Anyone who is a regular reader of my blog is familiar with Reid Mihalko‘s Elevator Speech. (Yes, there are three links there, though the last one is down through December 14th, 2012. At least that is what it said on December 13th.) It is a lovely, though socially bold way of presenting yourself as a sexually knowledgeable gentleman or lady who is interested in a relationship with the receiver of the speech. Do NOT forget the last step. To my mind it is the most important.
But part of this speech is informing your prospective partner about your testing history and the results and let’s face it, there would be no point in testing if everyone passed. So what do you do if there is some questionable result in your STI tests. Well then what do I do, dear reader, but point you to another of my favorite bloggers, Charlie Glickman.
I was most pleased by his comment to avoid the feeling you need to apologize. Getting an infection is just that, getting an infection. The social stigma that comes along with it being sexually transmitted comes from the society in which we live, not from the infection. We can work to be less manipulated by that. Would you feel socially traumatized by getting strep throat? Probably not, but it would also be polite to tell people you kissed recently that they should watch for symptoms and possibly see a medical professional.
Charlie’s blog is great advice in how to behave responsibly if any of your tests come up positive.
The Eroticist