Participants: Yvonne Lewis (Host), Lisa & Virna Santos
Series Code: PC
Program Code: PC000011
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00:30 Welcome to Pure Choices.
00:32 I'm so glad that you have joined us again today 00:34 for another episode. 00:35 As you know, all season long, 00:37 we've been dealing with some hot 00:38 and very serious topics concerning our sexuality. 00:40 And today is going to be no different, 00:42 we're gonna jump right in there. 00:43 Before we get into this topic though, 00:45 I want to take a moment and just introduce to you 00:47 our panel today, 00:48 and a special guest that we have with us. 00:50 I'm gonna start over here with my brother. 00:52 You all have known him, 00:53 he's been with us all season long, 00:54 Pastor Alfonzo Greene, 00:56 and he's at the First 00:58 SDA Church in Huntsville, Alabama. 01:00 And then we have my brother to the far right, 01:02 Pastor Michael B Kelly who joins us from Riverside, 01:07 California at the Mount Rubidoux 01:09 Seventh-day Adventist Church. 01:10 And then we have my brother right here 01:12 in the pink and green 01:13 who's coming to us from Nashville, 01:15 Pastor Michael Polite, 01:18 and you know that he pastoring 01:19 the Riverside Chapel Church there in Nashville, Tennessee. 01:24 And we have a special guest with us today, 01:26 Miss Dana Battle who is here, local from Huntsville, Alabama. 01:29 She's here, but she works specifically 01:32 with the Alabama Health Department. 01:35 She does specifically STD public training 01:39 and programming director essentially. 01:42 And we brought her here today 01:43 because we specifically want to deal 01:45 with this topic of STDs. 01:47 You know me, I'm your host, Pastor Seth Yelorda. 01:49 And so we're just gonna jump right into this thing. 01:51 Miss Dana, just talk to us a little bit about STDs, 01:54 specifically within the black community. 01:55 You know, we know or we hear at least 01:58 that they are rampant in the black community, 02:00 disproportionately rampant in the black community. 02:03 Is there truth to that? 02:04 Is there any validity to that? 02:05 Talk to us and just kind of inform our audience 02:07 and what's really going on out there? 02:09 Yes, that is true statement. 02:11 Actually, the 2010 surveillance report 02:14 was just released last month 02:16 by the Centers for Disease Control. 02:18 And so the reports do indicate 02:21 that African-Americans are disproportionately affected 02:25 by sexually transmitted diseases. 02:28 And so it is very important, 02:29 I'm glad you all are doing this, 02:31 putting the information out there 02:32 so that they can get the message 02:35 and understand that, 02:37 now is the time to take precaution. 02:40 Now, you know, some people might be wondering, 02:41 you know, this topic, 02:43 you know, the title of the show was Pure Choices. 02:45 You know, and you're talking about STDs, 02:48 you know, we're gonna be talking 02:49 about condoms and contraceptives, 02:50 and that type of thing. 02:52 How does me being pure and making pure choices 02:55 had anything to do with STDs? 02:57 And like, it almost seems like there may be a conflict here. 03:00 But we just want to let our audience know that, 03:02 even in making pure choices, 03:04 we still need to be aware of STDs. 03:06 We were talking about it. 03:08 I think there's two ways to look at that. 03:11 Being pure is this idea of condoms wearing, 03:15 I should say this way is not gonna stop you 03:16 from not being pure, 03:18 'cause I keep a condom or some sort of protection 03:21 that's not pure. 03:22 What we are after of course is purity 03:25 in its greatest sense to be ideal 03:28 which obviously when we're not pure has 03:30 with its spiritual consequences. 03:33 However, when we are pure, and we make some bad choices, 03:38 there are some earthly consequences 03:39 which I know we're gonna get into and so our deal, 03:42 of course, is we don't want you to deal 03:44 with spiritual consequences or the earthly consequences, 03:47 however some folks are still struggling 03:49 in that area and so, man, 03:51 it would stink to have to deal with both of those. 03:53 So, you know, I think we do want to make it clear, 03:55 I'm glad we started that way, 03:57 we're not, in any way, saying that 03:59 if you don't have a disease 04:01 or don't catch it or you use some of, 04:03 you know, protection 04:04 that you are protected for being impure 04:06 because a condom doesn't stop sin, 04:08 you know, those things. 04:09 And that's something that we talked about maybe, 04:11 you know, episode one, 04:13 program one where we talked about it, 04:14 where we said that sex and sexuality is something 04:16 that affects the whole person, you know. 04:18 It's not just a physical thing 04:20 but there's an emotional element to sexuality, 04:22 there's a spiritual element to sexuality, 04:24 and so you could put a condom on 04:25 and it might protect you from the consequence 04:28 of the physical side, 04:30 but a condom can't protect your heart, 04:32 a condom can't protect your spirit. 