First Time Sexual Health Check: What You Need to Know

The sexual health check is vital for having a happy, healthy sex life. As a sexually active person, you need to ensure the safety of yourself and your partner. But usually, people neglect the significance of the sexual health check in sex life and suffer from some consequences. This may include genital warts, STI’s, STD’s etc.

Everyone should be encouraged to go for a sexual health check test to be tested for multiple different types of infections and diseases caused by unsafe sexual intercourse.

Attending Your Appointment

when you attend your appointment, you will be greeted by the reception staff who may ask to take some details like your name, age, dob, and reason for appointment. Don’t worry, this information is entirely private and confidential, and it is better to be completely honest. You will then be called into a room to talk to one of the professional members of staff. This is where you can tell them your symptoms, concerns, worries, physical struggles and more. They will provide you with advice and support and may wish to conduct the sexual health check.

Sample Collection

The primary step of STI testing is sample collection. It depends on the disease from which the patient is suffering. Every condition has its signs and symptoms, and a specific sample is to check the presence of the disease-causing agents. The samples can be blood, urogenital swab, cheek swab, urine sample, or fluid from the genitals. After sample collection, the next step is to perform the screening. Rapid diagnostic kits check whether a person is positive or negative. The rapid diagnostic kits provide results in around 20 minutes, after which the actual process of diagnosis begins. The sample is cultured on media plates for bacterial diseases and then incubated for 24 hours at 37 degrees Celsius inside an incubator.

Consultation with Psychologist/Counsellor

It is common for most people to feel shameful after they see a positive result on their STI test, however, there is help available to you to discuss this further. Any sexual health concerns you may have, you are welcome to talk to someone who will listen. They can guide you through your concerns and provide you with trusted advice and next steps.

Treatment

Based on your results, your doctor will prescribe you some drugs, which can be antibiotics in case of bacteria and anti-viral drugs for viruses. You must use those drugs for the defined period and dose limit. Otherwise, it will be difficult for you to recover from the disease. The good news is that the treatments are usually incredibly simple to take and follow and can often cure infections and diseases in a few days. Your symptoms should start to subside 3 or more days after starting treatment.