April is STI Awareness Month, and OUTMemphis is celebrating this in a few different ways!

But first, check out these statistics from the Centers for Disease Control:

The first week of April (4/1-4/7) is National Public Health Week.

To recognize this, OUTMemphis has worked with our partnering agency CHOICES: Memphis Center for Reproductive Health to spread the word about the importance of sexual health practices and public health in general. Take a look at the video below, provided by CHOICES, to better understand how sexually transmitted infections can be prevented.

Also, in celebration of STI Awareness Month, OUTMemphis is throwing a party! STD: Sexually Transmitted Discussions. The Sexual Health Committee here at OUTMemphis has put together this fun event to help bring awareness to this issue.

We will have interactive sexual health art installments, spelling competitions of STI names, group discussions about STIs, and we will be discussing experiences community members have had with STIs, and how it has affected their outlook on life.

For example, one speaker will be sharing their abstinence journey. In case you were not already aware, the definition of abstinence is when you do not have sex. Put simply, this is one of the best ways to avoid STIs. People are abstinent for lots of different reasons. Sometimes people use abstinence as birth control to prevent pregnancy and other people practice short periods of abstinence to enhance their sex life once they resume sexual activity.

Above all, abstinence can mean different things depending on who you ask. For instance, whereas some people will say no to touching and will use chastity devices to enforce this, others will permit alternative sexual acts such as foreplay but will not take part in any penetrative sex. You can learn more about abstinence practices by researching some of the different chastity challenges out there.

Furthermore, it is also no secret that avoiding sexually transmitted infections and diseases involves valuing hygiene over everything. For instance, while sex toys can inject a whole lot of fun into the bedroom, it is important to clean your toys regularly, especially if using your sex toys with multiple partners at once. You can never be too safe, and therefore these sessions aim to shine a light on practical tips to boost your health and wellbeing.

So, come along and join us for a night of fun, snacks, games, and open discussion of Sexual Health to celebrate STI Awareness Month!

For more information, check out the Facebook Event, or contact us via email.