04:33 And so we really want our audience to know 04:35 that this thing, yes, 04:36 we are definitely advocating purity. 04:38 But we also want to look at the other side of, 04:40 you know, sexuality 04:42 that when you do make a decision 04:43 to engage in illicit sex, 04:46 you know, where you're having such as random, 04:48 multiple partners, 04:49 or even just one partner outside of marriage 04:51 that there is consequences, 04:52 and these consequences are real, 04:54 these consequences can be life threatening, 04:57 you know, these consequences can be deadly, you know. 04:59 And so we really want to, 05:01 you know, just put it out there. 05:02 Yeah, I wanted to ask, Dana, with your work 05:05 and we talked about you see it prevalent 05:06 in the black community, 05:08 what's the age range 05:09 where this is really kind of hitting hard 05:11 in that community? 05:13 What age do you normally see that? 05:15 Well, we see all ages. 05:17 But our targeted populations meaning, 05:20 where we see most disease is 15 to 24. 05:23 Now that's broken down like from 15 to 19, 05:26 and then 20 to 24. 05:28 But the prevalence of disease is 05:30 so great in both of those categories 05:33 as we put them together, 05:34 so 15 to 24 05:36 but the close second at 25 to 29. 05:39 And so those are the formative years, 05:43 those are the years that, you know, most people, 05:48 young people feel that they can do anything. 05:52 They're invincible. Right. 05:53 And so the message really needs to get to them. 05:57 Right. 05:59 I just wanted to just kind of piggyback off 06:00 of that in the sense 06:01 that just from the faith community, 06:04 you know, from that angle, that it's important to know, 06:07 as she just mentioned those numbers, 06:09 that this is not something that 06:10 the faith community is immune from, 06:13 that we see many young people within our churches 06:16 that come to church every single week 06:19 but that are sexually active. 06:21 And, you know, for some of our viewers, 06:24 you know, that may have their head buried in the sand, 06:26 they need to be aware of the fact 06:28 that these dangers are not only just 06:30 real outside of the church, 06:32 but these dangers are also real within the faith community. 06:36 And I'll never forget, 06:37 I was here at Oakwood University 06:39 when I was a junior, 06:41 and someone came from the health department, 06:42 I don't remember the person. 06:44 It probably was Dana then. No. 06:45 I wasn't gonna say that. 06:46 But someone came and they, 06:48 you know, it was during a chapel service 06:50 and the whole student body was in the church, 06:52 and they show 06:53 these graphic pictures of like... 06:54 My Lord. 06:56 You know, what your genitals will look like 06:57 if you have gonorrhea? 06:58 What herpes looks like? What syphilis looks like? 07:00 I mean, the whole, 07:01 I mean, everyone was like throwing up their lunch, 07:04 you know, they were showing extremely graphic pictures. 07:05 There was like... 07:06 It was like someone just blew your stuff 07:08 like you're grading there. 07:09 Exactly. 07:10 I mean, there was like a moratorium on sex 07:13 for like two weeks strong. 07:14 Everyone's like, 07:16 "Yo, we're not doing this," you know. 07:17 But it was a shock, you know, to a degree, 07:19 it was a shock treatment. 07:20 But to me, those images have always been kind of lodged 07:23 in my mind like, 07:24 "Man, if you go down that road, 07:27 this is what is out there waiting for you." 07:30 From your experience, 07:31 what are some of the more prevalent STDs 07:34 that you find in the community, 07:36 and then what are some of the consequences, 07:39 you know, of these STDs, 07:41 like what effects they have on your body 07:43 and just that whole thing? 07:46 Well, right now, chlamydia is... 07:49 Wow, it's just... 07:50 Can I say off the chain? 07:52 Okay, so... Yeah. 07:55 I mean, that is like the most prevalent disease. 07:58 What exactly is it? 07:59 Chlamydia is caused by bacteria. 08:01 Okay. It is a curable infection. 08:03 However, most people 08:05 who are infected don't have symptoms. 08:07 So they can go for quite sometime, 08:08 very long time. 08:09 Passing it around and still having sex. 08:11 Passing it, right. 08:12 And unfortunately, 08:13 complications from the disease can lead to infertility. 08:18 And for women especially, 08:21 pelvic inflammatory disease 08:23 which can be very dangerous and deadly 08:25 where the fallopian tubes 08:27 can burst and those kinds of things. 08:29 So chlamydia, gonorrhea, 08:33 syphilis, HIV have... 08:35 There were statistics posted 08:39 that one in four teenagers has an STD. 08:41 One in four? One in four. 08:42 Wow. 08:43 And the most prevalent diseases were listed, chlamydia was one, 08:48 but herpes, HPV 08:50 which is a human papillomavirus causes genital warts. 08:55 And trichomonas which is a type of vaginitis 08:58 but it's caused by a parasite. 09:02 A lot of diseases are prevalent, 09:03 we can't really go into all of them. 09:05 But billions of dollars are spent every year, 09:10 every year on people who suffer from complications. 