worried about STDs?

[primer]

Do other people worry about STDs? I am disease free and I prefer to remain that way. With OLD and hook-ups, do STDs cross other people's minds? When people online aren't looking for anything serious, does that mean they sleep around?

[Michelle ma Belle]

Can't speak for others, especially people online looking for casual "relationships" but I'm a huge advocate of safe sex practices.

 

The only time I go without a condom is with exclusive partners and only after we've both been tested. As a rule, I get myself tested every 6 months regardless just for my own peace of mind.

 

That being said, nothing is 100% safe unless you're abstinent which is definitely not an option for me so I do the best I can to vet partners, have very candid and open conversations about sex and take all the necessary precautions.

 

I've gotten this far in life disease-free and I intend to keep it that way.

[Kitty Tantrum]

My experience for the handful of years that I was doing the swinging/hooking up thing with my ex(es) tells me that an awful lot of people TALK a big game about being super conscious of STDs and practicing safer sex, but very few actually do. It's among the top reasons why I decided that casual sex is NOT for me.

 

Lots of people will elect not to use condoms because they "FEEL" like a person is "clean."

 

Lots of people will screw around indiscriminately because they think that using condoms will keep THEM safe.

 

Good general hygiene =/= negative disease status, and there are an awful lot of things you can catch around the edges of a condom. I guess it's better than nothing/not caring at all? Most people don't make good decisions when the bloodflow to their genital region increases. Full stop.

[SumGuy]

Statistically speaking in a very low risk demographic but have been tested for other reasons. So conscious of it but not worried about it.