01-19-2009, 05:01 PM
You may already have it. Most people who have herpes have symptoms that are so mild that they don't realize they are infected - even though they can spread the virus to others.Herpes can be transmitted even when no symptoms are present. And you may not notice her symptoms, even if she has them. Heck, she may not notice her symptoms. Condoms do not do much to protect against the virus.In committed couples, where they were very careful to never have sex during an outbreak, the likelihood of transmission was small. But that is not your situation. You really aren't in a position to strategize with these women about protecting yourself. It is also unlikely that they will trust you not to reject them, and probably don't feel much loyalty to keeping you healthy. This is the nature of one-night stands, I'm afraid.I'd say that your chances are quite high that you will contract herpes - if you haven't already.The biggest hassle about herpes is that you have a moral obligation to then tell future partners that they are at risk. I"catted around"quite a bit until I caught herpes. After that, I was sort of stuck. I was not inconsiderate enough to sleep with men without telling them about the risk. But I knew that no one would want to have a one-night stand with someone who had herpes. I chose to start dating monogamously. I suspect that many others simply choose to put their partners at risk.I'm sorry that I don't have a better answer for you. You'll either need to accept the risk, or you'll need to start getting intimate enough with these women to have an honest conversation with them about STDs.And I would go and get a complete STD panel done - which usually doesnt'include herpes unless you ask.For more information on genital herpes, as well as HPV (which is also difficult to avoid), I recommend the website below. It's easy to read, and quite reliable.Good luck.
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