Living in America with an STD

Kaitlyn Solotes

As a friend of someone who has contracted an STD, I have personally witnessed how quickly an STD/STI can change one's life. What seemed impossible became my friend's reality when she lost her virginity at 21 to someone with the Herpes virus. Even though her partner showed no symptoms, she still woke up with the worst pain she had ever experienced. While STDs still remain a sort of taboo topic in our society, it is no myth that 1 in 4 young adults has an STD. Being a Sophomore in college I have yet to undergo a true and unrestricted sex education class; my lack of education on STDs worries me into thinking about the millions of Americans who are also being denied crucial, factual information about sexually transmitted diseases. [1] A few of the most popular STDs we are faced with today are HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis, Syphilis, Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Genital herpes and HPV. Living in America with an STD today is different than in the past 60 years. However, there are still some facts about STDs that remain the same. For example, Herpes is still an incurable virus that never leaves the body once contracted. Although medication helps ease symptoms and reduce the number of outbreaks, herpes remains untreatable as do other viral STDs such as HPV and AIDS. Another fact about STDs that has stayed the same in history is there are often few, if any symptoms. This means that even though you recognize what an STD is and could look like, there is no way to know if you have one unless you get tested. It is essential for good sexual health to get tested in order to be aware and prevent infection of potential partners. [2] In the past Syphilis and Gonorrhea were the major STDs in America. Soon after in the 1960s and '70s, Herpes made a huge entrance and impact on the history of sexually transmitted diseases. The largest and most serious health epidemic emerged in the late 20th century when AIDS, caused by the HIV virus, started to spread at an extremely high rate. It is important to understand the history of STDs and know that while we are living in a changing America, STDs remain a huge and life-altering threat to sexually active individuals. Although medical advances are constantly in the works, nobody is immune from STDs; as long as you are having intercourse or engaging in oral sex, you are a candidate for STDs/STIs. With that being said, living in America with an STD raises a series of concerning questions, some harder to answer than others. One benefit of living in such an advanced society is the amount of resources available to us. The internet provides numerous websites, journals, and articles on STDs and how they can be transmitted. These resources weren't around until the early 90s when Internet began to boom. There are also tons of support groups to aid people in overcoming their nervousness of telling loved ones about their STD, which can be the hardest part of it all.

 

            1. "Living with an STD," Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, last modified March 29, 2014, http://www.nakedtruth.idaho.gov/living-with-an-std.aspx.

            2. "Sexually Transmitted Disease," Encyclopedia Britannica, last modified September 11, 2013, http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/537217/sexually-transmitted-disease-STD.