Do you have any symptoms that you fear may be associated with sexually transmitted infections (STIs)? Let's take it step by step.

STIs are infections that are transmitted through sexual interaction, which according to the infection itself, may be transmitted orally, vaginally and/or anally, as well as other possible routes. They can be viral, bacterial, parasitical, or fungal. If you are sexually active with incidents where safer sex wasn’t practiced, you might be susceptible to transmitting or having an infection transmitted to you.

STIs are always spoken about in a very fear mongering manner, and that goes back to many reasons. The fact that they are transmitted sexually means they are associated to sex, so the shaming that happens around sex is even doubled when the sex is causing an infection. Historically speaking, it’s also been associated with “dirty sex”, sex that the undesirables of society practice, such as homosexuals, deviants, sex workers, and cheaters have. The reality is, STIs are not attached to a certain identity or job. They happen when one person has an infection, another doesn’t, and they have unprotected sex. And most of the time, you can’t “see” or “detect” the STI on a person.

So let’s steer away from all the myths and fears associated with them for a second. With the medical advancement of today, luckily no one has to die from an STI (unless they are unable to access medical treatment). All STIs are treatable, and some are even curable.

If you think you have an STI, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Am I experiencing something new and different when it comes to discharge, its consistency, color, frequency?
2. Is there a change with the smell of the genitals? Is it overpowering? Different?
3. Am I experiencing a rash? Pimples? Scars? What do they look like?
4. Is there any pain or bleeding when having sex? Or after?

Having one or two of these symptoms does not necessarily mean you have an STI, but means that if it persists, it’s good to take the step to test yourself.

You can take a look at the following chart that overviews different STIs, their symptoms and course of treatment. (insert chart)

Should I test regularly?

That is up to you. If you are sexually active, it is recommended to test every six months or so. But there are a lot of variables that factor in how often you can test. How often you have sex, with how many people, the kind of sex, and whether you use protection or not - all are variables that could make you test either more frequently or less so.

Do I need to tell every person I am sleeping with that I have an STI?

Disclosure about STIs tends to come out as a sensitive topic to many. Some people believe that your sexual partner should be aware of everything you have. If you find solace in disclosure and want to be honest about these matters, you can do that. However, you don’t need to disclose everything about yourself to every person you’re sleeping with. It might be awkward to tell every nightstand partner, especially with all the misconceptions associated with STIs. You never know if the other person has an STI too and is not disclosing, or simply does not know. If you are taking your precautions and ensuring that the sex happening is protected, you don’t have to talk about your sexual health history. We are all taking the risk of infection every time we have sex, and it is also our personal responsibility to be protective of ourselves, as we always assume the other person might have an STI and does not know, or are not following precautions. But either way, it is not an accusation to throw around.