The scarlet H: Herpesvirus hominus -- its clinical manifestations and personal implications

Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) tend to affect sufferers psychologically as well as physically. Most of these diseases, however, can be cured and forgotten. Genital herpes, the leading Sexually Transmitted Disease in the United States, seems to cause more psychological damage than do any of the other STDs. (Chase, 1983) Herpetics must cope with the knowledge that their Sexually Transmitted Disease in incurable. The fact that there is a paucity of information on counseling the herpetic contributes to the need for the study. Any professional dealing with an individual who has recently learned he or she has genital herpes needs to be aware of its psychological impact. Herpetics get what Dr. Oscar Gillespie, a research psychologist at Fordham University in New York City, calls the herpes syndrome. (Schultz-Brooks, 1983) They progress through stages comparable to the stages of grief the terminally ill experience