Gettin’ Down with Protecting Yourself

By Kristen Hammond
Staff Columnist

Hello everyone! I hope you all had a good time at Birthday Ball and stayed safe. At an event like Birthday Ball, where the drinks are plenty and the inhibitions are low, it’s easy to make some decisions that we may regret in the morning. But what if these mistakes carry on for longer than the next morning? What if you accidentally picked up something that has to get treated…or worse, can’t be treated?

Sexually Transmitted Infections, or STI’s, have steadily been on the rise since 2011, regardless of condom usage. According to the “Huffington Post,” rates of gonorrhea rose by four percent to 321,849 people, in for second consecutive year of increases. Reported cases of chlamydia rose eight percent to 1.4 million in 2011, compared with 2010. The overall number of syphilis cases held steady in 2011 at 13,970, after falling 1.6 percent in 2010 That means one in every five people have some sort of STI.

That number is appalling. It scares and upsets me to think about how many people have it, and how many people are unaware. In an almost ironic twist, teen pregnancy rates have decreased severely, even though STI rates are increasing. This is due to the fact that teen girls are using the pill in an effort to not get pregnant, but not using condoms and still contracting STI’s.

In most cases, an STI shows no visible signs for years. Some symptoms can be misdiagnosed as something more common, symptoms often including painful urination, pre-menstrual like bleeding, fever, headache, and sore throat. Untreated STI’s can cause infertility, brain damage, and an increased risk of contracting HIV/AIDS. These can prove to be life-threatening. Now just because you have a fever or sore throat, don’t immediately think you have an STI. But this is why it’s important to pay attention.

An important factor to know about STI’s is that they don’t discriminate. This epidemic is not just prone to young adults and college students. STI rates have been steadily on the rise in the Baby Boomer Generation as well. In a time when free love and drugs were frequent, STI’s were in an environment to thrive. Promiscuous sex and drug usage puts you at more risk for contracting an STI. Sexual orientation also puts you at a higher risk. Gay and bisexual men make up two thirds of the people with an STI, and it is an unfortunate stereotype that continues to perpetuate itself. Even if you’re not of these sexual orientations, you are still at risk. The person you are with may not know they are infected, or may just be choosing not to tell you. Planned Parenthood states that one in three people will say they don’t have an STI when they are aware that they do, just to have sex.

And this is precisely why you need to take care of yourself and your body. Those choosing to not stay monogamous and those who do not use condoms need to be especially careful and potentially rethink their choices. Condoms are the surest way to protect against an infection, but even they aren’t foolproof. Choose who you sleep with carefully. Have the conversation about if you’ve been tested. Know the signs and symptoms of an STI so you can identify one.

And for the love of yourself, go get yourself tested regularly. There is no shame in getting tested; in fact it is quite the opposite. If you do have an STI, it is okay. The most important thing to do is to see a doctor and make a treatment plan. Do not have sex until you are cured. Again, the only thing to be ashamed of is not getting treated. It could cost you your life. You can find more information on if you should get tested with “The Checker” a short survey indicating if you should look into getting tested, and where testing centers are at www.plannedparenthood.org or by visiting the Health Center.

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