So let’s just step away from the spiritual aspect of having sex. Step away from any sort of religious or spiritual aspect and look at the physical side of it. I’m sure a lot of you have already heard statistics and have heard the talks about STD’s and using safe sex. If you think you’ve heard it too much, you should realize how big of a deal it truly is. You see one in two sexually active people will have an STD by the time they are 25.  And every year there are over 19 million new cases of STD’s and those are just the people being tested. Think of all the people that have them and aren’t aware and haven’t been tested? More than 50% of people having sex will have HPV at some point in there lives. Something most people don’t know as well is that Chlamydia causes infertility in 20% of women.

           No matter where you stand in life whether it be young, old, experienced, inexperienced, Christian, Catholic, or Agnostic, you need to be aware of the reality of STD’s.  Being checked is the only way of being certain of knowing whether or not you have an STD. Even if your partner has said that they have been checked and are clean, you need to get checked for yourself. I have a friend who discovered that she had contracted genital herpes, something that she will never be able to get rid of.  And as her friend she explained to me that the person she received it from denies it and still continues to sleep with other women.

           Sometimes symptoms don’t occur for up to 10 years.  You see, 75% of women and 50% of men with Chlamydia have no symptoms. That means that people could be spreading an STD without even knowing it, and for years with multiple people at that.

           You may brush this off your shoulder saying that this may not apply to you, but someday it might and it is always important to be aware of your body, and your health. You don’t need anyone important to tell you that an STD could impact your life forever and your loved ones as well. I could go on for a very long time about the different types of STD’s, their effects, treatable and untreatable. I haven’t even touched on the HIV and AIDS epidemic around the world. But if you are reading this and have not been checked and have been with one or more partners, on behalf of yourself and respect for others get tested and find out. Know, love, respect and take care of yourself. STD’s are not just a chapter in a book in your high school health class. They’re a reality affecting billions of people in the world.

I have posted links below with STD information and statistics; And testing centers available and affordable for those who can’t afford 200$ lab work.

http://www.safelabcentre.com/std-statistics.html

http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/stds-hiv-safer-sex/std-testing-21695.asp

http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-teens-and-stds