An initial diagnosis of genital herpes may leave you feeling unsure about your future romantic prospects. How can you date someone when you have a disease that you could potentially pass to them? It seems unfair and more than a little frightening. Your choices include so much more than living a lonely life of celibacy, however. Learning how to handle HSV dating can be fun, freeing, and lead to a beautiful lifelong relationship if that’s what you want.

HSV Singles: How to Handle the Diagnosis

First, understand that a herpes diagnosis is not a judgement about your moral character or whether you deserve romance and love or not. One in five people are affected by herpes in their life, so it is hardly any great stigma these days. When you reveal your diagnosis to a potential partner, you may discover that they already have experience of their own.

Revealing that you have genital herpes is a must. Have a calm discussion so the other person understands the facts. Let them ask questions. If they get insulting, move on. You do not deserve ill treatment.

How to Find Great HSV Dating Opportunities

People with genital herpes are everywhere, so you can find a date the same way you would if you did not have a diagnosed health condition. However, both offline and online dating from generalized sites leave you open to a higher chance for HSV-related rejection. That is a big reason platforms like this have been created. You can find a host of wonderful men and women who understand what it is like to live as HSV singles.

Positive dating sites allow you to search for potential partners who will automatically understand what it is like to live with herpes or any other diagnosis. This makes the entire revelation process easier and less likely to cause an end to a dating situation. People can connect based on character, interests, and mutual attraction.

Remember: You Are Not Your Diagnosis

Directly after you get the news from your doctor, you may feel like herpes has taken over your life and will affect everything from that moment on. It is important to remember that you have so many other qualities and characteristics that have nothing to do with also having a very common disease. When you have all those positive things to offer your dates or romantic partners, HSV becomes less of a problem.

Yes, you must tell people the truth before you become intimate. However, plenty of methods exist to minimize risk and discomfort for your partner. Learning to live with genital herpes includes an understanding of how you can flourish, thrive, and enjoy every aspect of your life going forward.

Dating for HSV singles may present some challenges. With an open mind, knowledge about the best methods to protect you and your dates, and a convenient and fun online dating platform dedicated to STD dating on your side, you can find the man or woman who understands. Get out there and enjoy yourself.

When you find that special someone you want to see again after a great first date, planning for long-term dating takes on a different feel if you have genital herpes. The most important thing to remember is that a positive diagnosis does not destroy your chance at a great dating life or loving relationships, even though it may feel that way at first. These tips will help you understand how herpes dating is not as challenging as you might think.

Communication Key With HSB Dating

Herpes singles need to learn how to share their diagnosis with potential sexual partners before they get more deeply involved. If you have dated multiple people in the past, you understand the possible trouble that arises after the revelation. Some may reject you outright. This possibility is smaller if you find your partners through a positive singles dating site that helps people with similar diagnoses come together in loving relationships.

Once you find the perfect person for long-term dating relationship, you may have already passed the point of the first “I have herpes” conversation. If not, you must communicate that clearly as soon as possible. Even if they know, communication still matters throughout the time you spend building a life together.

Manage Living With Herpes Together

Whether both people in the relationship have been diagnosed with HSV or not, management of health-related issues becomes a part of things. Some people even in long-term dating or relationship situations prefer to keep it all to themselves. While communication still matters if you are in the middle of an outbreak, for example, it is okay if you do not want to discuss treatment or doctor’s visits with your partner.

On the other hand, doing so can help foster a stronger sense of understanding. Herpes dating should not carry any stigma or sense of embarrassment. While it still can cause these issues at the beginning, when you get to the point of forging a real, deep relationship with another person, you must know they have your back when it comes to every aspect of your life.

Help your partner understand living with herpes, things like doctor’s visits, prescription medication, and times when it may not be comfortable or advisable to get intimate. With all the options available for people with positive STD diagnoses these days, it becomes just like managing any other problem.

Long-term dating involves new levels of deep understanding, communication, and sharing in all relationships. When you or your partner has an HSV diagnosis, these things take on another aspect. Of course, revealing your herpes status before physical intimacy is essential for maintain respect and safety. Once you get past that often stressful hurdle, however, the conversation does not stop.

