Is it Really Sex?
The fact is...sex is sex! By our definition:
SEXUAL ACTIVITY
is any type of genital contact or sexual stimulation including, but not limited to, sexual intercourse.
In today's culture, the term "hooking-up" refers to
any or all of the Sexual Activity listed above - in other words "casual sex"
with no strings attached. Related terms
are "buddies with benies", "cut friends" and "friends
with benefits" (FWB). These sexual
encounters may be with a friend, an acquaintance or even a stranger. Usually there is no commitment and no
emotional connection. In a new book called, "Un-Hooked," author Laura
Sessions Stepp suggests that "hookups can be damaging
to young women, denying their emotional needs, putting them at risk for
depression and even sexually transmitted disease, and making them ill-equipped
for real relationships later on."
Having any Sexual Activity outside of a faithfully,
committed marriage...is risky and can lead to paying child support, giving up on
dreams, wrecking an innocent life, scars, physical disease, emotional problems,
even spiritual and relationship problems.
Safe
Sex?
Check the Facts and Think again.
·
No birth control method is 100% effective.
·
Teens have higher pregnancy rates with all forms of
birth control compared to adults.
·
Most people with STIs (sexually transmitted infections)
DO NOT KNOW THEY HAVE ONE!
·
Some STIs can lead to cancer and infertility in
women.
·
Did you know...78% of "new" Herpes cases are contracted
by engaging in oral sex?
CONDOMS
You are
told to use a condom and "you will be safe."
Before you risk your future, you owe it to yourself to get the facts.
·
Outside of HIV, if used consistently and correctly,
condoms only cut your risk of getting infected by an STI by half.
·
Concerning pregnancy, out of all contraceptive
methods used during sexual activity, condoms have the highest failure rate.
·
The main reason condoms aren't very effective--people do not use them consistently or correctly
before and during any genital to genital contact.
Condoms only reduce the risk of pregnancy and infection
they do NOT eliminate the risks. Do
you call that safe?
Birth Control Pills
·
No
hormone-containing methods of birth control (pills, patches, vaginal rings, and
injections) protect against any STI.
·
Most women ovulate (release an egg from the ovary)
about once a month. It is only during these few days that you can become
pregnant. But, if you have sex with a person who has an STI you can become
infected on any day...365 days a year!
·
Birth control pills may increase the pH level in
your vaginal mucus making you more susceptible to infection.
Truly Safe Sex is sex that occurs in a
marriage between a man and a woman who have neither been previously active and
who are faithful to each other.
If you have been sexually active, get tested. If you have been sexually active, remember it
is never too late to start
making better decisions in regards to your sexual health.
Risky Behavior?
RISK n. 1. Possibility of suffering harm or loss: DANGER.
The 5 risky behaviors:
SEX • ALCOHOL • DRUGS • TOBACCO • VIOLENCE
The five risky behaviors are
like a spider web. It is easy to get stuck and very hard to get out. Indulging
in one risky behavior leads to another and another.
If you avoid these five risky
behaviors, you can make your teen years a lot easier. You have enough to manage
in trying to get good grades, make friends and deal with your parents and other
adults in your life. Indulging in risky behaviors makes things even harder.
Being informed is the key to making the best decision for you.
1. TOBACCO (cigarettes,
cigars, dip, chew - contain the drug nicotine)
·
Nicotine addiction is said to be as hard to quit as
heroin, cocaine, and alcohol.
·
70% of high school seniors who smoked 1-5
cigarettes a day were still smoking 5 years later (Surgeon General Report,
1994).
·
Why spend hundreds of dollars a year to make your
teeth yellow, have chronic bad breath, smell, hack up phlegm every morning, and
possibly give yourself cancer?
·
Cigarette ingredients:
·
Arsenic - used for rat poison
·
Ammonia - toilet bowl cleaner
·
Carbon Monoxide - car exhaust
·
Tar - roofing
·
Nicotine - poison bug sprays
2. ALCOHOL
(beer, wine, wine coolers, mixed drinks)
·
Alcohol affects different people in different ways.
Some people become relaxed and sleepy and others become wild and violent.
Alcohol drastically reduces your ability to make good decisions. It also
impairs your ability to see, walk and talk.
·
According to MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving),
2.6 million teens did not know that a person could die from an alcohol
overdose.
3.
SEXUAL ACTIVITY (hooking-up; stimulation of the mind, breasts, buttocks,
penis/vagina for the purpose of sexual pleasure. This includes vaginal, oral and anal sex as
well as all types of pornography)
·
Sex is one of the easiest ways to contract and
spread infectious diseases.
·
Many STIs (sexually transmitted infections) have no
symptoms and can be spread to many people without even knowing it.
·
According to the Centers for Disease Control,
almost half of those with STIs are people ages 15-24!
Having sex outside of a faithfully committed marriage...can
lead to paying child support, giving up on dreams, wrecking an innocent life,
scars, physical disease, emotional problems, even spiritual and relationship
problems.
·
Addiction to pornography can cause emotional,
spiritual, intellectual and relationship problems.
·
63% of teens surveyed that have had sexual
intercourse wish they had waited to have sex (National Campaign to Prevent Teen
Pregnancy).
Everyday is a new day.
It is never too late to take charge of your sexual health!
4. DRUGS
(marijuana, ecstasy, acid, cocaine, rohypnol, GHB,
etc.)
·
We all know using illegal drugs is bad for us
physically, emotionally and legally. However, we don't always know how
bad. All drugs have some effect on our minds and
bodies that alter how we think or feel for a period of time. It's the long-term
effects or drug-related freak accidents that put us at greatest risk of losing
our lives.
·
When someone is on drugs they are more likely to do
things that they would never do otherwise.
·
Research has shown that use of club drugs can cause
serious health problems and in some cases, even death. Alcohol combined with
drugs can be even more dangerous (www.clubdrugs.org, a division of the National Institute on
Drug Abuse).
5. VIOLENCE
(bullying, gangs, fights, dating violence)
·
Violence is more likely to occur when people are
under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
·
It is never OK for someone to physically hurt you
or abuse you in any way.
·
9% of school crimes (more than a quarter of a
million) were serious violent crimes including murder, rape, sexual assault,
robbery, and aggravated assault.
·
1 in 10 teens in America is in a violent dating
relationship.
Source: "Risky Behaviors," Worth the Wait, worththewait.org. Used with permission
Section 3 - taken out of context; WorthWaiting4
Program, sourced.
Everyone's
doing it?
PEER PRESSURE is tough. Just
because your friend or friends made a decision to "hook-up" doesn't mean it's
the right decision for you. Your friends now have to worry about pregnancy and
STIs (sexually transmitted infections) -- not to mention the emotional toll
they take. "Hooking up" has its price. It is not emotionally, physically or
spiritually safe. Sex is an adult
activity with awesome responsibilities and consequences.
Do you want to complicate your life with these
issues? Practicing sexual integrity is
the BEST way to avoid these
complications. Sex is a big decision,
make sure it is YOUR decision, a
decision you make based on your own values, and not someone else's.
Source:
STD Surveillance 2004, Dept. of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention.
.
