Open gatherings

After a meeting recently, we received this: "Just a short note to say how much I enjoyed meeting you last Thursday night. It was great to be able to talk face to face and openly, and it is really kind of you to make that possible. Thank you. I'll keep in touch and will definitely be coming to your all day meeting."

People thinking about coming along always ask "What sort of people come to these?" And the answer is "Normal people!" We all are: all ages, all colours, all sexes! Some have been before; others are new; members have had invitations through the post; non-members have seen these details 'on the net'. Conversation is about everything: how someone had caught it, how someone else's partner had reacted. Mainly, it involves feelings of lack of self-esteem and the problems/methods of talking about herpes simplex ('cold sores on the wots-it') to new or potential partners.

At a previous event, one of the people attending was helpline volunteer. She went off to a corner sofa to give some individual advice and support to a couple of young women. One of them decided to subscribe and gave me her cheque right away, two more said they planned to. Everyone said that they had benefitted and enjoyed their afternoon. Will you be there next time?

"At my first meeting I was told 'Of course you can have a normal sex life' by a man who'd had herpes simplex for five years. I didn't believe him. Now I know he was telling the truth." says Marian

Do you have herpes simplex? Come along to a support group/social get-together run by the Herpes Viruses Association, meet others with the virus, and get answers to your questions.