Image source: HopelesslyFalling27
Coach Carr has it all wrong when it comes to sexually transmitted infections (STIs), but he’s not the only one with misconceptions in that department. Fortunately, you don’t have to be a sexpert to have safer sex (although we highly encourage it!)—you just have to be proactive about prevention, testing, and (if needed) treatment.
This National Women’s Health Week, talk to your partner(s), get some condom practice, find a testing location, and make sure your body is as healthy as can be.
You seem pretty scared of catching the flu for someone who’s not remotely scared of catching STDs.
Via someecards
Dug up this golden oldie (but goodie) from Someecards in honor of National Condom Week. Let’s hear it for the only method of birth control that also prevents STIs! And speaking of golden, remember that just because you’re using another method of birth control doesn’t mean you should give up condoms. Doubling up=the golden ticket to safer sex.
Dispatches from a College Sexpert: Smart, Sexy, & STI-free?
College students carry a lot of things: books, laptops, wallets, keys, backpacks…STIs (sexually transmitted infections). There are so many STIs that they, like your keys, can be hard to keep track of—even harder since many students don’t realize they have or are at risk for one. So, since we’re less invincible than we think, I’ve written up 8 things college students should know (and probably don’t) about STIs.
1) In the U.S., one in two people has or has had an STI by age 25—and young people make up nearly half of the 19 million new cases of STIs each year.
2) Testing is easy and cheaper for students, so strike while the iron’s hot and get in the habit of getting tested every 6 months. If you’re in a long-term monogamous relationship and you’ve BOTH been tested (and treated if you tested positive), you can bump it up to every year. Note that a Pap smear doesn’t test for STIs, so you should ask your doctor or local clinic directly about getting tested. You can also test for some STIs in your own apartment or dorm room with take-home kits.
3) It’s not just the people with tons of partners who get STIs—they’re easy to catch, there are a lot of them, and there are a lot of places you can get them, including from oral sex. STIs don’t just get in through the mouth and affect you down there; gonorrhea can grow in your throat and make it sore. (Maybe it’s not strep after all.)
4) The vaccine for HPV, which is already showing signs of having an effect on HPV rates, is now recommended for guys as well as girls.
5) Chlamydia and gonorrhea, even if they show no external symptoms, can turn into Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID), which can cause infertility. For the record, this doesn’t mean if you’ve had chlamydia or gonorrhea you don’t need to use birth control—most cases are easily treated and don’t turn into PID.
6) Using spermicide (without a condom) or having an untreated STI can irritate the lining of the vagina and other sensitive skin, making it easier to contract (other) STIs.
7) Most folks born in the U.S. were vaccinated for HBV (Hepatitis B) as babies, but HBV disproportionately affects people from Asian or Pacific Island countries, where vaccination policies may be different and rates of HBV may be high. If you or your parents were born in a country where HBV is common, you may want to get tested for it. HBV is an STI but can also be transmitted through birth and often causes liver cancer later in life.
8) There are some surprisingly common STIs that few people have even heard about, like mycoplasma genitalium or trichomoniasis. Both mycoplasma genitalium and trichomoniasis are curable but tricky to diagnose.
Tons of college student have or have had an STI and the best thing is to be proactive by getting tested every 6 months and using a condom with any type of sex. If you want even more information, check out our 5 Handy Facts for STD Awareness Month and 5 Facts for HIV Awareness Month posts. Good luck staying safe and don’t forget to get your birth control covered too!
“Banging a Pot to Keep in Step” image from Quinn Dombrowski.
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Catherine Rivera is an intern for Bedsider. When she’s not counseling, teaching, researching or writing about sex and relationships, this Stanford University student can be found passing out condoms to her fellow students, mentoring middle school girls, indulging her sweet tooth , reading the news, or attempting to get inside the heads of her four younger brothers. Catherine doesn’t have a personal tumblr (yet), but you can follow her on twitter @cmrivera2013.
5 Facts for HIV Awareness Month
If you were lucky enough to have sex ed in high school, your teacher probably told you that HIV/AIDS is the scariest, deadliest, and craziest sexually transmitted infection (STI) there is—in my health class they pretty much left it at that. Clearly, there’s more to know about HIV than that scare tactic, but since a lot has changed in the last few decades, I’ll give those sex ed teachers the benefit of the doubt.
