The human papillomavirus is transmitted through vaginal, oral, and anal sex. Many researchers believe that cultural norms for sexual behavior (more people having sex at a younger age and with multiple sex partners) have led to the increase in HPV infection. Because symptoms can be slow to appear and are usually painless, infected people can spread HPV unknowingly.

Those with a suppressed immune system are at higher risk for contracting infection that produces warts.

Bacterial Vaginosis:

Vaginal odor, itching, and irritation are common signs of BV and may be particularly noticeable after intercourse or menses. An unpleasant, fishy odor is common. Vaginal irritation and odor may be accompanied by a smooth, sticky white or gray discharge 4 days to 4 weeks following exposure. Elevated vaginal pH level also can be a sign of BV.

Complications:
Bacterial vaginosis usually does not cause complications. However, the condition is associated with an increased risk for pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), female infertility, tubal (ectopic) pregnancy, premature birth, and low birth weight in infants born to infected mothers.

Candidiasis:

As many as 75% of women experience genital candidiasis, also known as vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC), candidal vaginitis, monilial vaginitis, monilial infection, and vaginal yeast infection during their lifetime.

Overgrowth of the fungus Candida albicans, normally present in vaginal flora, causes an allergic reaction that produces symptoms. It most commonly occurs in sexually active young women and is the most commonly diagnosed vaginal infection.

Genital yeast infection generally is not considered to be a sexually transmitted disease, but it is possible to acquire infection from a partner with genital or oral colonization.

Chlamydia:

Nongonococcal urethritis (NGU) is a nongonorrheal bacterial infection of the urethra (tube that carries urine out of the body) in men. NGU involves Chlamydia trachomatis, which causes chlamydia. The term NGU refers to the condition in men and chlamydia refers to the condition in women.

Bacteria are spread through direct sexual contact involving the genitals, anus, or mouth. Most people who develop NGU for the first time do so 1 to 3 weeks after having sex with a new partner.

Symptoms may be similar to those of gonorrhea and include yellow or clear urethral discharge; pain and tenderness in the genitals; pain, burning, and itching during urination; and low-grade fever. Orogenital or oral-anal contact can result in throat infection (pharyngitis) and inflammation of the rectum (proctitis). Some women experience pain or cramping in the lower abdomen, especially during intercourse, and bleeding between menstrual periods.

Genital Herpes:

There are five types of herpesvirus. Herpes simplex-1 (HSV-1) and herpes simplex-2 (HSV-2, the most common type) are considered sexually transmitted diseases. Herpesvirus can be transmitted from a mother to her developing fetus, which may impair neurological development and can be fatal.

Herpes is a lifelong, incurable disease but can be managed with antiviral drugs and safer sex practices. The virus resides deep in nerve cells and it may never produce symptomatic disease or may actively recur throughout a person’s lifetime. The latent nature of the virus contributes to its insidious spread.

Genital herpes is transmitted when an active herpes lesion or its secretion comes into direct contact with a break in the skin or the moist membranes of the mouth, penis, vagina, urethra, anus, or cervix. Stress on the immune system, emotional or physical stress, illness, fatigue, menstruation, and even exposure to sunlight are associated with recurrence of the disease.

Genital herpes is highly contagious when sores are present. Patients can re-infect themselves by touching an active herpes sore and scratching or rubbing another area of broken skin on the body.

Hepatitis B & C:

Hepatitis is considered a sexually transmitted disease (STD) because it can be contracted and spread through intercourse, contact with genitals and the anus, semen, vaginal fluids, and saliva. It is over 100 times more infectious than HIV. Certain high-risk sexual behaviors have led to an increased prevalence of hepatitis in men who have sex with men (MSM).

Newest strains of hepatitis–D, E, F, and G–have emerged within the last 10 years. They are less common and less is known about them. Some, like HDV, require HBV to develop and others are similar to one or more of the three main strains.

HIV:

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 33.2 million people worldwide are living with HIV infection, and an estimated 14,000 new infections occur each day. Of these new infections, more than 90% occur in sub-Saharan Africa and in Asia.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) attacks the body’s immune system, multiplying and spreading from cell to cell at incredible speed, damaging and destroying cells. At first, the immune system fights back by producing new cells, but eventually, HIV causes so much damage that the immune system can no longer keep up. When this happens, T-cells drop below 200 and AIDS develops.

Trichomoniasis:

Trichomoniasis is caused by the parasite Trichomonas vaginalis, which is transmitted principally through direct sexual contact. It also can be spread during mutual masturbation and by sharing sex toys.

Symptoms generally appear 4 to 20 days after infection. Women may experience a profuse, frothy, yellow-green or gray vaginal discharge, sometimes with bleeding, an unpleasant vaginal odor, and vulvovaginal itching and discomfort. Painful and frequent urination, vulvovaginal swelling, discomfort during sexual intercourse, and abdominal pain may also occur.

Talk about your sexual needs and your past behavior. Safer sex begins with good communication. Begin with the lights on. Points out sores, rashes, and sensitive areas.

