a herpes heroine introduces herself

[Christy C]

Hi everyone. I can't figure out why I signed up as ling a ling a name I shall certainly forget along with the password. I am very new to this forum things. Didn't know they existed up till one month ago. I'm not new to herpes though. Been living with it for ten years. When I found the forums I just read and generally gotso lost I came out with my head spinning but convinced my voice would be appreciated because I've been there and got the T shirt to show. Now I'm starting to feel like an old verteran. But I do feel that, like a herpes veteran or putting it nicely and confidenty a herpes heroine. I sat down and a couple of articles slippe easily off my pen. I'd like to share the first with you.

Life with herpes. The Ten Year Odyssey

I could start at the beginning or I could start at the end. The only difference between the two is that at the beginning I felt that contracting herpes was the end of my life and now at the end (where I am today) I feel that contracting herpes was the beginning of my life. To get from there to here took ten years.

Ten longs years of battling with outbreaks, resolving never to have them and finally becoming outbreak free. Ten years to over come the stigma. What the hell is herpes other than my immune system going in overdrive and sending me some warning signals - acne in the most undesirable of places. Ten years to have the homebirth, a normal vaginal delivery and raise the boys. And finally ten years to realise that the quest to find a man was not just to find one who’ll accept me as I was, but find one whom I’m willing to love totally and who feels the same way about me. Talk about a road hard travelled.

In the beginning there was me. And I was beautiful. God had taken his precious time when he moulded me. Brains, beauty, boobs, butt. The works.

And then suddenly my beauty became only skin deep. Inside I felt like someone had stolen me and left nothing else but the herpes. The Christy was gone. Just the bumps and the desire to find someone to accept me just as I was. This battle was fought mostly in my head than anywhere else because in reality out of the four men I told, only one run.

Yet though my boyfriends were open minded I still struggled with herpes. I hated the outbreaks and I was on a life long crusade to free myself of them. I tried everything. And finally on the brink of giving up after I had endured a month long outbreak because I was endeavouring to be come vegetarian (notable and laughably forgetting the vegetables) I found the life altering ‘method’ which not only eliminated any trace of outbreaks but alos will keep me healthy for some good many years to come.

I chanced upon the trick to staying healthy. REMAINING ALCALINE. Basically eating less acid forming food and favouring foods which have an alkaline reaction in the body. That was it. Simple, free and natural. And the moment I found that fifty percent of the problem I had with herpes dissipated.

The other chunk was the love bit. The relationship bit. Some years ago I had compromised on love. I had found Mr Ok. Mr nice enough. Mr not too petrified of the herpes thing. And I married him. Well as with all relationships which do not have true love at their heart this one was destined to crumble. No matter how strong one’s conviction to hold the walls up, only love can do that. And when it all came caving in I knew the cause. And I had learnt another valuable lesson. It doesn’t stop at finding a man who’ll accept you. It stops at finding a man whom you love passionately and freely and who feels the same.

And it’s funny how things come to you when you’re not too fussed. I didn’t have a problem with herpes any more. It wasn’t even an issue in my life. I felt just like I did was before I got infected. That yes I’d love to (re-) marry and settle with the right guy (and oh yes my two kids). He was somewhere out there. Life put us together at the same place at the same time. I saw this gorgeous pair of legs, the most gorgeous I had ever seen on a man. Looked up saw a smile which matched and the rest was history. Of course I was still shy to do the talk. Do we ever get past that? And he said, if herpes is the problem I don’t have a problem with that. I don’t love him for saying that. I love him because his attitude to herpes is this is part of the greater parcel which he is and that’s what I love. Apart from his legs, which I fell in love with first.

So at twenty one I got herpes. At thirty one here I am a mother so fortunate to be able to tell other mothers- you can have a natural birth with herpes. To tell sufferers - you need not suffer with regular outbreaks. And to tell lovers - you can go out there and be particularly selective find your ‘made to order’ babe give or take some small traits of personality disorder like him brushing his teeth a tad bit too vigorous.

I've written three othe articles/life stories on the herpes topic:

Not All Men Run - The Herpes Talk. Having it again again and again.

Out break free and Proud to be

Herpes HomebirthYou can read them at www.authorsden.com/christycharles

©Christy Charles 2007