Greeting’s readers!
In an ever-growing time of needing to focus on health and health practices, it is important to not put sexual health in the back seat. The time is now to take charge of your sexual health!
April is STI Awareness Month. Before continuing, here are this month’s affirmations:
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), also called sexually transmitted diseases are generally acquired through unprotected oral, vaginal, or anal sexual contact through bacterial, viral, and parasitical organisms. They can be passed from person to person through semen, blood, vaginal and rectal fluids.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, over 20 million new cases of STIs arise each year. The ONLY 100% effective way to protect yourself from contracting an STI is to remain abstinent or refrain from sexual activity.
Getting tested is critical for STI prevention and treatment since getting tested is the only way to know whether someone has contracted an STI. A large majority of people who are infected show no signs or symptoms and are at a higher risk for spreading the infection to future sexual partners. Testing is a healthy step for anyone who has had unprotected sex, believes they may have been exposed to an STI or shows signs and symptoms of STIs. For testing, talk to your health care provider, visit your local community health center, or visit one of these locations:
Alhambra region: Terros Health – 27th Avenue Health Center
Glendale region: Planned Parenthood – Glendale Health Center
One of Touchstone Health Services Prevention department’s REACH grant goals is to improve optimal adolescent wellbeing of adolescents and reduce teen pregnancy sexually transmitted infections through the evidence-based curriculum. Touchstone’s Prevention department is currently making strides in the Glendale Elementary School District through the Making Proud Choices! (MPC) program. MPC is an evidence-based sexual health curriculum for youth (12-18 years) designed to help teens understand behaviors that put them at risk for pregnancy, HIV, and other STDs, and to empower teens to reduce this risk through healthy decision-making. Additionally, in the Alhambra Elementary School District, the program Positive Actions is being implemented. The Positive Action program is an evidence-based curriculum designed to promote a healthy self-concept and to establish positive actions for the body and mind. The program emphasizes effective self-management, social skills, character, and mental health, as well as skills for setting and achieving goals.
Here is how YOU can be a Touchstone Prevention Partner:
Please visit the websites listed below for more information:
If you would like to learn more about mindfulness skills, CARE offers many free virtual classes for teens and parents to support you on your journey into yourself. For more resources, please visit our resource page.
If you or someone you care about is feeling overwhelmed with emotions like sadness, depression, or anxiety, or feel like you want to harm yourself or others:
For the youth, if you know you or your friends need immediate help, call Teen Lifeline. Teen Lifeline is a 24-7 crisis line for teens where teens can call or text another teen about any problems or issues they are facing. This resource is also available to parents and families for support.
