Monday, December 21, 2009

MAKING CONDOMS FUN AND SEXY!

Guest Comment by Chris S., SBI Health Education Intern

If you think that condoms can't be fun or sexy, then think again. People often say that they don’t like using condoms when having sex because it ruins the mood, reduces the sensitivity and pleasure, or they are just plain boring. These are poor excuses.

There are a variety of ways to make condom use fun and entertaining. One common problem many people have is that they rush putting a condom on during foreplay or just before sex. They feel that they need to hurry or the mood will be lost. There is no need to rush!
(1) Guys - Take your time when placing a condom on – take in the moment and make it sexy and appealing. Your partner will enjoy the wait and anticipation as you take your time placing the condom on in front of them.
(2) Try having your partner place the condom on – this way, you both are engaged in the process. They are able to place the condom on while you get to enjoy the experience.
(3) Although fun, there are varying opinions on placing the condom on your partners penis with your mouth. Here is a link how: http://www.ehow.com/how_2245684_put-condom-using-mouth.html (The danger is possibly tearing or cutting the condom in the process.)

If you think that condoms don’t provide enough pleasure or that they’re boring in general, check out this site: 10 top and sexy ways to use condoms. One of those ways includes using textured condoms, such as ribbed or vibrating condoms. Even the site Go Ask Alice (Columbia University) gives informational advice to the effectiveness and possible choices of textured condoms.

Condoms don’t have to be boring! There are numerous ways to make condoms and sex fun, sexy, and entertaining. What are you waiting for?

Sunday, December 13, 2009

The “Rape Vans” - Stop Calling Them That!!!

Guest comment by Bryan R., SBI Health Education intern

You take a stroll down a frigid Main Street and hear the murmur of the students as they discuss their different modes of transportation home. Many of them slightly inebriated; ready for some pizza and their beds. If you listen in on their conversations, nine times out of ten, somewhere along the way the “rape van” will come up in conversation.

As a senior here at the University at Buffalo, I have far too often heard the Anti-Rape Task Force Safety Shuttles falsely referred to as the “rape vans.” The Anti-Rape Task Force (ARTF) was started in the late 70’s for women by women as a walk station located specifically on South campus. Over the years, it expanded to walk stations on both North and South Campus, and Safety Shuttles that run within a mile and a half radius of South Campus.

When I was a freshman living on South Campus, I vividly remember all my friends waiting inside the lobby of Goodyear Hall on frigid Buffalo nights waiting for what all the referred to as the “rape vans.” But why did they call it that? The main focus of ARTF is to help protect and provide safety services to students of the University at Buffalo, and help protect against rape. The vans are designed as deterrents of violence.

The misnomer has been passed down from student generations to generations. When I went out and polled friends who used to call it the “rape van” why they did so, they replied, “That’s what everyone else called it!” When receiving this response over and over again, each time I chuckled and thought to myself: if only these students were actually educated about rape, and how many people around them have been or will be raped or sexual assaulted at some point within their lifetimes. I had one friend suggest that perhaps as every student exits the van, or if a joke about rape or sexual assault is overheard on the van, that they receive a pamphlet with real statistics like the ones below, and maybe that will be a start:

The Facts (courtesy of RAINN.org):
• Between 1 in 4 and 1 in 5 college women experience a completed or attempted rape during their college years (National Institute of Justice, December 2000).
• 1 in 6 women in the U.S. has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in their lifetime. (National Institute of Justice and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1998)
• “Almost two-thirds of all rapes are committed by someone who is known to the victim. 73% of sexual assaults were perpetrated by a non-stranger (38% of perpetrators were a friend or acquaintance of the victim, 28% were an intimate and 7% were another relative.) (National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005)”
• 2.78 million men in the U.S. have been victims of sexual assault or rape (National Institute of Justice & Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, 1998)

So, would this work? Would passing out facts like these help students to
realize that rape and sexual assault is NOT a joke, that ARTF services are benefiting them and helping to keep them safe, and that the term is offensive and wrong? Until someone finds an answer, the legacy of the “rape vans” will move onto the next incoming freshman class and the ones following on behind them.

