Sexual wellness is a huge deal right now.
I'm not saying that just because people are having sex. I say that because not enough people are educated on how our reproductive systems work, and how our sexual wellness is maintained as well.
Here's an example:
OK, I know, it is very rare to be THAT misinformed. My point is, we don't talk about sexual wellness and how to keep your sexual wellness in check often enough. Now you might be asking, "What do you mean by that? Nothing seems to be wrong with my body." There doesn't have to be anything obviously wrong with your body at the moment in order for your sexual wellness to really matter. STD rates are extremely high in the United States.
"Chlamydia, a disease that can damage a woman's reproductive system and make it difficult for her to get pregnant if left untreated. Young people, 15 to 24 years old, accounted for nearly two-thirds of last year's chlamydia diagnoses -- and half of the gonorrhea diagnoses."
Men who have sex with men accounted for the majority of new gonorrhea cases last year, and antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea was found to possibly be higher among the group, the new report showed.
Overall, young people and gay and bisexual men face the greatest risk of getting a STD, according to the new report. It's estimated that about half of the nearly 20 million new STD cases reported annually are among 15 to 24 year olds."
Find your nearby clinic(s) where you can get tested. Not only is it important to get tested for STDs, but it's important to get tested for any reproductive cancers that might be afflicting you. In general, we don't learn about sex and sexual health enough nor do we talk about it nearly enough. Pregnancy and STD prevention is a proactive way to keep people aware of their bodies.
The stigma around sexual wellness and talking about sex are really harming our social outlook on sex and reproductive health/safety. Here's a video that depicts the epidemic we have with poor sex education in this country:
https://www.facebook.com/ATTNVideo/videos/1605288399776115/
The effects of poor sex education have severely detrimental effects on society -- especially because more and more people are getting infected with STDs -- due to the fact they are not educated on protection, as well as risks associated with unprotected sexual activity. By no means am I saying, "don't have sex," but I am saying that there are some factors to be aware of regarding sex and sexual activity, and very cheap, effective, and easy measures/precautions available to keep yourself and your sexual partner(s) safe.
Here are some statistics on teen birth rates (both are per 1000 women within the age 15-19 demographic):
While teen birth rates surely have gone down, it is still important to recognize that this is still a considerably high proportion of these demographics' populations that are getting pregnant.
Keeping your sexual health in check doesn't just mean checking physical symptoms, sexual/gender identities as a whole are important to be aware of, such as recognizing questions about your personal sexual orientation and gender identity, and starting hormone therapy if you feel it is necessary. You heard it from me, your sexual health is extremely important. Go get tested and go buy yourself some contraception -- unless you don't engage in sexual activity, be aware of these things to help out your friends and family members that might need support or resources; keep yourself healthy and keep tabs on your physical sexual wellness, and learn how to prevent reproductive cancers/infections regardless! See the bottom of the article for some resources.
http://www.cdc.gov/std/prevention/
http://www.ashasexualhealth.org/stdsstis/preventio...
