It’s pretty much expected that if I even so much as hint at casual sex, I will receive comments informing me that STDs exist and are deadly, and insinuate that I am a completely irresponsible person who is basically asking you to contract a herpes/gonorrhea/syphillis hybrid disease thing that will ruin your life forever…that’s only a mild exaggeration. The possibility of contracting an STD is a legitimate concern, I would never deny that.  But there is a bit of an undercurrent of shaming that is present when responses to articles seeking to promote healthy mental attitudes towards sex choose to focus on the risk of STDs.  I’m sure we’re all aware of the shame and stigma associated with sexually transmitted diseases and infections. I mean, you’d have no qualms sharing that you missed class the other day because you had a cold and wanted to get it checked out. But how comfortable would you be sharing that you skipped class the other day to pick up antibiotics for your chlamydia infection? Exactly. Read More »

I like sex. A lot. And while I consider myself to be fairly sexually experienced, I can count my sexual partners on one hand, and the vast majority of my experiences were with someone I was in a long-term relationship with. I am not a slut.

I’ve been seeing the word “slut” thrown around so much lately and I find it totally misleading. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a slut is “a slovenly or promiscuous woman” — in other words, a dirty woman who has sex with a multitude of different partners.

I’ve noticed that there are a few CollegeCandy commenters who target our writers as sluts because they’re sharing their experiences. To those people, I say – have an open mind. Like everything else in this life, everyone has different sexual needs. Some people feel that sex should be shared between two people after marriage, and a person should only have one partner their entire life. Others feel that having one sexual partner for life is impractical and unfulfilling. I challenge you to believe that both are okay. Read More »