Tell her if you have a yeast infection or other irritation. Let her know where it is OK to touch and how you like to be touched. Decide together how to protect yourselves, whether it’s by using condoms on sex toys, wearing latex gloves, using barriers for oral sex, or taking other precautions.

Having no sex is obviously the safest sex, but let’s be honest, how many of us are really going to stay abstinent? Sex is natural and in most cases a wonderful experience.  People are not just going to stop having sex regardless of STD risk or scares. So the best way to stop STD’s other than not having sex is by committing to the practice of safe sex.

Safe Sex isn’t just about having fun, it’s about your life.  No one is worth the risk of exposing yourself to sexually transmitted diseases or various other infections. So, Play it SAFE and SMART!

Giving Back 

When you give someone the chance to know you, really know you, you expose the most inner being of whom you really are. You allow them to see the good, bad and indifferent side of you. I am sure you have all heard the catch phrase; “true friends are one in a million”. When you can connect with someone on that level, it is almost like bearing your soul completely.

I vividly remember when my oldest brother passed away I felt like I had been abandoned. I was lost, depressed, lonely. I felt as if a part of me had died right along with him. I sank into such a deep depression that I did not want to exist anymore. I fantasized about wrapping my car around a tree or running off of one of the cliffs at McConnell Mill’s state park. I had two daughters who desperately needed me but at that time all I wanted was self gratification, I wanted to stop hurting and no one else mattered to me.

When I was at my worst God sent me an angel named Amy. My oldest daughter at that time was a “Goose bump” fanatic and had begged me to take her down to the local book store so that she could get the new issue. Although I didn’t feel like dragging myself out of bed, I did and it was that day that Amy and I met and instantly connected.

Unbeknownst to me Amy also had been experiencing difficulties in her life and was feeling hopeless as well. She saved my life and for that I will always be grateful to her. We became the best of friends and shared everything with one another. She forced me take a good look at myself. We taught one another how to “live again”.

Over the years our friendship grew to be more than, we are “sisters” now and even though she lives in another state we still regularly keep in touch with one another and I can still tell her everything. I will always love her with all of my heart, that will never change.

Have you ever given someone the best of you? Have you been a shoulder to lean on? To cry on? Have you lent an unbiased ear to someone in need? Have you ever given advice to someone knowing that you were the only person they could turn to?  Have you offered someone a place to lay their head knowing that they had nowhere else to lay? Have you unselfishly given?  You should because it is one of the most rewarding feelings you will have ever experienced.

This is a cruel and biased world, but have you ever let yourself go long enough to take the jump to enjoy the better things it has to offer? Have you ever looked into the eyes of a person in need and let go of your own insecurities to try and fix the problems that plague them?

When I was employed at Wal Mart there was a homeless woman named April who would come in at night to get out of the bitter cold. She would sit on a bench towards the back of the store, out of everyone’s way and read.

The majority of my co workers would make snide remarks to one another about her because her clothes were tattered and dirty. The night manager wanted to have her thrown out of the store because she was worried what the other customers might think. I at one point put my job on the line to protect her because all that they were willing to see was her immediate outside appearance.

But that “outside appearance” was not who April was, and I was drawn to her, I wanted to get to know her so I did. I saw a woman who carried all that she owned in a paper bag, yet her hair was always brushed, her nails were nicely painted and she wore perfume. Despite not having nice clothes or a warm jacket to wear, she tried to preserve what little dignity she had left and I respected her for that.

I started taking my hour lunches with her, sharing what I had for my lunch. Night after night I sat on that bench with her and listened to her pour her heart out. She was my age and hadn’t always been the woman she had become. I remember the first time I brought her extra clothes, and a warm winter jacket, she looked into my eyes, thanked me and then cried, all that April really wanted was a friend and I was able to give her that.

At one point, April was married, had two beautiful children, a great job, a nice house and then one day for no particular rhyme or reason her husband picked up with their two children and left the state. She fell into a deep depression and never recovered.

The nights that I did not work, I would still bring April something to eat, if she wasn’t there yet I would just leave it on “her bench” and the next evening she would have my container there waiting for me, washed with a thank you note inside of it.

Eventually I lost touch with her after I resigned my position but one of my co workers to this day still runs into her from time to time and he says that she asks about me every time they see one another.

Take a good look at the life you’ve lived. Are the people around you better off having known you? Have  you impacted someone else’s life on any level?  Can you laugh at yourself and not at others? Only when this is true, can you say that you have truly lived, and lived to the fullest that life has offered you. So take a good look in the mirror, do you like the person that is staring back at you.

 Most people live very meaningless lives that revolve around the preconceived views of what society thinks we should be. Most people are only interested in their own “self gratification”. So remember this phrase,  “pay it forward“ and be prepared to sit back and watch the rippling effect and how powerful and positive this  phrase can be if brought to life.

Maybe it will help make 2009 a better year for someone, maybe that someone is you. I  can guarantee that it be the most rewarding selfless act that you will have ever experienced in your life, ”start living by giving”.

I hope you all have a wonderfully prosperous week!!

~Cee~