Herpes should not be the focus of your loving relationships. However, it is an aspect that will affect you and your boyfriend or girlfriend going forward. As long as you are dedicated to each other, HSV management and constant communication should not be a roadblock standing in the way of your happily ever after.

Dating with herpes presents many challenges on top of all the usual struggles to find a compatible partner. Before you get intimate, you have to tell the other person you have HSV, and you probably understand all the fear and worry that comes with it. If you have gone through the process of STD dating before, you undoubtedly know all about the rejection that often follows.

Have All the Facts About Herpes Dating

Before you reveal your diagnosis, gather all the important facts about what it means to have herpes. This includes information about how contagious it is, how it affects your life, and any precautions you have to take while in a relationship. If you present this to your potential sexual partner in clear, non-dramatic language, they are much more likely to accept it calmly.

Tell them in private to spare any potential embarrassment. The last thing you want is someone blurting out, "You have herpes?!" in the middle of a restaurant. Tell them well before you begin getting intimate. Never put pressure on the other person to respond in any particular way. Express your respect for their reactions, give them all the necessary information about how herpes affects your life, but do not present a scientific speech if they do not ask questions.

One of the most important things to do if you have a herpes diagnosis is to take all necessary medications as directed by your physician. This way, you can tell your partner that you are doing everything possible to be responsible and protect both of you from potentially unpleasant problems.

You should prepare as much as possible for them to see genital herpes dating as a deal-breaker, however. Despite the fact that HSV is very prevalent throughout the adult population, plenty of people do not want to take the risk as soon as they know the person they are thinking about sleeping with has an STD. That is their prerogative.

Consider HSV Dating to Decrease Rejection

Misconceptions abound about genital herpes dating and how positive test results can affect your ability to ever have another intimate relationship in the future. Although disclosure still matters in all cases, you might consider trying to meet people with herpes to increase the possibility of understanding and acceptance. Sites that cater to STD dating allow you to search by diagnosis and find many other people with the same challenges as you.

HSV singles have to go through the process of telling their partners again and again about their herpes diagnosis. The challenge to reveal this unpleasant truth comes with a lot of difficulty and anxiety over how the other person will react. While some will reject you immediately, others may value your relationship enough to educate themselves and learn about how to move forward. With genital herpes dating opportunities found online, you can increase your chances of a happy ever after.

When you are first diagnosed with genital herpes, it can be a very scary experience. Since genital herpes has no cure once you contract it, you’re forced to live with this virus and its symptoms for the rest of your life. This can have a profound effect on your daily life, especially your dating life.

Genital herpes is a sexually transmitted disease which causes your genitals to develop sores and pain. These symptoms are often inconsistent and will reoccur throughout the course of your life after you’ve contracted the virus. The only thing that you can do is treat the symptoms with antiviral medications, but that won’t stop someone else from contracting the virus if you have sex with them.

If you want to build a relationship with someone that is based on trust, then you are expected to be upfront with them about your condition before the two of you have sex. As you can imagine, most people won’t want to have sex with someone with genital herpes because they’ll be afraid of contracting the virus too. This makes it difficult for an infected person to find a partner who is both understanding and sensitive to their condition.

Fortunately, the world of online dating has made it easier for herpes sufferers to find love. The online dating platform, PositiveSingles.com, is devoted to matching single people together who suffer from herpes and other sexually transmitted diseases. Everything about their condition is listed on their profile pages. This means there are no secrets or surprises about the health of your potential matches. You’ll know exactly what they’re suffering from before you even go out with them on a first date.

There are currently over 1.67 million registered members on Positive Singles. This goes to show you how many people actually suffer from herpes and other STDs. If you live with herpes, you don’t need to spend the rest of your life alone anymore. Now you have a chance to meet another single person who is going through the same struggles that you’re going through. Together, the two of you can build a life of love and understanding between each other.

Therefore, it is worth using herpes dating websites like PositiveSingles.com because they’ll give you the opportunity to develop an active social life again without feeling ashamed about your condition.

Let’s face it, dating can be one or the other, a daunting task or the time of your life! Maybe, you’re newly single and can’t wait to get back out there and see who you have been missing out on. Or maybe you have been single for years and you’re totally over it. Regardless of how you feel or where you start from it’s the same song and dance. You meet someone, plan on a date or time, meet up, have fun and then wonder if you’ll go out with them again.

