HEALTHIER YOU: Respect yourself, protect yourself

Respect yourself, protect yourself

BY DR. ANNETTE MAYES, OB/GYN

We are all excited about the coming of spring, the season when we are awed by something that is inside virtually all living things: nature’s impulse to showcase its beauty and reproduce.

It’s also a good time to think about your sexual health. April is STD Awareness Month, and there’s no avoiding the statistics: the number of reported sexually transmitted infections are at record levels. And if you’re sexually active, you are at risk of infection.

So what can you do? When it comes to protecting your sexual health, the best offense is good defense. Arm yourself with the facts about and speak candidly with your healthcare provider. These are some ways to help you take control of your sexual health:

• Answer your healthcare provider’s questions about sex honestly. (Yes, questions are a good thing.
• Get tested. Many STDs are curable, and all are treatable.
• Get treated. Protect yourself from long-term, irreversible damage to your health by starting treatment immediately.
• Know the benefits of expedited partner therapy (EPT). Your health provider may be able to give you medicine or a prescription for your partner — even without seeing them first.
• Get re-tested. It’s common to get some STDs more than once, so getting re-tested in 3 months is important — even if you and your partner took medicine.
• Communicate, communicate, communicate — with your sexual partner and your healthcare provider.

For more information, call Las Vegas All Women’s Care at (702) 522-9640. Or visit us at 700 Shadow Lane #165 in Las Vegas.