Posts by Aakash Singh
Navigating Chlamydia: Insights into Detection and Protection
What is Chlamydia? Chlamydia is a common STI that can occur in anyone who’s sexually active and is caused by the bacteria Chlamydia trachomatis. It is a preventable and curable infection. People may have chlamydia without knowing it. The symptoms might be similar to gonorrhea infection. How do I know? Chlamydia often goes unnoticed and…
Read MoreThe ABCs of Viral Hepatitis: Understanding Hepatitis A and B
What is Hepatitis A/B Viral Hepatitis are infection of the liver caused by hepatitis viruses – A, B, C, D, and E. The hepatitis viruses A, B, and C are several times more resilient and contagious than HIV. It is therefore especially important for people who have anal sex to protect themselves from infection. Hepatitis…
Read MoreLove Safely: Understanding Syphilis in LGBTQ+ Relationships
What is Syphilis? Syphilis is a common sexually transmitted infection that is curable and is caused by the bacteria Treponema pallidum. It progresses through four stages (primary, secondary, latent, and tertiary stages) with different symptoms and the progress of these stages can take weeks/months/ even years. How do I know? In many cases, syphilis infection…
Read MoreBeyond the Basics: How to yourself from Gonorrhea
What is Gonorrhea? Gonorrhea is a common STI that is curable and is caused by the bacteria Neisseria gonorrhoeae which can infect the genitals, anus/rectum, and throat. For those who have anal sex, rimming, the mucous membranes in the mouth/throat and anus are the most common site of infection. It is more common among the…
Read MoreWhat are Sexually Transmitted Infections?
Hey there! Let’s understand what is an STI and how do we learn more about it? STIs are Sexually transmitted infections. It includes infections that are transmitted through sexual activities of various kinds and some of these infections are also transmitted through other modes like pregnancy, childbirth, shared infected needles, and infected blood products. The…
Read MoreHow To Protect Yourself from an STI?
Multiple effective strategies exist to protect yourself from Sexually Transmitted Infections and a combination of these are essential for better protection as a single measure may not be protective against all STIs. Eg: using condoms are very effective to prevent HIV, Hep B, chlamydia, trichomoniasis. Although condoms are also effective in preventing gonorrhea, syphilis, these…
Read MoreDeep Dive into PrEP and PEP – Queering the Sex-Ed
Author: Dr. Swathi SB Co- Author: Dr. Praneeth Pillala Multiple effective strategies are accessible to people to prevent acquiring HIV infection. This includes using condoms during sex, avoiding sharing of needles while using drugs, periodic testings for HIV and STIs, having open conversations around sexual health and HIV status, and the more recent approach of…
Read MoreBeing Queer and Becoming a Parent: the Possibilities
This resource is intended to be an indicative primer on a few (non-traditional) parenting routes for queer individuals and couples. This is not an exhaustive or foolproof guide. Given the ever-changing nature of legislations and government regulations around trans and queer lives where the provisions mentioned here are likely to change with time. Surrogacy: Surrogacy…
Read MoreAyush’s Journey – A roadmap to transitioning
Author: Avali (they/them) For as long as Ayush could remember, he had a feeling that he was different. Not good, not bad, but different. Before he picked out a shiny new name for himself and became known as Ayush – a name that became a celebration of his identity, his personhood, his freedom, his life…
Read MoreKriti’s Journey: A Roadmap to Transfeminine Transitioning
7th of January, 1994, was a happy day for my family, a son was born after quite a while. I often hear from my mother, the day I was brought home from the hospital was, according to her, a queer day of unlikely winter rains in Kolkata. From then till now, there has been multiple…
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