So, when I go out and meet a strapping young lad…and find myself sleeping soundly next to him the following morning, I never question it, or myself. And my friends don’t question it either. I am having fun. I am enjoying my freedom. I am making some fantastic memories.

I am a mature, responsible young lady; I may break the rules my mother lived by, but at least I am doing it carefully.

Sharing my sexual exploitations with my friends is so natural – as are their reactions of excitement, glee and interest in the details. We are in our 20’s, having a good time; this is not who we are, it is simply something fun that we may do. I am not saying that we collect sexual partners like I collect shoes; we are just having a grand ole’ time.

A few weeks ago I visited my doctor for my yearly pelvic exam. (Ew.) Before the doctor got down to…business…she performed the mandatory gyno interrogation.

“Are you sexually active?” She asked.

I quickly thought back to the previous Saturday night. The 6’4 basketball player. The cab-ride to his place. The cab-ride home the next day.

“Sporadically?” I laughed.

My friends would have found that answer hilarious. The doctor did not.

Though she tried to hide her personal feelings, the look on her face was one full of shock and concern. The silence was deafening. I quickly retreated.

“No. No, right now I am not sexually active.” Which was partially true. At that moment I was definitely not having sex.

My doc quickly began lecturing me on the HPV vaccine and birth control. Then she asked me if I wanted a pregnancy test. For the love of God – is casual sex really that serious? It dawned on me then that perhaps not everyone feels the way about sex and the sowing of wild oats as I do. I get so used to hanging out with people just like me that I seemed to have forgotten what my lifestyle looks like from the outside.

I don’t care, necessarily; it’s my life and I am enjoying it to the fullest. But it did make me stop and think for a moment. About the possibility of being pregnant, mostly (oy), but also abut the way I present myself to others. I know I am not a slut, but is it possible to enjoy myself without others labeling me that way?