If it Does Turn out to be Herpes, Try not to Stress Too Much

Our research team sought to understand the structure of help-seeking inquiries and help-giving responses around the experience of a diagnosed or suspected sexually transmitted infection (STI). The present thematic analysis examines data from 211 original postings on the r/STD community on Reddit.com. Helpers on this Web site focus the vast majority of their comments toward providing emotional support to those confronted with the fear and social isolation that come with the experience of contracting an STI. The findings suggest the r/STD community provides an essential service in assuaging stigma, social isolation, and status silencing common to the experience of having a sexually transmitted infection

Bioinformatics · Biology · Emotional support · Focus (optics) · Isolation (microbiology) · Peer support · Psychiatry · Qualitative research · Sexual orientation · Social isolation · Social media · Social support · Sociology · Stigma (botany) · Thematic analysis · World Wide Web · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health · Computer Science · Gender, Feminism, and Media · HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions · Psychology · Social Psychology

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