Anonymous asked: Is there a street name for bacterial vaginosis?
Bacterial Vaginosis, also known as BV, Gardnerella vaginitis, Gardnerella, or simply non-specific vaginitis, is a benign infection of the vagina in which Gardnerella is the most common bacteria involved. Bacterial Vaginosis is commonly confused with a common yeast infection (candidiasis), but these are distinct conditions. There may or may not be a street name for bacterial vaginosis, but a cursory Google search did not yield any significant results.
If you are concerned about whether or not you or a friend may have bacterial vaginosis, see your physician for proper treatment.
Q: I’m nowhere near Hampshire, but I found this blog and I really respect the non-judgmental information you’re providing people, so I figured you might answer my question even if I’m miles away (no rush).
I’m debating having sex for the first time, but I need to find the right birth control. I don’t really want to tell my parents (especially not my dad), so I was going to try going to Planned Parenthood. I am leaning towards the pill, but I know that it messes with hormone levels and has side-effects. What are the most common ones? What are the differences between brands? I would like to know my options before I try anything. I’d also like to know how long I should wait to have sex after starting birth control.
A: There are many things to consider before choosing to have sex for the first time, including but not limited to birth control options. Congratulations on thinking about these things ahead of time! Go Ask Alice!, an excellent online sexual health resource, has an excellent, comprehensive article that covers many different factors to consider before choosing to have sex. If after you do decide that it’s the right time for you and your partner to have sex, it’s essential that you take the proper precautions to protect your sexual health. Steps you can take to help protect you and your partner(s) include but are not limited to regular STD/STI testing, using barrier methods, and as you know, birth control methods.
Even if you’re on birth control, you still need to protect against the transmission of STD’s and STI’s. You can help protect yourself and your partner by doing two things: (1) using barrier methods like condoms and dental dams, and (2) have you and your partner(s) get tested regularly.
From your description, it seems like you have access to a local Planned Parenthood, which is great news. Planned Parenthood offers confidential testing, barrier methods, as well as birth control. If you do not have access to a Planned Parenthood or other reproductive healthcare clinics, your physician can prescribe birth control as well as test you for STD/STI’s, and barrier methods are available at drug stores and online.
As for contraceptive methods, there exists a plethora of options to choose from; oral contraceptives, or “the pill,” are but one method to help prevent pregnancy. Additionally, there is a wide variety of different brands of birth control brands (100 and counting!) and new brands are introduced every day. Because of the variety of options, we cannot pretend to offer a comprehensive overview of this many different brands of oral contraceptives. To familiarize yourself with the variety of options, WebMD has a helpful comparison of the different categories of oral contraceptives, the different brands, and the different possible side effects.
When starting birth control, it is impossible to know beforehand which brand of pill is going to work best for you. The efficacy and side effects of any given pill is determined by a variety of factors, and the same pill may affect two different people in radically different ways. Your healthcare provider can help you narrow down these options and help you find the pill that is most suitable for you and has the least negative side effects. However, it is important to note that most people try a few different brands of birth control before finding one that works best for them. Additionally, it may take a for your cycle to readjust and your hormone levels to settle into place before you can tell if the pill is working for you, or if you want to try a different brand. The provider who prescribes you the pill will be able to guide you through this decision-making process.
To choose which options are best for you, discuss your situation with Planned Parenthood and/or your health care provider, so that your health history, circumstances, and financial situation may be taken into consideration. There is no need to worry about your parents finding out: if you are a minor in the United States, you have rights to confidential reproductive health care. Unless you give consent, your health care provider cannot disclose your medical records to anybody, including your parents (except in the case of abortion, depending on your state’s laws). Planned Parenthood and other health centers are very familiar with concerns about confidentiality. If your parents provide your health insurance and/or will pay for your medical bills and you fear that they will find out after you receive services, talk to your provider about ways to ensure confidentiality, like providing a private contact information and paying in cash.
Hey everybody!
So, as we get back into the swing of school the Sexperts (with the help of other members of the community) will be hosting two workshops this week, run by sexuality educator Charlie Glickman! Mr.Glickman will be at Hampshire this Tuesday (10/4) and Wednesday (10/5), running workshops starting at 7pm in the Easy Lecture Hall in FPH. Tuesday’s workshop is “Act Like a Man” and Wednesday’s workshop is ”The Physiology of Pleasure”. Mr. Glickman joins us all the way from California, so make sure to come see him speak before he’s back on the west coast! Descriptions of the workshops are listed below;
Act Like A Man: Male Gender Socialization
Despite the increasing dialogue about gender roles in modern society, there is little understanding of how masculinity is defined, taught, and enforced. The more we explore these dynamics, the easier it becomes to address them, find new ways of moving through the world, and bring a sense of both compassion and accountability to our lives.
The Physiology of Pleasure
Knowing about sexual anatomy and physiology is more than knowing the names of the parts. This interactive workshop explores the sexual organs and explains how they function from a pleasure perspective. There are many similarities that transcend gender, as well as some obvious (and not so obvious) differences. When we deepen our understanding of how these parts of our bodies work, we are able to explore sexuality more fully and discover new ways to experience pleasure.
click here to view Mr. Glickman’s full website
Hello all!
Interested in joining Sexperts??!
The Hampshire Sexperts are almost up and running for the new school year (which means finally being able to respond to some lingering summer questions)! We will be totally back in the swing of things by next Tuesday but, before we can get started we are holding our annual Sexperts training session this Sunday! Training is open to all members of the Hampshire community and will be held this Sunday (9/25) in the Queer Community Alliance center from 10am-4pm, and lunch will be provided! Our training is a comprehensive, safer sex education workshop, led by a educator from Tapestry Health, that includes information on sexual safety, sexual health, and sex positivity! All members of the community are invited, even if you are uncertain if you’d like to be a Sexpert and are just interested in learning some new things. Also, joining Sexperts can fulfill CEL and community service requirements! Hope to see you there! Have a wonderful, fun, sexy, healthy day!
