Halle Berry Misdiagnosed With 'Worst Case Of Herpes I've Ever Seen' By Her Doctor
Halle Berry has revealed how she was once misdiagnosed with an STD.
On Monday, the Hollywood star attended Propper Daley's fourth "A Day of Unreasonable Conversation" summit to talk about menopause and women's health issues alongside First Lady Dr. Jill Biden.
At the summit, the 57-year-old actress openly shared that when she visited her gynecologist after experiencing extreme pain following intercourse at age 54, the doctor mistook her perimenopause symptoms for herpes, according to People.
"I feel like I have razor blades in my vagina. I ran to my gynecologist, and I said, 'Oh my God, what's happening?' It was terrible," she recalled.
"He said, 'You have the worst case of herpes I've ever seen.' I'm like, 'Herpes? I don't have herpes!'"
After the "Catwoman" star visited the doctor, she said that she immediately told Van Hunt, her long-term boyfriend, and they got tested for STDs. But their tests turned out negative.
The results made her realize her vaginal dryness could be a symptom of perimenopause.
"I realize after the fact, that is a symptom of perimenopause. My doctor had no knowledge and didn't prepare me. That's when I knew, 'Oh my gosh, I've got to use my platform. I have to use all of who I am, and I have to start making a change and a difference for other women,'" she said.
Perimenopause is the period during which a woman's body makes the natural transition to menopause or the end of her reproductive years, according to the Mayo Clinic.
This menopausal transition starts at different ages in women -- either in their 40s or as early as mid-30s.
This would not be the first time the former beauty queen talked about menopause and women's health. In August 2023, Berry wrote about women's health issues for Women's Health magazine.
"I am challenging everything I thought I knew about menopause. The most important thing about owning your sexuality as a woman is accepting the station you're at --and embracing that. And I say that because I'm smack dab in the middle of menopause," the Oscar-winning actress wrote at the time.
"And I am challenging everything I thought I knew about menopause. Things like: 'Your life is over,' 'You are disposable,' 'Society no longer has a place for you,' 'You should retire' [and] 'You should pack it up.'"
"I'm challenging all those stereotypes about how you have to look a certain way or feel a certain way. I'm my best self now that I reached 56 years old. I have the most to offer," she added.
Berry also talked about the topic at several other summits.