Today more young people are using condoms and HIV can be treated (though not cured) with powerful drugs—especially if it’s caught early. Yet while HIV may no longer be seen as a death sentence, that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be taken seriously. So, since knowledge is power and July is National HIV Awareness Month, here are 5 things you should know about HIV.
1) It’s not just ‘them’ who are at risk (it’s ‘us’). More young people are at risk for getting HIV than you might think—including young women. In fact, we make up 25% of new cases and we contract it at higher rates than our male partners/friends/lovers when having sexual intercourse (more surface area = more risk). I’m not trying to induce panic, but it’s worth noting that anyone can have or get HIV regardless of what they look like or what demographic they belong to. In other words, protecting yourself is important even if you’re not in the “risk groups” your gym teacher told you about.
2) It’s always worth using condoms. If he’s barebacking (as in not using a condom) with you during a hookup, he’s probably done it with someone else, who’s done it with another person (you see where I’m going with this…). Birth control is the only way to prevent pregnancy (besides not having sex, of course) and condoms prevent both pregnancy and HIV transmission (Condom <3). Here are some tips on talking about condoms if you’re single or in a long-term relationship (I recommend reading both). If you want to practice using a condom, follow these instructions or download CondomPro.
3) Getting tested is easy, often free, and very important for you and your partner. Your local clinic (or student clinic) can test for HIV with an oral swab or a blood test—just make sure to call ahead to see which kind of test they do if you don’t like needles (or like needles and don’t like cotton swabs). There are tons of clinics that will perform free or reduced-cost HIV tests—check out the CDC’s HIV website to find one near you. If you do test positive, there are tons of resources and reliable drugs that help control the illness.
4) Spermicide is good at killing sperm—not HIV. Spermicide (when used without a condom) does not prevent against HIV and may even increase your risk of getting HIV or other STIs since it can irritate the inside of the vagina. If you’re using spermicide without a condom, get yourself and your partner tested to make sure you’re being safe.
5) Other STIs, like herpes or gonorrhea, make it easier to get HIV. Apparently, these STIs make exposed surfaces more prone to infection, including HIV. Oh, and having HIV also makes it easier to get herpes—talk about a dangerous symbiotic relationship. One more reason to get tested—and treated, if necessary—for all STIs, not just HIV.
Bedsider thinks that babies are great when you’re ready. HIV, on the other hand, is never great and the best thing you can do (for yourself and your partners) is to avoid getting it in the first place. That said, ignorance is not bliss when it comes to any STIs—getting tested and knowing your status is the best way to stay healthy, regardless of what the test says.
“1 in 5” infographic from Aids.gov.
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Catherine Rivera is an intern for Bedsider. When she’s not counseling, teaching, researching or writing about sex and relationships, this Stanford University student can be found passing out condoms to her fellow students, mentoring middle school girls, indulging her sweet tooth , reading the news, or attempting to get inside the heads of her four younger brothers. Catherine doesn’t have a personal tumblr (yet), but you can follow her on twitter @cmrivera2013.
Chlamydia and Gonorrhea: Wait, there’s good news?
From our latest Provider Perspective post:
Part of the reason these bacterial STIs are so common is that they’re really contagious. Remember the pink-eye or lice epidemics that went through school when you were a kid? Bacterial STIs are that contagious, though fortunately they only spread during sex, not during recess. Unfortunately, if you have sex with somebody who’s got a bacterial STI and don’t use a condom or dental dam, chances are good that you’ll get it, too.
Nothing takes the sexy out of sexy times like worrying about STIs, but having a plan to avoid or deal with them will keep you healthier and sexier in the long run. And, bonus, some of the most common STIs can be prevented—and, if you get one, cured.
STD Investigators: Solving Mysteries, Saving Lives
Many young people, like older adults, are scared to get tested for STDs…so they don’t.
Melissa Wong and Teri Lopez, STI investigators in California, explain how they track down former partners of people who’ve tested positive for a sexually transmitted infection—and make sure they get tested. [9 min 45 sec]
Originally published on SexReally.com on June 28, 2010.
