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Condoms VS Chlamydia

~ a unique woman’s perspective on contraception ~

 

                  A 20-year-old college student asked me if it was really necessary to use condoms since most women that age are on the pill. He told me that he hated condoms.  I told him that he’d hate Chlamydia more.

                  That may seem like a strange response to some of you, but that was the first thing to came to my mind when he asked that question. I think it’s refreshing for a young adult to want to discuss sex in an honest and straightforward manner. It isn’t my style to sugar coat an answer when something like unprotected sex could jeopardize his health or lead to an unwanted pregnancy. We all know he is not the only man hoping to get out of wearing his raincoat as he enters that proverbial tunnel of love. Sadly, our baby making parts have gotten pretty polluted in the 21st Century and skinny-dipping isn’t as safe as it used to be.

Since young adults are engaging in sexual activities at an alarmingly young age, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that, with this increase in sexual promiscuity, comes an increase in sexually transmitted diseases. Not only is the risk of contracting an STD escalating at warp speed, so is the variety of diseases that are available for our displeasure. In this era of gluttony, the food at the proverbial sexual buffet has grown a lot more than just e-coli.

                  My goal is not to go into the gory details about the toxic wastelands that some of our parts are plunging into. On the contrary, I want to celebrate a new adage that believes that “safety is sexy!” Using a condom shows a woman that you care about her health. Believe it or not, it is empowering for a woman to have control over her sexuality and to know that she is protecting herself from any number of things that can permanently affect her health and well being. It’s frightening to think that a few minutes of fun could lead to a lifetime of misery, and even death. Sex is great, but is it worth dying for? I guess it depends who you ask.

 A few years ago, I interviewed several dozen women at our salon. I asked them to give me their opinions on condoms. A few women told me that condoms made it possible to reduce their emotional attachment to the penis in question. The slight barriers of latex made many women feel less committed. And why is that important? Not because they are slutty, if that’s what you’re thinking. Women want to enjoy sex as much as men do, and not all of them want relationships.  Condoms allow some women to think just like a man. And, even if a woman is interested in a relationship, it’s reassuring that she’s taking control over her body by protecting herself.

 I would be remiss if I didn’t agree with the women who told me that the smell of latex could be nauseating. Ok, that may be a valid argument. In my opinion, it is still better to smell latex than smell baby vomit or diarrhea from the baby you and your part time lover created as a result of dancing in the sheets. Believe it or not, there are a lot of people out there who want to engage in fulfilling sex without the threat of bringing a little Junior into the world. This is just one more reason to love those condoms.

 Intimacy can still occur even with that paper-thin barrier. I agree that it isn’t quite the same experience for a woman to kiss through a screen. However, I’ll take that screen over a mouth full of gonorrhea or herpes any day of the week. As a matter of fact, I’d like to impart some words of wisdom to the younger generation of adults. There are several companies that make flavored condoms, which are solely designed for the oral experience, in case you were wondering.

                 

This generation is blessed to have easy access to free and relatively inexpensive condoms. My father actually re-used his condoms when he was first married, because he couldn’t afford to buy them on a regular basis. Yes, he recycled his condoms. He was “green” before such a thing even existed. He would literally wash them in a sink, dust them with cornstarch, and hang them in the bathroom to dry. If that isn’t being dedicated to your sex life with your wife, I don’t know what is. It’s hard for me to get upset when the batteries on my son’s Xbox controls runs out when I think of my dad rinsing his condoms in a bathroom sink.

Don’t be embarrassed talking to your kids about condoms. I hate to break it you, but they are going to be having their own sexual encounters sooner than you’d like. It’s a difficult concept to accept. I get it. I have three children. Thinking about them engaging in any sexual activity is as creepy for me as it is for them imagining their dad and I doing it. It’s all about how you approach the subject.  Embrace the notion that they love themselves so much that they don’t want to put their lives, or anyone else’s, at risk. Don’t make the subject taboo, or they may be too afraid to buy the protection they most desperately need.

 

By: M.E. Nesser

 

M.E. Nesser is co-owner of the Mark & M.E. and the Wax It All Salon in Rochester, NY. She is the author of The Happy Hoo-Ha Trilogy, which are humorous, non-fiction books about her life as a busy Brazilian Wax Technician. Her romance series entitles A Promise of Passion is available at Amazon.  She is the proud mother of three grown children and has been married over thirty years.

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