Sexual Health
Risky Business: Learning to Consider Risk and Make Sound Sexual Choices
Choices about sex and intimacy will always involve some risks, and making sound choices when risks, emotions and social high stakes are involved isn't something anyone is magically expert at. How can we learn to do it well, and what are some common things that trip us up?
The Simple and Underrated Art of Washing Your Hands
Handwashing, seriously? Yep, handwashing. Seriously. (Well, mostly seriously.) Here's how to do it and why it's so important to do.
This is About Genital Herpes
I realized that I was uncomfortable associating myself with genital herpes. Will people think I have it? Why else would someone write about genital herpes and risk that association if they didn’t have it, right? So I pressed on, putting myself at the center of an itty-bitty social experiment that resulted in some pretty big stuff.
The STI Files: Molluscum
Molluscum contagiosum -- a bumpy skin infection -- isn't technically an STI, but can be transmitted through sexual contact. The CDC states that molluscum cases in the United States have been on the rise since 1996.
What Safer Sex Isn't
Maybe you know what safer sex is. But do you also know what it isn't? Take a minute and fact-check your ideas about what can protect you from STIs and what cannot.
What Are Menstrual Cups?
Looking for an alternative to tampons or pads? A user asks about menstrual cups, and we give her -- and you -- the scoop.
Love the Glove: 10 Reasons to Use Condoms You Might Not Have Heard Yet
You've probably heard or thought some things about condom use that might be keeping you or others from using them or from using them consistently, and I'm willing to bet you haven't heard everything I'm about to say. Even if you're already using condoms and using them every single time properly, I bet you know someone -- a sibling, a friend, a sexual partner -- who could stand to hear ten great reasons to use condoms.
Chicken Soup for the Pregnancy Symptom Freakout's Soul
What are the early symptoms of pregnancy and when do they start to happen? Why are symptoms not the smartest way to tell if you're pregnant, and how CAN you tell if you are? If you're losing your mind during a pregnancy scare, and finding symptoms everywhere you look, here's some on-target information and a dose of comfort to help you separate the real deal from the hype.
Yo, Doctors: Pelvic Exams Shouldn’t Be Quickies
My experience with sex-negativity and ignorance in the medical world. Adventures in having an ovarian cyst, coming out in the ER, enduring bad gynecological exams, healing my relationship with my anus and finally finding a good doctor.
The Buddy System: Effectiveness Rates for Backing Up Your Birth Control With a Second Method
You already know that no method of contraception is 100% effective to prevent pregnancy. You probably also know, however, that there are reliable methods which are very effective when used properly, and that if you use contraception correctly and consistently, pregnancy becomes a whole lot less likely. But did you know that by doubling up and using two methods, with almost any combination you use, you can get mighty close to that 100% with most combos?