As the holidays approach, we have to take into consideration the decisions we make due to the experiences we have had. For some people the holidays can be a big trigger and that can make us make decisions that aren’t in our best interest. Some of us will choose to get high and some of…
Human Immunodeficiency Virus is often identified by the acronym HIV; when you break down the proper name, then you know exactly what it does. Human in this definition means that you can only contract HIV from another human being. You can’t catch it from a cat, a dog, or a mosquito. Immunodeficiency means that the…
Agreements and trust live in the same realm. In relationships, both formal and informal, we make agreements whether we know it or not. For instance, if we don’t discuss the parameters of our relationship with the other person then we are blindly agreeing to whatever they decide. Some areas that we may choose to discuss…
Our partners are not mind readers, they can’t transport into our minds and automatically know what we want or need in our relationships. So how do we get our needs met if we don’t communicate them to our sexual partners. It is our responsibility to our sexual health to share what we like, what we…
The ways in which we communicate with our partner either creates healthier lines of communication or cuts them off all together. We communicate both verbally and nonverbally to our partners and this conveys the way in which we feel about situations and how our partners might respond. Communication is something that we learn from our…
I think I have waited to write this blog because I wasn’t sure if I should group every agreement together or try to talk about them separately. I finally decided that it was just time to write about it and see what happens. We often think about prevention of HIV and STDs as only being…
Condoms prevent STD’s including HIV and Hepatitis, but only if you use them correctly. Condoms need to be kept in a dry, cool place. Men have been socialized to think that it’s ‘cool’ to keep a condom in their wallets, but wallets sit up against our bodies which are warm and that can eventually break down…
Condoms, gloves and dental dams are used to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STI) and diseases in your squishy. Condoms can prevent pregnancy as well. These barriers prevent the exposure of body fluids, that may be infected with an STI, to mucous membrane like vaginal walls, the mouth or anus. It can also prevent body fluids…
Dear Squishy Why do women get vaginal yeast infections? Signed “Itchy” Dear “Itchy”. Yeast infections are caused by the overgrowth of this fungus called “Candida albicans”. Yeast lives all over the body, but for this response I am going to focus on vaginal yeast infections. The main symptom is itching in the vagina, but you can…
Knowing and being educated about sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) signs, symptoms, testing options, treatment, and preventing coming in contact with them is important to our sexual health. STDs are transmitted when an individual has been infected with an STD and they pass it through having unprotected squishy or exposing infected body fluids (vaginal secretions, semen)…