Monday, December 7, 2009

The OTHER condom......

The Female Condom

Guest comment by Olympia J., SBI Health Education intern

There are three types of male condoms: latex, polyurethane, and natural skin sheath. The male condom is everywhere from local pharmacies, to doctor offices, schools and health fairs. There is also the female condom which is made primarily from polyurethane and sometimes from latex. When used properly, the female condom is effective at preventing pregnancy, transmission of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), and the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). What makes the female condom appealing is that it gives women more control over their sexual health instead of depending solely on a male. However, none of these potential benefits can be realized because of the scarcity of the female condom. Some of us may have heard of the female condom but have never seen, read about, or bought one. How many of us have gone into a pharmacy and seen the countless boxes of male condoms varying in color, flavor and size? Now, how many of us have gone into a pharmacy and have seen countless boxes of the female condom? Exactly! You don’t. Now is time to globalize and advertise the female condom!

So let’s get started with Female Condom 101: The general structure of the female condom is a pouch that contains an inner ring and an outer-ring. Female condoms are clear colored and are generally the same shape and size. There are two approved types of female condoms in the United States, the FC and the FC 2. Here is how to use a female condom:

For instructions with images, check out Female Health Company's instructional video

1) Squeeze the inner ring with your thumb and index fingers

2) Get into a comfortable position either by squatting, laying down, or lifting up your leg (similar to inserting a tampon)

3) Push female condom as far back as it can go (it will be stopped by your cervix), make sure it is securely positioned between the pelvic bone and the cervix.

4) The outer ring will hang outside the vagina. Make sure it covers the labia and that your partner enters through the outer-ring.

5) When you are done, grab the outer ring, twist the pouch, pull out the female condom and discard of it (although the female condom looks sturdy, IT IS NOT APPROVED FOR REUSE!)



Information from:
http://www.fwhc.org/birth-control/femalecondom.htm
http://www.avert.org/female-condom

Friday, December 4, 2009

New Recommendations - What's the Price?

Guest comment by Sam L., SBI Health Education intern

As you may know from local newspapers and national news reporters, there have been recommendations on biannual Pap smear testing and the limiting of mammogram testing. The biannual Pap smear testing has been advised through the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). They recommended that women have a Pap smear test every two years instead of annually. Women have been advised that they should have annual check-ups with their gynecologists by their primary gynecologists and physicians. MSNBC suggests that the government is trying to cut health costs by making this adjustment. The New York Times said, “Dr. Iglesia (ACOG) said that the argument for changing Pap screening is more compelling than that for cutting back on mammography…because there is more potential for harm from the overuse of Pap test.” She also suggests that young women are more prone to abnormalities that clear up on their own.

Women should have the right to have annual testing, not just to know whether or not they may have cervical cancer, but also to know their “status.” Pap smears have become a part of an annual check-up when visiting the gynecologist’s office. It also provides as a screening tool for women who may contract HPV. Certain strands of HPV may cause cervical cancer.

The new recommendations regarding mammogram screenings issued through the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) suggested that women ages 40-49 do not need mammograms. Their reasoning for the cut-back is that they believe that out of 1,900 women between the ages of 40 to 49, only statistically one would have breast cancer. It would only save one life. However, many oncologists believe that their primary reason for their job is to save that one life. Mammograms may provide them the information they need to save that life. They disagree with the USPSTF recommendations, and this reaction is apparent. According to CNN, Dr. Therese Bevers discussed her feelings and reactions on the new recommendations for mammograms. She said, “You have to screen more women. It’s the value we put on zero women dying.” Their ultimate purpose for their jobs is to save that “one” life.

Women should have the right to have annual testing, whether it is a Pap smear or a mammogram, at any age. Women should be able to prevent the spread of cancer throughout their body at any point of time, and they should be able to know their status at any point in time in their life. There should not be an age limit on the amount of services that are given.

Issue on new guidelines for Pap smears:
http://www.acog.org/from_home/publications/press_releases/nr11-20-09.cfm

Issue on new mammogram recommendations:
http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/uspstf/uspsbrca.htm