I just finished watching the first half of the Teen Mom 2 Finale Special, and was super impressed with Kailyn, Jo, and Jordan for talking about something that no one else has on 16 and Pregnant or Teen Mom as far as I know – STDs. This is something that we all (at least in Canada) learn about in sex ed classes, but never think will actually happen to us. When my doctor told me I had herpes, I didn’t think about the health effects, I thought about what people would think about me, what I thought about me, and what it meant about me as a person. The doctor might as well have told me I had cancer, it felt that surreal and that horrible. But, unlike with cancer, there was stigma and moral judgements. I was finally the ‘dirty slut’ people had often implied I was. (I know cancer is much more serious than herpes, but at the time, herpes felt like the worst thing in the world.) Now I know that it’s not really a big deal, except for the shame that creeps up now and then.
I think it is so important to have people in media speak out about the reality of STDs because they do happen. They also happen to decent people, and having one does not make you a bad person. But this is not what we see in the media. Too many people make awful, offensive jokes about STDs, and those of us with STDs are too ashamed to speak up. I’m so impressed and inspired that Kailyn was strong enough to talk about this issue on TV. If she can talk about it, then so can I.
Please use condoms, even if you’re on birth control. STDs are not fun. Also, please stop making ignorant jokes and talking about STDs as if they’re a moral issue. Nice people have STDs too. Be careful and be respectful.
femmanism 
Hey,
I actually looked into blogs devoted to “living with herpes” and have found that, as expected, they don’t seem to be day to day journals or anything, because it just doesn’t have that kind of an impact on your everyday life. I have been super impressed with the ones I looked at, however; makes me feel all warm and fuzzy for the future of humanity. This one I love; it includes information on studies, on the fact that even if you get tested for STI’s by your doctor you can’t know that you’re “clean” (a term which it discusses the problematic nature of) for sure. It also focuses on the super low chances of transmission, and the fact that so many people have herpes and the majority of them don’t know, so that if you are with someone who knows they have it, you are probably better off, because they are knowledgeable about it and can use appropriate protection (to decrease your odds of getting it from 4% to 1%). You should check it out, I’m so impressed. I wish everyone would read it (I may even get my nerve up and post it on fb someday!):
http://loveinthetimeofherpes.blogspot.com/