STDs are Incredibly Common - So Why The Stigma?

By Natalia Gurevich, SWHR Communications Intern Chlamydia, herpes, HIV - I could go on. I'm sure most of these terms sound familiar to the majority of people, especially those who are sexually active. By age 14, it's a requirement in many schools that students take a comprehensive Sex Education course, except for the unfortunate "abstinence only" kids. But most of us were fortunate enough to receive some form of the "birds and the bees" talk in a classroom - usually accompanied by the trials and tribulations of putting a condom on a banana. Around that age, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are discussed in Sex Education and methods of preventing them are emphasized. However, it's not often that the stigma and social implications, in conjunction with the overall psychological implications of STDs, are discussed. Prior to enrolling in a human sexuality course in college, I wasn't aware of the social and psychological stigma attached to STDs. Around that time, it became apparent that there was a high prevalence of STDs within my age group and even within my social circle. These foreign terms I first learned about at the age of 14 weren't so foreign after all. I realized that STDs affect a staggering of number of individuals in my age group, and that far too many people are afraid to open up about them, fearing social repercussion. In 2015, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that cases of three nationally prevalent STDs (gonorrhea, syphilis, an...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news