Getting back to school is always an exciting time for seeing friends, meeting new people and getting back into a routine. In my experience, the first couple of weeks are some of the busiest of the year, as I find myself diving into as many social opportunities as possible. In these social situations during such an exciting time, meeting new people can often lead to something more: whether that be a relationship, a one-night stand or something in between, it’s easy to get wrapped up in romance without thinking about staying safe, both physically and emotionally. After talking with other students, it has become clear to me that the lack of condom use at Queen’s University is a bigger issue than some may think. It’s easy to get caught up in the moment, but students may need a reminder that not using a condom can have serious consequences and that practicing safe sex is especially important in such a social time.
I have spoken to a lot of people that deem it safe to not wear a condom if they are on birth control, but the reality that must be reiterated is that birth control does not prevent STIs. Some of the most popular STIs that are contracted on college campuses are chlamydia and gonorrhea, which are transmitted through fluids. These prominent STIs in universities are highly protected by the use of condoms.
Condom use isn’t just about protecting yourself; it’s about protecting others. Studies have shown that over 70% of infected females and 50% of infected males have no symptoms of chlamydia. This means that contracting an STI could be something that you don’t experience any physical effects of, but not getting tested after having unprotected sex and continuing to do it can create some serious issues for your future sexual partners. Although the aforementioned STIs are ones that can be cured, that doesn’t mean you aren’t at risk of contracting something permanent such as genital herpes or HIV. More than one in five people between the ages of 15 and 49 are infected with genital herpes. Is there shame in contracting an STI? Absolutely not. Clearly, it happens to many people in the world. However, this doesn’t mean that you can’t try to do your best to protect yourself and others from it.
The great thing about being on a university campus is that they try to make STI testing as available as possible. At Queen’s, the Student Wellness Services provide STI tests in addition to abundant resources about knowing signs of STIs and the importance in protecting yourself from them.
Pressure has become a major factor and leading reason why many people don’t use condoms to have sex. People will say “it feels better without it,” “I haven’t been with anyone with STIs,” “I got tested recently and I’m clean,” and to that I say all of these things aren’t valid excuses. Who cares if it feels better without it? How are you supposed to know if someone’s being truthful about who they’ve been with or when they last got tested? Although it seems like a cynical way to look at it, protecting yourself should always come first. If you don’t know someone well, them trying to convince you to not have sex with a condom is not a positive indicator of personality or moral compass. Save yourself the trouble and shut those people down, regardless of how cool you may think they are or how much you like them. Don’t let go of your morals by succumbing to someone else’s way of thinking.
It’s easy to read an article like this and think, I already knew all of this about STIs. It might seem like basic knowledge, but the number of people that I hear from who aren’t having protected sex has made me increasingly wary about how much information people do have in regards to STIs – especially given how many resources are easily accessible on our campus. It is important to stay safe and stay informed, so the decisions you make to have fun don’t have long term consequences that aren’t so fun at all.