Are you sexually active or thinking about it? Healthy sex offers many benefits, including improved self-esteem, sleep, immune system, heart health, and pain relief, to mention a few. Sex life can be scary, though, especially considering STDs. This does not mean you should avoid it or that you are doomed if you engage in sexual intimacy. With Kingwood STD testing, you can adopt a healthy talk, test, and, where necessary, treat, a strategy that can help make your sexual experience exciting and fulfilling.

While STDs might not be the most comfortable subject, it is essential that you be open with your partner(s) and doctor. Talk to your partner about when you were last tested, suggest getting tested together, reveal if you have any STDs, and use protection such as condoms. You can even agree to be exclusive. As you get tested, open up to the healthcare provider about concerns, including:

• When you were last tested
• If you have been sexually active, especially in the year
• If you have sex with women, men, or both
• Protection measures you use
• Whether you engage in vaginal, oral, or anal sex
• Sexual partners you have had in the last 12 months

When you should be tested

Honest conversations with your partner(s) and healthcare providers can significantly help improve your sexual health. Nonetheless, testing is also essential. Ideally, you should get tested at least once a year if you are sexually active. Pregnant women should also be tested during early pregnancy, and repeat tests might be necessary in some cases. You should also be tested every time you change sex partners. Testing is especially important in instances including:

• You have a new sex partner or frequently change partners
• You suspect or are sure your partner has had sex with another person
• You or your partner has recently had an STI

Why you should be tested

Testing is the only way to ascertain if you have an STD or if the treatment worked. This is more so since some STDs don’t present symptoms, meaning you could have it without knowing. Testing helps catch the problem and ensures you take the right treatment measures. STD testing is essential since it helps catch the problem early and facilitates timely and effective treatment. This is keeping in mind that:

• If untreated, some STDs like Chlamydia and gonorrhea can affect your fertility. This can extend to the extent of causing infertility in both males and females.
• When pregnant, STDs can affect your baby. HIV, for example, can be passed to the unborn baby. With testing, you can take certain mediation to prevent infecting the baby.
• If left untreated, some infections like the human papillomavirus (HPV) can cause warts and certain cancers.

If you have been diagnosed with an STD, it is important that you take the prescribed medicine even when you are feeling better or no longer have symptoms. It is also advisable to avoid sex until you/your partner(s) have completed the treatment. Visit or call Supreme All Care to learn more about STDs, testing, and treatments.