Is slut-shaming contributing to STD rise?
Slut-shaming is at the root of all problems. Well, it seems to be at the root of a lot of mine, anyway. Anyone who’s ever been slut-shamed understands when I say that it can alter your sexual health decisions, erode your self-esteem, and change how you interact with both sexes. And for anyone who’s not familiar with the term, “slut-shaming” is the act of declaring someone a slut (or a whore or any other similar word, or even promiscuous, for that matter) based upon perceived sexual behavior: the clothing someone wears, the way they communicate with potential partners, the people they date, the number of partners they have (or haven’t) had, and the type of sex they enjoy.
That slut-shaming intersects with and hurts efforts to prevent sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) might surprise you. Slut-shaming, the sex-negative way of describing someone’s sexual activities, combines social repercussions, fear, and—as its name suggests—shame in an attempt to control the actions of those who are sexually active. The impact is, generally speaking, an increase in STD transmission rates. Young adults who are slut-shamed become embarrassed about their sexual interests, stop communicating what they want and need, and lose the confidence to plan, negotiate, and navigate safer-sex practices.
In my early teens, I developed a keen interest in the opposite sex. Having gone through puberty at a very young age, I had had a number of boyfriends by the age of 16—you know, those two-month-long high-school relationships that don’t really mean much—but to my peers they did mean something. As a cheerleader, I dated a basketball player, chose to break up with him, and subsequently broke his heart. My repayment? The basketball team started a rumor that I was a slut and to stay away; I had AP classes with some of the players, who refused to participate in groups with me. That was that year I decided to stop dating guys from my school. To them, I was a slut.
The following spring, I contracted genital herpes. Embarrassed and mired in self-imposed stigma, I wanted to redeem myself by going back to church (I had stopped attending after breaking up with the basketball player because he was also part of my youth group). I felt I had lost my way and hoped that becoming reacquainted with God would help quell some of the immense depression and self-loathing I was experiencing as a result of my recent diagnosis.
Read full article here...:
http://news.yahoo.com/one-great-way-help-end-stds-stop-calling-215259680.html
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