Sound familiar?

Ok, so now let’s add having herpes and herpes dating to the picture. You might be thinking, when does this little conversation that’s a huge deal happen. Does it happen before, during or after the date? This uneasiness alone can stop people from dating. Let’s face it, dating can be scary and now adding herpes to the mix has just added a whole new element.

In case herpes is new to you or you’re not familiar with herpes let’s break it down. Herpes Simplex Virus or also known as HSV is a virus that causes painful blisters in the genital and or oral region. Once a person is infected with the virus they will have it for life and these pesky herpes lesions can pop up and cause what’s called a herpes outbreak. This can be good news or bad news depending on how you look at it but there are a lot of people with herpes who are asymptomatic. This means they don’t show signs or symptoms of the virus but are still positive for the herpes virus and can still transmit the virus and infect a partner.

There are two types of herpes, HSV 1 and HSV 2 and regardless of which one you have they both cause blisters that look pretty similar and you wouldn’t be able to tell which ones which without a proper diagnosis. In general, HSV 1 typically prefers the oral region and HSV 2 usually prefers the genital region. However, the virus will go wherever you give it a place to go and recently there’s been an increase in people being diagnosed with HSV 1 genitally.

One thing I bet you didn’t know was how common herpes really is. According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 3.7 billion people under age 50 (67%) have HSV-1 infection globally. And an estimated 417 million people aged 15-49 (11%) worldwide have HSV-2 infection globally.

The CDC, center for disease control says that 2/3 people have HSV-1 and 1/6 have HSV-2 in the US. Regardless of looking at this globally, nationally or locally there’s a ton of people with herpes. You’re so not alone!

If so many people have herpes then why is it so hard to date?

It’s simple. It’s the stigma attached to having herpes makes the perception of dating with herpes so difficult. One of the main reasons why people who are diagnosed with herpes don’t date is because having to have that conversation can feel like the most daunting thing ever. An anonymous member said, “I don’t know how I’ll ever get the courage to tell someone I’m dating about my herpes diagnosis. I’ll never date again.” This herpes stigma has made the population living with herpes so scared of the rejection and the judgment of having herpes that it stops them from dating. Very sad but true.

Ok so here’s some fun information on HSV dating. For people living with herpes here are the top 10 states in the US you’d want to live in to find other people with herpes. They are (drum roll...) California, Texas, Florida, New York, Georgia, Ohio, Illinois, North Carolina, Washington, and Michigan. Do you live in one of the other forty stats that were not listed? Don’t worry...there’s still some great news.

Here’s the good news. There are online dating sites for people living with herpes and there’s been a number of successful matches. Online dating is such a great solution for today’s social settings. The thought of bumping into someone while in line for a cup of coffee sounds rare and let’s face it. It is.

Positive Singles is the number 1 online dating site for people living with herpes and other STD’s. The best thing is that it’s a confidential way to guide you back into the dating scene. This can be after learning about your diagnosis or maybe you’ve had herpes for years, regardless it’s a fun and safe space. Remember earlier when we talked about how people don’t date because of having herpes and because they’re scared to have the conversation with their partner about having herpes? Well, Positive Singles has taken care of everything for you. Having the scary or awkward conversation about STD’s and herpes on your first date is no longer an issue.

Ther’s a lot of people living with herpes and using the Positive Singles online dating site. Here are some great statistics, 84.1% of Positive Singles members with herpes are from the US and 61.1% of the herpes members have HSV-2 and 38.9% have HSV-1. And if you live in California then you’re in luck, there are the most people with herpes using the Positive Singles dating site, there’s 11.1% of you to be exact.

Whether you live in 1 of the 10 states that were listed above or one of the fort other states this is also great news for you. What this means is there’s a ton of people in the US living with herpes and there’s out there looking for someone to meet, date, and possibly fall in love.

These people are not letting their herpes diagnosis hold them back from life but rather they are taking grasp of it and looking at Positive Singles as a way to meet people.

Having an STD should never hold you back from dating and finding love.