Please could someone educate me on STDs?

[yorkshirelass79]

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This is a good site

R U Thinking about it?

I'm sure scare tactics wotk in thses intances. I mean, you may not think much about being made infertile by a STD when you are only bovvered about not getting pg in the first place. But find a good pic of some genital warts or an oozing fanjo and it might just hit home....

If she's using condoms she's much safer than if she isn't, but still not 100% certain to avoid STDs.
Apart from the ones you might first think of - HIV, Gonorrhea, Syphilis (thankfully rare) etc she needs to know about Chlamydia, Herpes & Human Papilloma Virus (Genital Warts).

Just Google for info.

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I know, I'm sorry, I've made myself gag with that image...

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I am doing a sucking lemons face at the thought of an oozing fanjo!

There are strains of HPV which don't cause genital warts but can cause abnormalities of cells on the cervix. A lot of people think HPV is only genital warts. Nope.

Some strains of HPV are behind over 90% of all cases of cervical cancer.

There is currently a vaccine available for it, but I'm not sure if it's in the UK or not.

These strains are otherwise symptomless. YOu may have no idea you have this type of HPV until you get an abnormal smear test.

Chlamydia is very common. Again, it can be symptomless and the first you ever know you have it is when you fail to conceive and discover your Fallopian tubes are blocked, necessitating medical intervention and even IVF to conceive.

It can also cause Pelvic Inflammatory Disease.

expat - they're soon going to offer the vaccine to girls at age 12, apparently. Don't know if you can get it privately.

One of my two best friends contracted chlamydia and had no idea - until she suffered an ectopic pregnancy.

Both her tubes were scarred irrevocably. She lost one.

Fortunately, she had completed childbearing, but otherwise, she would have needed assistance to conceive.

And of course the other big risk with blocked fallopian tubes is ectopic pregnancy.

How's that for a xp?

I have two stains of HPV which do not cause warts, but can cause cervical cancer.

I found out by donating my biopsy sample to medical research for a vaccine after developing cervical dysplasia which was caught by a routine smear test.

I was treated with a loop electroexicision procedure.

[wince emoticon]

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The worst bit about it was the local anaesthetic. A big, thin needle to the cervix.

OUCH!

Better than a cone biopsy and/or cancer, though.

I don't necessary think that scaring people with yukky pictures etc will do the trick, because time after time, research shows this type of education doesn't work. It doesn't work, because young people cannot believe that this type of thing [insert yukky picture] will happen to them. They believe they are infallible, and it will be others who will be unfortunate, not them. What does work is providing simple information and sign-posting toward services, so that if there is a problem, they know where to go to get confidential advice and help.

I think the best thing you can do with your sister is to give her a basic overview about contraception - particularly emergency contraception, and how important that if she needs emergency contraception, the quicker she gets it, the better it will work, and this is where she can go to get it in your local area [give local family planning leaflets]. Also describe some of the basic STI's, most importantly Chlamydia (as this is statistically the one she is most likely to get) and spend a lot of time explaining how you can have infections but not know, even if you have no symptoms. Then give info about local STI clinics where she can go to get checked out if she ever has unprotected sex. I think as soon as you start mentioning things like HIV and syphilis, most young people turn off to the info you give them. I agree that it is important they know about these things, but unfortunately too much emphasis is placed on infections that (statistically) they are unlikely to get, and therefore, because they don't know anyone who has these infections, they believe they won't get them too.

I think if during your talk she is scared with pictures and over medicalised lingo, when she does make a mistake in the future(and don't we all) she will be frightened to come to you when she REALLY needs help, especially in an emergency. Keep it simple, give her local services info, and let her know you are always there for her if she needs you in the future.

Its great that you have such an open relationship with your sister!

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You can get loads od leaflets from your GP surgery or you can download them from the FPA website, I could send you a load if you cat me your address.
TheFPA site.

You could tell her that at least 10% of young people have chlamydia and that you can't tell by looking - it may give no symptoms at all. Also, STDs hunt in packs - if someone has chlamydia there's a good chance they may be carrying the virus for herpes or genital warts and condoms won't stop her catching those - and they're not always curable either. If she catches herpes she could be stuck with it for life.

HTH. Mind you, my mum used to try and scare me and my sisters by telling us all about cases she'd seen of genital warts (she's a nurse) & I'm not sure it made us any more responsible.....

expat... OUCH!!! I'm going to have endometrial & cervical ablation next month - I Googled it and it says you can have it done under LA, but when I said this to the surgeon he furrowed his brow and said 'It's up to you, but I would strongly advise that you had GA!'

Errrr.... ok, then