Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted infection that can be spread through unprotected vaginal, anal, and oral sex. It can also be passed from mother to baby during delivery.

For women or individuals assigned female at birth, symptoms may include a burning sensation while urinating, unusual vaginal discharge, or bleeding between periods. Men or those assigned male at birth may experience a burning sensation when urinating or notice a discharge from the penis.

If left untreated, chlamydia can cause damage to the reproductive system, leading to infertility or ectopic pregnancies. To reduce these risks, it’s important to get regular STI testing. Testing for chlamydia can be done through urine, vaginal, or throat swab tests. Fortunately, chlamydia can be treated with antibiotics.

Syphilis spreads via contact with a syphilis sore during vaginal, anal, or oral sex, as well as from mother to baby. Infection occurs in four stages: primary, secondary, latent, and tertiary. During the primary stage, you might develop painless sores on your body. They usually disappear within 3-6 weeks, but the infection is still there and needs treatment – even if the sores go away on their own!

During the secondary stage, you might develop skin rashes (although they’re usually not itchy) and more sores, just like in the primary stage. These symptoms will go away on their own, too, even without treatment. However, the infection is still hanging around and needs to be treated. Otherwise, it will continue to get worse, even if the symptoms disappear.

The latent stage is sneaky because there are no signs or symptoms at all. It can last anywhere from 10-30 years. But if you don’t treat it, it can progress to the tertiary stage. This stage is when the infection starts spreading to other organ systems like your heart, blood vessels, brain, and nervous system. It can even be deadly because it causes damage to multiple organ systems. Luckily, it’s pretty rare to reach the tertiary stage, especially if you’re getting tested frequently. Essentially, with regular testing and talking to your healthcare provider, the chances of it reaching this stage are minimal. Diagnosing syphilis usually involves either a blood test or testing the fluid from a syphilis sore.

The most common and effective way to treat syphilis is by using antibiotics, usually penicillin. However, don’t worry if you’re allergic to penicillin; there are other alternatives available!

Trichomoniasis, also known as trich, is an infection caused by a parasite. It typically affects women or those assigned female at birth more often than men, but that doesn’t mean men or those assigned male at birth can’t get infected too. About 70% of people who have this infection don’t show any symptoms. That’s why it’s really important to get tested if you think you might have been exposed.

Women and those who were assigned female at birth who experience itching, burning, soreness, or redness in the genital area might have trich. Discomfort or pain when urinating is also a common symptom. Sometimes, there may be an unusual discharge with a fishy odor. Men and those who were assigned male at birth who are infected with trich might feel itching or irritation inside the penis, burning when urinating, or discharge from the penis.

It’s important to pay attention to these symptoms and take action if needed. To diagnose trich, a simple urine sample for men and that assigned male at birth or a swab for women and those who were assigned female at birth can do the trick. Once diagnosed, the good news is that it can be treated with antibiotics.

Gonorrhea is spread through unprotected vaginal, anal, or oral sex, as well as from mother to baby during delivery.

Women or those assigned female at birth who have gonorrhea can experience a burning sensation while urinating, unusual vaginal discharge, and or bleeding between periods. Men or those assigned male at birth may experience a burning sensation when urinating or discharge from the penis. However, it’s possible for someone with gonorrhea to show no symptoms, so it’s important for people to get tested frequently!

Like chlamydia, regular STI testing can help identify gonorrhea infections early on and prevent complications like infertility or ectopic pregnancies. Testing for gonorrhea involves a urine test, a vaginal swab, or a throat swab, and it can be cured with antibiotics.

There are two types of herpes: HSV-1 and HSV-2. HSV-1 can cause oral infections (which in turn can lead to cold sores), which can be passed from one partner to another during kissing or oral sex. On the other hand, HSV-2 mainly spreads through genital contact.

Generally, though, it can be transmitted through saliva from someone with oral herpes, contact with a herpes sore, genital fluids from someone who is infected, or even through contact with skin in the same area as the infection. And here’s where it gets tricky – unlike some other STIs like chlamydia or gonorrhea, using condoms may not fully protect you from getting herpes. That’s because not all herpes sores occur in areas that a condom can cover, and the virus can also be shed from areas that don’t have a visible sore, so it’s a bit harder to prevent.

When it comes to symptoms, everyone can experience different things. Generally, you might notice blisters that eventually break and turn into painful sores, body aches, and swollen glands. However, sometimes the symptoms can be pretty mild, which can make it easy to mistake them for other common skin conditions like acne or ingrown hairs. Unfortunately, you can actually get genital herpes from a partner who doesn’t have a visible sore or doesn’t even know they’re infected.

If you think you might have herpes, a medical provider can collect a sample or swab from a fresh blister or sore – that’s the most effective way to get a diagnosis. They can also look at a sore that’s crusting over and healing. If you don’t have any blisters or sores, they can use a blood test to check for herpes, but those aren’t 100% reliable – they may miss an infection if the test is done too soon after an exposure.

There isn’t a cure for herpes yet, but there is a daily medication that can greatly reduce the risk of spreading it if you take it every day. You can also reduce the risk of spreading herpes if you avoid vaginal, anal, or oral sex when you have symptoms. If you’re cautious, there isn’t any reason why your sex life should stop in its tracks!

Unprotected vaginal, anal, and oral sex, as well as skin-to-skin contact during sex, can transmit HPV.  Symptoms can vary depending on the strain of HPV one has, and sometimes a person can be asymptomatic. Some strains cause cervical, anal, and penile cancers, as well as cancers on the back of the throat. Others cause genital warts, which look like a small bump or group of bumps in the genital area. They can be small or large, raised or flat, or shaped like a cauliflower.  

There is no test to determine if someone has HPV, regardless of gender, although a medical provider can diagnose genital warts after looking at them. Women or those assigned female at birth can get diagnosed after receiving an irregular pap smear. Pap smears are recommended starting at age 21; if you test negative, your provider may ask you to get tested again in three years.

While condoms can help reduce your risk, they don’t cover all the areas that HPV can infect. But there’s another way to stay safe – the HPV vaccine! See our page on “Safer Sex” for more details.

In about 9 out of 10 cases, HPV clears up on its own within two years of getting infected. But even though HPV often goes away on its own, it’s still important to take it seriously – there isn’t a cure for the virus itself, it’s hard to diagnose (and therefore easy to pass on!) and it’s still possible to experience serious health issues as a result of infection. These are three big reasons why you should consider getting the HPV vaccine if you haven’t already!