If there were no such thing as STDs...

[Gribble]

I said that someone using [condoms] thinking that they are being completely protected against STDs is stupid.

Anyone using a condom to try not to get an STD is stupid.

There's a big difference between those two statements.

[Cain]

There's a big difference between those two statements.

I'll be sure that I'm specific as possible so that anyone can understand me next time.

[Charlie Boy II]

I'm not saying I'd never use a condom either. I have. I'm saying that I wouldn't use a condom to prevent against STDs simply because I watch who I sleep with. I only sleep with a person I'm in a committed relationship with and has been tested. I'm not willing to gamble that the condom won't break if she by some chance has an STD.

The funny thing is, I've come to more or less the same conclusion. The last time I had sex out of a relationship was three or four years ago and even then it was with a good friend of mine. Like you, I've decided that the risk of sleeping with randoms isn't worth it - even with a condom. More than anything else, I know that it'd make me worry. For some reason this one area I'm particularly risk averse.

In fact, I use condoms even within a relationship. I actually don't mind 'em and not wearing would feel weird. A bit like driving in a car without a seatbelt.

[Cain]

The funny thing is, I've come to more or less the same conclusion. The last time I had sex out of a relationship was three or four years ago and even then it was with a good friend of mine. Like you, I've decided that the risk of sleeping with randoms isn't worth it - even with a condom. More than anything else, I know that it'd make me worry. For some reason this one area I'm particularly risk averse.

In fact, I use condoms even within a relationship. I actually don't mind 'em and not wearing would feel weird. A bit like driving in a car without a seatbelt.

I have a hard time getting off with a condom. I've yet to actually ever do it. I can't get off going slowly like some guys can. I have to pump as fast as I can and I can't do that for five minutes without my thighs being tired as hell. Plus, the orgasm is so much more intense raw.

I was a virgin until I was 21... and I was with my current girl for nine months before we had sex.

[Charlie Boy II]

Condoms take some getting used to, that's all. Now I don't feel them. Sometimes I have to pull out to check that it's not broken. They used to feel terrible though. Try wanking with 'em for a while. That's what I did.

[Cain]

Condoms take some getting used to, that's all. Now I don't feel them. Sometimes I have to pull out to check that it's not broken. They used to feel terrible though. Try wanking with 'em for a while. That's what I did.

Well, if the relationship that I'm in ends for good, I'll likely be back to using them again anyways.

[shh!]

I just want to remind you guys that many STDs can't be medically checked for in the absence of symptoms, and lots of males are asymptomatic carriers (HPV comes immediately to mind)...

This doesn't mean you shouldn't be tested, but it is still no guarantee. You should really always use a condom IMO unless you are trying to get a girl knocked up.

[anachronistic]

if i don't have a condom on, i'm not going to have sex, simple as that. i've gone without a condom before. i'm not going to do it again unless i know i'm happy with the girl and i trust her that much.

[Charlie Boy II]

I just want to remind you guys that many STDs can't be medically checked for in the absence of symptoms,

I thought HPV was the only one, and actually just about everyone has one strain of that,

[anachronistic]

you know why they used to call it the clap? :

[Charlie Boy II]

no, why? ...

[shh!]

Doctors don't all routinely test for the same STDs (at least not in the states). They usually will only test for the most common - HIV, syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea, and in the US, males are not typically tested at all unless they are symptomatic or in a higher-than-average-risk population. Herpes and HPV can be transmitted without symptoms, and they aren't diagnosed in the absence of symptoms (in the US). Ironically, they are both very common. Also, any bug-type infections are diagnosed only by visual inspection (lice and crabs). As for prevalence of HPV, I think it is about 1 in 4 for women overall (higher in younger demographics), and of course there are many different strains. Depending on the strain, it can resolve itself, cause genital warts (which can lead to hysterectomy), or can cause cancer.

[Charlie Boy II]

ah I see. I've actually had a blood test for herpes, but it wasn't offered. I had to ask for it. It was positive for HSV1 (like half the population) and negative for HSV2 (thank god).

[shh!]

Yeah, I don't they bother to test for herpes routinely because it is so prevalent... Actually, over here, the stats are more like 70-75% have one form or the other.

[Charlie Boy II]

Yeah I think I read that in the US about one in four have genital herpes. Its a bit less in Australia, maybe one in six or one in eight. Enough to scare me off casual sex anyway.