Module 4

1. Module 4 Living Responsible: Sexual Health

2. Session I: Sexually Transmitted Diseases Workshop Objectives and Aims • To become familiar with issues related to STDs • To become familiar with health problems associated with STDs • To become familiar with preventing and treating STDs

3. Let’s Talk About It • What are sexually transmitted diseases? • Can an STD be “silent”? • Name five symptoms associated with STDs? • Can you reduce your risk for STDs?

4. Sharing the Knowledge • Men of Color are disproportionately affected by Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), including HIV/AIDS. • A majority of STDs are silent. Many STDS fail to produce any signs or symptoms, or they produce symptoms so mild that they are often overlooked.

5. Sharing the Knowledge • STDs only are diagnosed through testing. • STDs cause health problems including pelvic inflammatory diseases, ectopic pregnancy, infertility, chronic pelvic pain, genital lesions, genital neoplasm, adverse pregnancy outcomes, immune system dysfunction, liver disease and death.

6. Did You Know? • Symptoms of STDs include the following: bumps, sores or warts near the mouth, anus, penis, or vagina; swelling or redness in genital area; skin rash; painful urination; weight loss, loose stools, night sweats; aches, pains, fever, chills; jaundice; discharge from penis or vagina (discharge may have a foul odor); bleeding from vagina (other than period); painful sex; and severe itching.

7. Getting Treated: See a Health Professional • HIV/AIDS: Since AIDS is not curable, treatment focuses on keeping HIV levels in check. Antiretroviral drugs are the standard therapy for HIV infection. • Chlamydia and Gonorrhea: These STDs are treated with antibiotics. You should begin taking them if tests show you have the infection or if you have been exposed to it, even though you may not have symptoms.

8. Getting Treated: See a Health Professional • Genital herpes: Once you are infected with genital herpes, the virus remains in your body for life. After the first outbreak, herpes may flare several times per year, but these flares may lessen over time. Antiviral medication (such as Zovirax, Famvir, and Valtrex) can help reduce the length and severity of both the initial and subsequent outbreaks. • Genital warts: There is no standard of treatment for genital warts. Most genital warts will disappear without treatment, so your doctor may choose to do nothing. However, you will still carry the virus that causes warts and can still transmit it to sex partners.

9. Getting Treated: See a Health Professional • Syphilis: Penicillin is the preferred treatment for syphilis. Early treatment is crucial to prevent the bacteria from spreading to and damaging other organs. • Hepatitis B: The goal of hepatitis B treatment is to stop liver damage by preventing the virus from spreading. There are now 5 drugs approved for use in Hepatitis B in adults and promising new drugs on the horizon. They are interferon alpha, pegylated interferon, lamivudine, adefovir and entecavir. • Trichomoniasis (“Trich”): Infection by this organism is treated with the drug metronidazole, and the cure rate is about 90%.

10. Your Opinion Matters—Connecting the Knowledge Inside • What are some of the ways men of color put ourselves at risk for STDs? • Is it easy to ask your sexual partner about their sexual history? • Are monogamous relationships more difficult for men or women? Why?

11. Wrap-Up • Quiz / Main Messages LIVE WELL!

12. Session II: HIV/AIDS Workshop Objectives and Aims • To become familiar with issues related to HIV/AIDS • To become familiar with health problems associated with HIV/AIDS • To become familiar with preventing and living with HIV/AIDS

13. Let’s Talk About It • What is HIV? • What is AIDS? • How is HIV transmitted? • What are the treatment options for HIV/AIDS?

14. Sharing the Knowledge • Human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, is the virus that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). • The virus weakens a person's ability to fight infections and cancer.

15. Sharing the Knowledge • Having HIV does not always mean that you have AIDS. It can take many years for people with the virus to develop AIDS. • HIV and AIDS cannot be cured. Although the cause of death for most people with AIDS is due an AIDS-related illness, there are ways to help people stay healthy and live-longer.

16. Sharing the Knowledge • According to the 2000 census, African-Americans made up approximately 13% of the US population, but accounted for 49% of new HIV/AIDS diagnoses in the U.S. • The rate of AIDS diagnoses for African-American men was 8 times the rate for white men

17. Sharing the Knowledge You may get HIV: Sharing a needle to take drugs or having unprotected sex with an infected person. You cannot get HIV from: • Touching or hugging someone who has HIV/AID public bathrooms or swimming pools. • Sharing cups, utensils, or telephones with someone who has HIV/AIDS. • Bug bites.

18. Did You Know? • Of all African-American men living with HIV/AIDS, the primary transmission category was sexual contact with other men, followed by injection drug use and high-risk heterosexual contact

19. Your Opinion Matters—Connecting the Knowledge Inside • What are some of the common myths you have heard about HIV/AIDS? • Why do you think it is difficult for communities of color to face HIV/AIDS crisis? • What do you think the community can do to better address this crisis in the US and in Africa, Haiti and in the Diaspora?

20. Everyone should know their HIV status. KNOW YOUR STATUS! GET TESTED! World AIDS Day 1 December AIDS Awareness Week 1 week prior

21. Wrap-Up • Quiz / Main Messages LIVE WELL!