1. AIDS is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and there is no cure. HIV weakens the body’s ability to fend off diseases and multiplies in lymph nodes. It destroys white blood cells and antibodies that make up the immune system. You can’t get it from hugging, dancing, high-fives, or sharing a can of soda. There are many myths about contracting AIDS and HIV. Women are at high risk and knowing your partner’s sexual history is one way to help keep you safe.

Hi, I’m Dr. V.  I’m not a real doctor, I just play one on the Internet. What I am is a lady, a lady who is a fool for love! And I love nothing more than sex. My deepest desires have happily led me on many adventures in the sack, but they have also made me one of my gyno’s most valuable players. I’ve lived to tell the tale(s)! So, I dish the dirt on everything from getting freaky to getting freaked out. Now, let’s get this party started.

STD Awareness Month is almost over, and I hope you lovers survived. Next week, I’ll go back to answering your burning sex questions—whether they burn literally or not. Today, I want to talk about a mistake I’ve made trying to play it safe. 

If I had a nickel for every time I bartered a new partner down from sex to a BJ, I’d be rich! In some situations, oral sex can seem like the best bet to keep him coming back for more and to protect your promised land. But that argument is as busted as Bill Clinton saying he didn’t have sex relations with Monica Lewinsky. It’s still sex—oral sex, to be exact! While I used to think I was Lady Safety for starting off slow(ish) with a beej, oral is as risky a way to get frisky. Even though he’s not sticking his beef in your buns, your mouth is as ready to be an STD sandwich. New research shows it can even cause cancer. While we gals can get a lot of things, we can’t seem to catch a break! Here are some things to consider when you’re going down.

1. Syphilis is a mighty morphing STD that is hard to detect. Its symptoms don’t occur in a consistent order, but experts have narrowed them down to four stages. The primary stage is when a firm sore, called a chancre, appears around your lady parts. You can get one firm sore or many love bumps. They may dry out and heal, but you’re still stuck with the infection. The second stage includes on-and-off rash, fever, fatigue, aching, and sore throat. The third stage is the hidden stage, when symptoms don’t appear for years, as this STD attacks and progresses.
2. If left untreated, syphilis can damage your heart and brain in the final stages. The tertiary, or late syphilis, stage also attacks the eyes, blood vessels, liver, bones, and joints. Signs of late syphilis include paralysis, numbness, blindness, and even dementia. If you think you might have the Syph, you need to get treatment as soon as possible. Your chances of getting HIV increase if you have syphilis because chancres make it easier to pass on and acquire HIV.

Every year, one million U.S. women will become infected with pelvic inflammatory disease, also known as PID, an infection or inflammation of various reproductive organs. Yikes! This common disease can cause many other problems, including infertility and other conditions that may lead to death. Sorry for the quick scare, but it’s true, and you should know. Thankfully, the proper prevention and care can help prevent those complications.

1. It’s normal for certain amounts and types of bacteria to reside in the vaginal area. However, sex and douching can cause them to get pushed further inside the body where they don’t belong. This can cause PID. Having sex with multiple partners, a partner who has multiple partners, or a partner who has an STD can greatly increase the risk. Bacterial STDs, such as gonorrhea and chlamydia, are common factors in PID cases.
2. Unfortunately, more than half of all PID cases go undetected until the damage has been done. Many times there are few to no symptoms, especially in PID that occurs from chlamydia. Ladies, if you’re experiencing fever, pain during intercourse or urination, abdominal pain, or irregular bleeding during your menstrual cycle, it’s time to get tested ASAP. A rare pain also can occur in the upper abdominal region.

Many people have heard of hepatitis C from Naomi Judd’s public battle with the disease and her crusade to make people aware of it. However, there are seven additional forms of hepatitis in existence that few people are aware of, including the kind you can get from having sex.

1. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), hepatitis is the inflammation of the liver, but it’s not quite that simple.
2. There are eight different types of hepatitis, viral and nonviral. Hepatitis B is the type is primarily transmitted through sexual contact. It can be acute or chronic, and acute hepatitis B can become chronic, resulting in long-term health problems and even death.

For girls who love safe sex as much as new lip goo, The Body Shop and MTV have debuted a dragon fruit/shea lip butter to raise money for MTV’s Staying Alive campaign. About $5 from each fruity butter will go towards Staying Alive, which promotes safe sex and teaches HIV/AIDS awareness among young people.  Beauty for a worthy cause—we love it! [$8, The Body Shop]

April is STD Awareness Month, which should serve as a yearly reminder to get tested for STDs if you’re sexually active. When you make your annual trip to the gyno, your doc will probably give you a Pap smear, check your boobs for lumps, and inspect your lady parts for abnormalities. But your gynecologist won’t test you for anything else, unless you ask—so ask! Here’s what tests you should be getting.

