HPV Virus

[design-girl-00.livejournal.com]

I live in the United States, and there is an epidemic here of the HPV virus (more in certain areas of the country). There are over 100 different types of this virus. Some can cause cervical cancer, some can cause genital warts, and some will never really be anything at all during your life. Well, this past week I had a colposcopy to check my  "abnormal" results from my last pap smear, and she said that I have the HPV virus, but nothing appears abnormal at all, and it should be nothing to worry about. Very common she said. Hmmm...I am a "worrier" and I just hate knowing I have it. She said it's not pre-cancerous and it's not warts, so she said not to worry. She asked me "Do you worry about the freckles on your face?" I said..."well, not particularly." The point she was trying to make was that I don't worry about my freckles turning to cancer, so this is like the same thing, and not to worry about it. 

For me, I have an issue with accepting that I have it. That it's okay, as the gyno said. I don't even notice that I have it. Absoulutely no change physically or sensually. But just to know I have it is a lot on my mind. My question is: Does anyone else have HPV and feel comfortable telling me about your experience or diagnosis with it? I feel uneasy not knowing which type (out of the 100+ types) that I have...do you? Do you know which type you have? Also, if anyone knows anything that might help me accept this new part of me, so that I don't feel afraid to have sex again with a new partner. Currently I am not sexually active with a partner, but when that time comes, I don't want to feel hesitation or insecurity. Help?

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/_red_queen_/]

Although many of us will be infected with HPV, there are over on hundred forms of the virus and only a handful of them can cause cervical cancer. Even better, not everyone infected with these cancer-causing forms will go on to develop cancer; most infections will simply disappear without a trace after a time. In fact, less than five per cent of women infected with the most common cancer-causing form of HPV (HPV-16) will go on to develop cervical cancer.

http://www.abc.net.au/health/thepulse/s1484720.htm

[sandi1743.livejournal.com]

our community just did a PSA about it which can be found here: http://community.livejournal.com/answers_on_sex/705185.html
try going over to the HPV community here on LJ as there are many people (yes, even men get symptoms from some strains) that have shared their stories and will offer you lots of info and suport.
BTW: most people do not know which starin they have as the actual typing of the strain other then "High" or "Low" risk is considered enough info by the medical community.
good luck.

[mein-liebe.livejournal.com]

I'd encourage talking to your gynecologist once more and see if she can recommend a therapist who specializes in dealing with sexual issues. Even if you only see a mental health professional to talk about your feelings and/or accepting once or twice, I think you will find it very useful and very beneficial.

If you would like more resources and information, a quick search turned up this (http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9780597832970&itm=4) book (like to BN.com), which may be incredibly useful to you while you manage your help.

I wish the very best of luck in any positive approach you may take to keep yourself healthy and happy- I'll keep you in my thoughts!

[mein-liebe.livejournal.com]

*link to, and health.

[scien.livejournal.com]

It sounds like you've already been doing a bit of research, which is great. You might still however benefit from taking a read through some more resources about HPV, some of which address the particular questions you have raised. I particularly recommend:

http://www.nci.nih.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/HPV quick official (but in depth) factsheet about HPV
http://www.ashastd.org/hpv/hpv_learn.cfm for lots of information about HPV itself, but also some useful resources for support and discussion
http://www.cdc.gov/std/HPV/STDFact-HPV-vaccine.htm about the vaccine, in case you are interested.

The thing to bear in mind about telling partners is that they've most likely got it themselves (about 80% of the sexually active population does, after all). I'd be very careful how you phrase it. Your partner may be influenced by the general perception of STIs as something only promiscuous or careless people get. However, the truth with STIs like HPV is that really, even when you do all the 'right' things, you're still likely to get them - and most people do.

I suggest if you need to tell a partner, that you link them to sites such as the above to kickstart your discussion. Hearing the word 'STI' can make people go all jumpy, and not always with much reason. If I could just thwack that stigma out of people's heads I would - but sadly I don't have that kind of power ;)

HPV is one of those viruses that are so common as to be mostly entirely beneath people's radars - although the recent vaccine is changing that. It doesn't help that a lot of discussion around the vaccine centres around how dangerous HPV can be. This is understandable, but tends to generate a panic whenever the word HPV is mentioned - when in fact many strains of HPV are pretty much harmless, and it sounds like that's what you have. Just because they belong to the same family of viruses as those which cause cervical cancer doesn't mean that they themselves are any nastier than the common cold. Another thing often forgotten about HPV is that often, the infections just go away on their own (see the first link in my list for more details). So this may well not be something that will bug you for very long.

[design-girl-00.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much hun!

[scien.livejournal.com]

My pleasure.

[hardtogetover.livejournal.com]

I really like what your doc said about freckles. Human bodies are fragile, and at any given time, any number of things can come up. We can do so much to prevent some things, others we can only monitor and be aware of.
When I found out about the hpv strain I had (a medium risk cancer causing strain), I was terrified. It took me awhile to absorb that it had already happened. I could prevent getting other kinds as best I can, but I had what I had, and I couldn't kill myself worrying about what could happen with it. At that point, it was out of my hands. It did clear on its own, which I'm happy about.
I find this to be one of the scariest things about hpv, that so many people have it, some don't get regular paps, for others it just hasn't shown itself yet.

