My First STI Alert!

So it finally happened! The dreaded text message from an anonymous service, telling me that I have been exposed to a possible case of an STI – (drumroll please…gonorrhoea!)

Oh, the joy of joys! 

Almost 43 and my first STI alert, a dubious club to join but one that was bound to happen sooner or later.

Now, if you’re a good boy on PrEP and you’re at the sexual health clinic getting your three monthly checkups taken care of, there’s less of a stigma attached. Generally, there is less to worry about the fact that you’ve possibly been exposed to something like this than there would have been 20 years ago – not least because they’ve moved on from the dreaded swab down the eye of your willie.

STIs are free in Australia!

And we are lucky to live in a country that allows us the luxury of rocking up to an appointment that is free every three months to have these kinds of tests to make sure that we are being as sexually responsible as we can but then also to be able to access the treatment if required, which is a quick jab in the bum and a couple of pills, which let’s face it!

When that’s kinda what got us here in the first place, what’s one more little jab in the bum! 

Just think on that for a minute – many of us might not even realise that treatment of such conditions in Australia, while covered by the taxes that we pay, doesn’t cost us any out-of-pocket expenses on the day of the treatment but when you compare that with America, where if you do not have health insurance, you could pay up to $9000 to treat one case! 

And if you just can’t face the phone call or the task of messaging your sexual partners yourself with the news of their possible exposure, there’s an app for that!

Or at least a service – you can go to letthemknow.org.au. They will send anonymous emails and or SMSs on your behalf.