Hi, I’m Dr. V.  I’m not a real doctor, I just play one on the Internet. What I am is a lady, a lady who is a fool for love! And I love nothing more than sex. My deepest desires have happily led me on many adventures in the sack, but they have also, sadly, made me one of my gyno’s most valuable players. But I’ve lived to tell the tale(s)! So, from time to time, I will dish the dirt on everything from getting freaky to getting freaked out. Now, let’s get this party started…

Last week, I got down on my knees and begged!  And not for the usual reason—I was just pleading with you, in honor of STD Awareness Month, to always use a condom.  It’s saved my ass in more ways than one, that’s for sure! Now, a lot of people think condoms aren’t sexy because it makes the passion take a time out. Well, that is just not true, girl!  Putting on a prophylactic can be a smooth move that your man will ask you to do over and over again.  That is, if you stick it to him using nothing but your mouth! Here’s how you can slide a condom on him with nothing but a smile.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is the virus that causes AIDS in the later stages of the disease. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one million people in the United States are infected with HIV/AIDS, and about a quarter of those people don’t know they’re infected. Approximately 39.5 million people are infected with HIV worldwide. With those high numbers, it’s important that everyone knows how HIV spreads and how to avoid contracting the virus.

1. HIV attacks the immune system by destroying white blood cells that fight off disease. Once HIV has weakened the immune system to the point where the body can’t fight off infection, the infection advances to its final stage: AIDS. It can take years for the body to arrive at this stage. People infected with HIV/AIDS usually die of other so-called “opportunistic” diseases and cancers that the body can no longer fight off.
2. HIV lives in the blood and semen or vaginal fluid of the infected person. This is why the most common ways of transmitting HIV is through vaginal, oral, or anal intercourse. The second most common way of transmitting HIV is through the sharing of needles and syringes. Lastly, HIV can be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth, and breast-feeding. Because HIV is carried in the infected person’s blood, the virus can also be transmitted through blood transfusions, organ and tissue transplants, and shared needles. HIV is not transmitted through handshaking, hugging, contact with a toilet seat, touching a doorknob, or casual contact, and HIV cannot live outside the body for long.

German pop singer Nadja Benaissa was arrested Tuesday in Frankfurt, Germany, for allegedly having unprotected sex with three men without telling them she is HIV positive. One of the men has tested positive for the virus. In Germany, the law says that anyone convicted of knowingly infecting a person with HIV faces a prison sentence of between six months and 10 years for “grievous bodily harm.” If the victim dies, the sentence can be even greater—up to life imprisonment for manslaughter.

It’s STD Awareness Month! We’ve been talking a lot about the icky stuff you can get while bumping uglies, while Dr. V has urged you to have as much fun as you want, so long as you wear a condom. In the past, we’ve talked to the guys on our IM about how often they actually use condoms, but we’ve never grilled them about how often they get tested for STDs. And what I really wanted to know was how often they were actually honest when a potential sex partner asked them that question. Let’s find out…

Gonorrhea is one of the most commonly sexually transmitted diseases (STD), with about 700,000 people being infected each year in the United States. In 2006, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 120.9 per 100,000 people in the U.S. were infected with gonorrhea. With that in mind, here’s five things you need to know about the disease.

1. Gonorrhea is normally spread through sexual activity. The bacteria grow in warm areas of the reproductive track, especially the cervix, urethra, uterus, anus, and fallopian tubes. Gonorrhea can be found in both women and men, and therefore is spread through vaginal, oral, and anal intercourse.

2. Many people infected with gonorrhea don’t know they’re infected, and that’s why it’s so easily spread! The symptoms of gonorrhea are very mild and sometimes absent in both men and women, making them perfect carriers for the disease. The most common symptoms of gonorrhea are a burning sensation and pain during urination, and vaginal/penile discharge. If you notice any of these symptoms, contact a doctor immediately to be tested to avoid further spreading of the disease, because Gonorrhea also has long-term effects on those who don’t seek early treatment. It’s a common cause of Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, which causes pain in the abdomen and fever. Pelvic Inflammatory Disease also can cause infertility in women. Those infected with gonorrhea are more likely to contract HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. Lastly, pregnant women infected with gonorrhea can spread the disease to their newborn baby. Gonorrhea in newborns can cause blindness and life-threatening blood infections.