[design-girl-00.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing!

[hardtogetover.livejournal.com]

NP

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

I don't have detectable HPV, so I'm personally no help on the issue, but VP's tagged posts on HPV (http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/tag/hpv) -- particularly this one (http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/9134359.html?nc=25) and this one (http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/8125872.html?nc=41) -- discuss experiences similar to yours. They also have links to other resources and support communities.

[oh-loverrr.livejournal.com]

i had an issue accepting the fact that i had HPV, and it's still more or less a secret of mine. in my circle of real life family and friends, only four people know: my best friend, my husband, my mother, and another girl whom i was trying to teach about safe sex.

i think part of the difficulty and accepting the diagnosis is the fact that it's an STD, and having a sexually transmitted disease is a very scary label. you feel like a horrible stigma is suddenly attached to you. that's what i felt, at least. & i was in a sexual relationship when i found out that i had HPV. my colposcopy results found that my HPV was limited to a small place on my cervix, and that they weren't the strain that causes "genital warts," but it was still a cause of concern. luckily, my then-boyfriend/now-husband was extremely supportive. my gyno talked with him at the time and together we learned that whether or not i'd gotten the dieases from him, i'd probably already shared it with him, and we basically had nothing to worry about in the future regarding intamacy.

the interesting thing about having HPV is that it made me extremely empowered to educate others about safe sex. i thought i was the most meticulous girl in the world when it came to condoms and getting tested for diseases, etc. but i STILL managed to contract HPV. i guess i was angry at first because i had friends who were so irresponsible with their bodies and their life but still managed to be disease-free, yet i felt weighed down by having HPV. but, like i said, i've grown to feel empowered by it. if it can affect ME, the girl who armed herself with SO MUCH knowledge about safe sex, then it really can happen to anyone.

you should give yourself time to let the reality of it set in, especially since the diagnosis is weighing on you. i always think that there's a purpose to everything in life. i found the reason in my having HPV -- i really think i want to make my career as a sex education counselor. i don't know what to tell you about the future when you get intimate again. i hope by then you're more comfortable with yourself and the diagnosis so that you'll be able to be honest with your partner. you're obviously very knowledgeably about the disease...just tell him what he needs to know and i'm sure you'll be fine.

good luck!

[design-girl-00.livejournal.com]

WOW, THANK YOU so much for sharing all of that with me! It means a lot to me. I think you'll be a GREAT sex education teacher! You've helped make me feel comfortable, so thank you. So, is there a way the gynechologist can check to see which specific strain that I have? I want to find out. I just feel like no one would ever want to be with me again, since I'd have to be honest and share that I have it. Any tips on how you told your boyfriend? Thanks so much.

[scien.livejournal.com]

On your first question, yes there is such a test - see http://www.thehpvtest.com/.

[design-girl-00.livejournal.com]

thanks!

[oh-loverrr.livejournal.com]

i tried to be striaght forward with my boyfriend, but i was still shocked from the news that i had an abnormal pap, so i kind of broke down when i told him. i told him that i'd received a rather serious call from the doctors telling me that my pap smear results were abnormal, which meant i had to go back for a colposcopy procedure. he asked what they'd be looking for during the colposcopy, and i explained (amid hiccups and tears) that they'd probably be looking for evidence of the 'genital warts' virus.

i asked him to go with me to the colposcopy, and he didn't even hesitate to take the day off from work. i don't think i even told my family why i was going to the doctor that day. he held my hand thru the procedure, which helped especially during the more painful part when the doc poured vinegar in my bits. eh.

...and that was really it. my doc educated us on the virus after the procedure. we asked questions, received answers. it sucked, but the weight of the reality of the diagnosis eventually merged seamlessly into the rest of my life.

when the time comes for you to share this information with your partner, i'd be sure that you first TRUST that person completley and then give him the straight up facts: this is the disease i have, my doctor said that i don't have warts and it's not detectable HPV, these are the measures i want to take the ensure that we have a good time but that we're also safe.

xo.

[design-girl-00.livejournal.com]

Awesome, thanks hun. It's nice to talk to someone who understands and has been through this. Thank you. I know this may be personal, but that means that I can also pass this to a guy if he gives me oral, right? That is how I understood my research anyway. Just let me know, thanks so much for taking the time to help me. I didn't know where else to turn, but to the internet and livejournal. Sounds dumb, but my gyno is older and more traditional so talking about oral sex with an assistant in the room as well was something that I just couldn't get out of my mouth to ask. ;) thanks. xoxo

[oh-loverrr.livejournal.com]

i'm not sure about the oral thing.

my gyno said that we'd been together long enough that even if i hadn't gotten the virus from him, i'd probably already given it to him. she said that in our continued intimate life, we'd just be sharing the virus back and forth again. she mentioned nothing about oral sex. we've both engaged in oral sex with each other since then, though, and i definitely don't have warts on my face! i've actually never had any warts on my body, and as far as i know, neither has my husband.

feel free to ask as many questions as you need! it's not dumb at all! xo.

[design-girl-00.livejournal.com]

Okay, thanks hun. :) :) You've been very helpful.

[queenofdelosers.livejournal.com]

I know this is like 9 months late, but thanks for posting this. I was diagnosed with a "dangerous strand" of HPV a month ago. Reading your post, and the comments people left, has helped.