5 Safe sex: what’s that? How do you know you’re pregnant? Did you have unsafe sex and are you too late to take a morning after pill? Then you may be pregnant. Do a pregnancy test to find out. You will have to wait until the first day that you should have had your period. Before then, you can’t find out whether or not you’re pregnant. Although you may notice changes in your body like sore breasts, nausea and tiredness. You can buy a pregnancy test at a drugstore or pharmacy. Your doctor can also do a test for you. For a free test, go to a Sense drop-in session. answers to the quiz What do you know about STIs, pregnancy and safe sex? Answers to the quiz on page 33 1 STIs never go away by themselves. Chlamydia and gonorrhoea are treated with antibiotics. HIV, hepatitis B, genital warts and genital herpes are incurable. They stay in your body. But there are drugs that can control the virus. The answer is: False. 2 You often have no symptoms and don’t know whether you have an STI. The answer is: False. 3 Washing after unsafe sex does not help prevent an STI. The answer is: False. 4 Girls can become infertile from chlamydia and gonorrhoea. But if you treat them in time, this can be prevented. The answer is: True. 5 The pill prevents unwanted pregnancy. Use condoms to prevent STIs. The answer is: False. 6 There may be sperm in a boy’s pre-seminal fluid. So a girl can get pregnant before the boy comes or without him having an orgasm at all. The answer is: True. 7 The first time you have sex you can get pregnant or catch an STI. So you must always have safe sex. The answer is: False. 8 The length of each girl’s menstrual cycle is different. So the moment when an egg ripens varies too. A mature egg lives for two days. Sperm can survive for three days in the uterus or fallopian tube. Sometimes even longer. So it is possible – if you have sex during the last few days of your period – for the sperm to survive and fertilise a newly released egg. The answer is: True. 9 You run no risk of STIs or unwanted pregnancy when you masturbate. The answer is: True. 10 STIs are transmitted through pre-seminal fluid, semen, vaginal fluid, blood and contact between genitals. Mouth-to-mouth kissing, cuddling and caressing are safe. You do run a risk if you lie next to each other naked and there’s contact between your genitals. And make sure you don’t touch the other person with pre-seminal fluid, semen, vaginal fluid or blood on your hands. The answer is: True. 36 LONG LIVE LOVE Pregnant: what now? What do you do if it turns out that you’re pregnant or your girlfriend is pregnant? There are two choices: 1 Terminating the pregnancy by having an abortion. 2 Going through with the pregnancy. That means the child will be born. If you are pregnant or your girlfriend is pregnant, go and get help. Talk about it to people you trust. For example, your doctor, someone working at a Sense drop-in session, or someone you know well.
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