Thread by @BuzzFeed

Trust me, you don't want to have it. buzzfeed.com/mattford/i-hav…

Hi, I’m Matt Ford. I’m a creative who acts, writes, and sings, and I work for myself as a freelance video producer/editor. In fact, I used to work at BuzzFeed Video. I’m a proud openly gay man, and I split my time between LA and NYC.

I also currently have monkeypox.

Here's what my experience has been like so far and why you should take it seriously. Trust me, you don't want to have it.

As of about a month ago, I had read articles and seen a few tweets about a monkeypox outbreak happening in Europe and potentially spreading to the US — predominantly affecting queer men, reports said — but I wasn’t worried.

It seemed like a far-off problem in a vague world of potential inconveniences, eclipsed by bigger societal problems.

On Friday, June 17, that quickly changed.

I received a call from a friend in LA who informed me that he had tested positive for monkeypox and that I might have been exposed the weekend prior via skin-to-skin contact. Sure enough, I checked myself for spots and noticed a couple of lesions in the underwear zone.

On Monday, June 20, I went to the doctor, and they took a culture swab that was sent to the LA County Department of Public Health. They told me the following Thursday what I already knew: It was positive.

Meanwhile, my symptoms intensified.

The lesions I had already noticed in the underwear zone were becoming more intense and quite painful -- to the point that I couldn’t sleep some nights. They filled with pus and became itchy. To date, I have counted more than 25, and they’re all over: on my arms, legs, hands, feet

The flu-like symptoms abated slowly. By Friday, a week after I'd first detected lesions, I felt mostly normal — at least, besides the lesions, which continued to appear. Thankfully, I’m feeling much better.

At this point, it’s mostly a waiting game for the lesions to heal.

My experience tracks with that of others I'm linked to, but the severity of monkeypox can vary from person to person. To date, no one has died from monkeypox during the current outbreak in the United States.

While men who have sex with men currently make up the majority of cases, anyone can get monkeypox. It is NOT a "gay disease," as Patrick Waechter recently explained for BuzzFeed News — a fact that bears repeating to tamp down the potential for stigma.

Thankfully, there are two monkeypox vaccines. Vaccination is beneficial both to people who've yet to be exposed and, to some extent, to people who have already been exposed because it can make their cases milder.

The unfortunate news is that only very limited quantities of the vaccines have so far been made available — and in larger cities at that.

So, what to do if you think you have monkeypox?

First, don't panic. Do, however, limit your exposure to others, see a health provider asap, and inform your local department of public health.

Follow their instructions and stay alert for the appearance of tell-tale signs, primarily the lesions and/or flu-like symptoms!

Read more about Matt's experiences and follow along for updates here: buzzfeed.com/mattford/i-hav…