SEXUAL TRANSMITTED DISEASE (STDs), SHOULD A WOMAN BE CONCERNED?

Studies have shown that 92% of all protected sex (with condom) is to prevent pregnancy. STD prevention is less of an issue for the greater percent of couples out there. A friend told me he had sex with over 30 ladies so far, I couldn’t help close my eyes in both disbelief and amazement. “Hope you protected yourself” I mumbled. Where my voice went I could not tell at that moment. He told me he only wore condom when he had intercourse with a lady for the first time. He was more interested in unwanted pregnancy than catching a disease.

This is the general problem with most couple, they are too eager to start shooting without protecting themselves with a bullet vest. Who even asks questions on STDs? Everyone is afraid of the large stomach that they forget the skeleton man with pitchfork is always lying in wait. Why should I care about STDs more than I care about pregnancy?

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are those diseases transmitted through vaginal, anal, or oral sexual contact.

Remember the prank we played when we were little? We write some bad stuff and stick it to the back of a person without the person knowing. That’s just STDs, most often the infected person do not have symptoms until the big damage is done.   Women are usually at more risk in both contacting and being asymptomatic (without symptoms) than men. Imagine when one has a bullet fragment in the heart without knowing, unless the problem is known, treatment will be far. Men should know that not all healthy looking women out there are really healthy, most are grenades without keys ready to explode.

                                   STD symptoms in women:

No symptoms: we‘ve already done justice to this. Unlike men who in most cases experience series of symptoms and in less than one month, women can go series of months without knowing they are infected while their vitals are destroyed.

Discharge of thick or thin, milky white, yellow, or green leakage from the vagina.

Vaginal itching.

Smelling vagina.

Vaginal rash or rash in the genital area

Burning urination

Painful urination

Pain during intercourse

 Bleeding or spotting between menstrual cycles

Irregular Menstrual cycle

Painless ulcers on the vagina

Pelvic pain

Lower back pain

Fever

Nausea

Swelling of the joints (knee, elbow, etc.).

Most times the suffering woman does not have any idea she’s been infected, this leaves the STD untreated resulting to infertility and high risk of cancer. Untreated STDs can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, which can result in infertility and ectopic pregnancy. We can understand this better it is estimated that about 70% of women who are sexually active in Africa have one STD or another. Now you know why ‘carefulness’ is the watch word. A woman’s anatomy can place her at a unique risk for STD infection, compared to a man. The lining of the vagina is thinner than the skin on a penis allowing for easier penetration of bacteria. The vagina condition is favourable for bacterial growth

Study the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 50 percent of new chlamydia and gonorrhea cases occur in women between the ages of 15 and 24 years. The CDC estimates that 20 million new STDs will occur every year in the United States alone. Every year worldwide, there are approximately 357 million new infections of syphilis, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis.

The most common STDs in women are humanpapillomavirus (HPV), gonorrhea, chlamydia and genital herpes. HPV is the leading cause of cervical cancer.

Next time when you want to let everything go don’t forget the skeleton with the pitch fork lurking around.