https://www.herpesopportunity.com/terms-and-conditions

Privacy and username. Your personal information (including your email address) will NOT be visible to the general public, but whatever username you use will be public. So if you use a similar username on other forums or any other places where your identity is known and you want your identity to remain private, then choose a username that is not used in other places that identifies you.

i think judgment on myself has been my greatest downfall. im working to overcome this though:)

offering my support and time for anyone who needs it<3

always remember someone gave this to you don't let this be your identity I know that I can't and wont and then I found great support with Adrial and the website and obviously you did too it I am happy to talk with you anytime if you ever need a friend have a great night.

for many years this was a big self defeating part of me. I wanted to die. Today I accept my gift, and like who I am and who I have become. Now I need to learn to keep my out breaks to a minimum to maybe none, omg that would make me one happy girl :)