Trichomoniasis is a very common STD among both men and women. Ladies, that hot guy you met at the club last night can spread it to you without ever knowing he has it. You also could unknowingly give it to him. Trichomoniasis can weaken the immune system and make an infected person more susceptible to other STDs, including HIV. Pregnant women who are infected are at risk for delivering early or having a baby with low birth weight. Are you thinking twice about your sexual behavior now?

1. Both men and women can be infected, but because men often experience few to no symptoms, it can seem to only affect women. That is so untrue.

2. Trichomoniasis spreads easily and quickly. Because symptoms of trichomoniasis are often mild to nonexistent, this STD can be spread quickly and easily. It is one of the more common STDs. Women are more likely to have symptoms than men are, but both can be infected.

3. Symptoms often are mild or nonexistent, but women should look for abnormal discharge. If you’re smelling a bit foul down there, that’s also a sign of infection. There may be pain or discomfort during urination or sex. Itching or other genital irritations also may occur. Men don’t usually have symptoms, but some include burning or irritation during urination or an unusual discharge.

Hi, I’m Dr. V.  I’m not a real doctor, I just play one on the Internet. What I am is a lady, a lady who is a fool for love! And I love nothing more than sex. My deepest desires have happily led me on many adventures in the sack, but they have also, sadly, made me one of my gyno’s most valuable players. But I’ve lived to tell the tale(s)! So, from time to time, I will dish the dirt on everything from getting freaky to getting freaked out. Now, let’s get this party started…

After blathering on and on about anal sex, herpes sores, and stanky vajayjay’s, I, Dr. V, am going to say something that will really shock you! I have never, ever had sex without a condom. Ever.  Not even once.

April is STD Awareness Month, and we asked you to share your STD-related stories so we could learn from your each other’s mistakes. If you have a tale involving sores, Valtrex, or a judgy gynecologist, send an email to tips@thefrisky.com. We will keep your identity anonymous.

I wanted to let you know about my experience with an STD because although I feel uncomfortable telling anyone else about it, I think it’s important for other people to be aware. In November I noticed bumps on the outside of my genital region and thought they were just pimples. They didn’t go away, and when I told my boyfriend he freaked and said he had them too. He blamed me for getting infected, but I hadn’t been with anyone else since we started dating!

Bacterial vaginosis, also known as BV, isn’t the most pleasant of subjects in polite company, but it’s something that every woman needs to know about. Not only is it the most frequent cause of vaginal infections, it’s also common during pregnancy and can cause problems as serious as miscarriage, pre-term labor, ectopic pregnancies, serious uterine infections, or even infertility if left unchecked.

1. Bacterial vaginosis means that the balance between good bacteria and harmful bacteria is upset and the harmful bacteria end up overpowering the good. The cause of bacterial vaginosis is unclear, but if you’re experiencing unpleasant discharge with a bad odor, burning, itching, or pain, see a doctor as soon as possible, especially if you’re pregnant. Bacterial vaginosis is not something you should attempt to self-diagnose because symptoms can be confused with urinary tract infections. Most women have no symptoms at all and discover the problem during a routine gynecological checkup.

2. Bacterial vaginosis is not strictly an STD. Your risk for bacterial vaginosis increases when you engage in sexual activity with a new partner or have multiple sex partners at one time, but virgins can get bacterial vaginosis, too. Don’t worry about getting it from public toilets, swimming pools or casual contact; that’s a myth. Douching, however, can greatly increase the risk for BV.

April is STD Awareness Month, and we asked you to share your STD-related stories so we could learn from your each other’s mistakes. If you have a tale involving sores, Valtrex, or a judgy gynecologist, send an email to tips@thefrisky.com. We will keep your identity anonymous.

My freshman year of college was probably the worst time of my life because I was out of my element, didn’t get along with my roommate, and was extremely homesick. I went home just about every weekend. To make matters worse, I experienced my first STD while away at school.

There has been a lot of sex-related stuff in the news over the last couple days, which makes complete sense because April is STD Awareness Month, and, you know, the S in STD stands for sexually.

When a red bump appeared on my crotch, I listened to Antony and the Johnson’s sad album about a dying tranny, “I Am A Bird Now,” while I waited to see a doctor at the walk-in clinic. Clearly, I’m a little dramatic and also, what I thought was the herp wound up just being an ingrown hair. Phew!  But next time I get an STD scare, I’m not going to sit around the doctor’s office like a Debbie Downer.  Instead, I’m going to listen to this bumpin’ STD Awareness Month playlist, made especially for the party in your pants.  So, kids, don’t forget to always use a condom, and headphones!