Love, The Hampshire Sexperts!
Q: Hi there,
Last night I had naked genital-to-genital contact for about 1-2 hours with my boyfriend (who was not wearing a condom). We tried our best not to have the head of his penis come in contact with my vagina, but it may have happened once or twice in the heat of the moment and we forgot. No penetration occured. He ejaculated onto my stomach/chest area. Today (24 hours later) I am experiencing tacky white discharge and a tingling pain in my left ovary. I believe I am ovulating and therefore fertile. I was on birth control for a year and quit end of September 2010. Since then I have only had 3 periods due to the hormonal imbalance from pill recovery. My last period came February 5th 2011. Is there a chance I am pregnant? Please help, I’m really worried. Thank you in advance.
A:Hello!
First off, sorry it took a bit for us to get back to you, because school is out the blog isn’t being checked as regularly. Hopefully we are still able to help!
So, it is extremely difficult to get pregnant without penetration, however it is possible. Having said that, we strongly encourage you (and all our readers with the potential to get pregnant) to not engage in genital on genital without a barrier method in place. Even if you are not planing on having intercourse it is important to use a condom (or dam, or glove) as skin to skin contact can lead to the spread of STI’s and there is always the chance that pregnancy can occur even without penetration. Discharge can be a sign of your vagina cleaning itself out, as can often happen right before menstruation, but it also may be a sign of a yeast infection so we suggest visiting your doctor or a medical health facility in your area you feel comfortable with (Tapestry Health in Amherst, MA, is a great resource in the area here is their website). We also suggest taking an at-home pregnancy test if you are still worried. Best of luck! Have a great summer!
Yours truly, the Hampshire Sexperts
Hey guys!
I was just kicking off my summer with some serious stumbling and found this! It isn’t too long and seemed like something our fellow readers would like so I thought I’d post it. Hope your summers, or finals, are going well. Enjoy!
Dear Readers,
We are sad to say this past Monday was our final meeting. This means we won’t be able to answer questions on a weekly basis from now until the fall semester starts. If you do have a pressing question sometime before then feel free to post them here or email: HampshireSexperts@gmail.edu as we will be doing our best to check in periodically. We thank you for all your wonderful questions and feedback and we look forward to working with you next year! We wish you a fun, sexy and safe summer!
Yours Truly,
The Hampshire Sexperts!
Q: My ex gave me herpes after cheating on me with dozens of girls. I’ve read that it can be transmitted to others even if you use protection. Is it best to abstain for the rest of my life so as not to risk spreading the virus? (i hope not because I love sex)
A: First of all, we’d like to say we are so sorry your ex betrayed your trust in the way that they did. Honesty is an essential part of a healthy relationship and we encourage you to take some time for emotional healing, as well as physical. Moving on from this situation may take some time and rebuilding your levels of trust for future relationships will be a process. We are sincerely sorry that you have been put in this situation but also want you to know that it will get better, you deserve a partner who will respect you, who you can trust and who will communicate with you honestly. Coping with your new STI status is a process unto itself and, if you think it will help, we suggest seeking out an online, or in person, STI support group where you can work through this situation with the help of others who understand this situation on a personal level.
That said we have some good news for you; you do not need to abstain from sex for the rest of your life! Herpes is one of the most common STIs in the country, cold sores are a form of the herpes virus! 50%-80%of the U.S. population is estimated to have oral herpes, and 20% of Americans are estimated to have genital herpes, and plenty of these people are still sexually active. However you will have to be more careful and, we stress this, you must be honest about your STI status with future partners. If you had the flu you would certainly tell someone before you let them kiss you and this is very similar, before you engage in sexual activity with a new partner they deserve to be informed about your STI status, out of respect for their sexual health. When engaging in sexual activity it is essential that you and your partner use barrier methods (condoms, gloves, dental dams). STI positive or not barrier methods are necessary for all sexual activity, but given that herpes is transmittable through skin contact we must stress the importance of incorporating barrier methods into all of your future sexual endeavors. Barrier methods are not effective 100% of the time but they do greatly reduce the likelihood of spreading STIs. Further, herpes is much more likely to be spread to partner during an outbreak, and during periods of Asymptomatic shedding which is common after outbreaks but can occur at anytime. So if and when you experience an outbreak we encourage you to use extra precaution and forethought before engaging in sexual activity.
We hope this has been helpful and would like to encourage you to visit Tapestry Health in Amherst (website here), or your regular doctor, for information from a medical professional. Herpes does not mean an end to your sex life! We wish you the best of luck on your future medical and sexual endeavors, and remember that you deserve a relationship with someone who is honest, supportive, caring and able to communicate with you in a respectful manner!
Yours Truly,
The Hampshire Sexperts
Q: what STDs can be transmitted through vaginal cum?
A: Great question! We’re glad you asked it! Here’s what we think:
We’d say to be on the safe side assume that any STI can be transmitted through fluids (vaginal cum, semen, blood, and breast milk), and the ones that can’t be transmitted through fluids can be through skin on skin contact. We strongly encourage you to use barrier methods when interacting with a partner sexually to protect yourself and your partner(s) from protection. HIV, Syphilis, Chlamydia and Gonorrhea are the STI’s that can be specifically transmitted via fluids, but this may not be a complete list so play it safe.
Yours Truly, The Hampshirre Sexperts
