You Can Do Everything "Right" and Still Get Herpes
You can do everything “right” and still get herpes.
You can be a positive person and still have a bad day.
You can love your partner(s) but still be better suited as friends than in a long-term relationship.
We're told to do XYZ to achieve certain results. Lift heavy, get muscles. Follow recipe, yield delicious meal. Use condoms, avoid STIs and pregnancy. Love someone, be loved in return. Think happy, be happy.
Many of us who recognize diet culture, poor sex education tactics, and toxic positivity realize this equation is rarely a perfect fit.
Today’s stories generated a lot of questions around acceptance, and I want to focus on the second slide: You can be a positive person and still have a bad day.
No matter which equation you're working with—whether it's about your day, your relationship with others, STI stigma, or your relationship with yourself: know that you could do everything "right," be the most prepared person, or be the most positive person in the world, but there's always an opportunity for a moment of darkness, learning, and rest in the world's expectations of you.