09:13 You said, billions? Billions, with the B. 09:16 Every year on people 09:18 who have complications from disease, 09:21 and of course, we want to prevent complications 09:24 but we want to prevent disease. 09:26 So these diseases are very real. 09:30 I think most people think in terms of cure 09:33 as opposed to treatment because, you know, well, 09:35 I can get a shot for that, 09:37 or I can take some pills for that. 09:39 And so it's kind of devalued in the respect that, 09:44 "Okay, maybe I'm not afraid of it, 09:45 I can get a shot or something." 09:48 Then we're not taking it seriously. 09:49 But there are a lot 09:50 of other viral infections out there 09:52 which we don't have a cure for like, herpes, 09:55 like HIV, like human papillomavirus. 09:58 I mean Magic has HIV. 10:00 And he's been alive for 20 years with it. 10:02 Yeah, Magic's like he's just be chilling. 10:04 I mean, so I mean... 10:05 Magic has money. Yes, Magic has money. 10:09 Does his situation or his success in managing HIV, 10:14 could it possibly send 10:15 a wrong message to people saying, 10:17 "If you have it, you know, Magic has it, no big deal?" 10:20 It could be but we don't see behind the scenes. 10:22 We don't see Magic behind the scenes. 10:24 And again, Magic has money. 10:27 Magic could afford treatments and medication at a time 10:30 when he was diagnosed 10:32 that were not necessarily available 10:34 to the average person 10:36 who has disease when your medical price tag is, 10:41 you know, 2000 bucks a month. 10:43 Wow. 10:44 You know, and you've got to figure out a way 10:47 to live and get your medication. 10:50 So everybody has different challenges. 10:54 So, Dana, I have a question. 10:56 We started the show talking 10:57 about how the African-American community 10:59 is just being run through by STDs. 11:03 Does that mean 11:05 that the African-American community 11:07 is more sexual than other communities? 11:10 No. None, whatsoever. 11:12 None, whatsoever. 11:13 In fact, it doesn't even mean 11:15 that we even engage in more risky behavior. 11:18 But what we need to really focus on 11:21 is that we're being affected by... 11:23 We only make up 13% of the total population 11:26 in the United States. 11:28 And, but yet 60% of disease is in our culture. 11:33 And so we need to stop and listen, 11:37 let it penetrate, 11:39 you know, how things just kind of run through over your head, 11:43 through you don't really take it in. 11:45 And so I guess you look back at behavior, 11:48 you look back at how's this going to affect me, 11:50 you need to apply what you hear. 11:52 And really, really just, 11:56 you know, know that you're being affected by it. 11:59 You know, in the, 12:01 you know, faith community that we live in or something 12:03 that we look at the devil's 12:04 a massive deceiver of deception. 12:06 And one of the things I just kind of hear some things 12:09 that our young people think 12:11 about sexually transmitted diseases 12:12 and those things. 12:14 With all those diseases that you mentioned, 12:16 I know there is plenty more, 12:17 are all of them only contracted through intercourse, 12:21 or can some of them just come from kissing, 12:23 through some other things maybe just oral sex? 12:26 'Cause some people will say, "You know what, 12:27 I'm not having sex, I'm just having oral sex. 12:29 I'm just kissing. 12:30 We're just rubbing, 12:32 maybe exchanging different things that way." 12:33 Can you still get 12:34 some of those things you mentioned 12:36 in other ways as well and which ways are they? 12:38 Well, of course, 12:39 and you don't want to downplay the fact 12:41 that people say, "I'm not having sex." 12:43 What you have to get to the root of, 12:46 is what are you doing specifically 12:49 that puts you at risk, 12:51 because sexual intercourse 12:55 and sexual acts can put you at risk. 12:59 And you also have to look at the disease 13:01 and how different diseases are transmitted. 13:04 There are diseases that do present with symptoms 13:07 that can appear in different places 13:10 depending on what type of sex you have. 13:13 So if I'm having oral sex, 13:16 then those symptoms can appear 13:18 in or around the mouth, you know. 13:21 So therefore, 13:22 if I have those symptoms in my mouth 13:24 and I actually happen to be kissing someone 13:27 which may not be sexual intercourse, 13:30 that is a sexual act 13:32 where someone who is infected 13:34 with the disease can put someone else at risk. 13:36 So, you know, you have to look at the whole picture. 13:40 And people really have to get a good understanding 13:43 of what sex is. 13:46 Intercourse, you know, 13:47 you may think in terms of just actual penetration. 13:50 But again, you have to look 13:53 at different types of sexual acts and oral sex, 13:57 because a lot of people don't think that is sex. 13:59 So I just want to be clear 14:00 'cause I think that's such a powerful point 14:02 for some of the other shows that we've gone through. 14:05 So if I'm with somebody 14:07 who's telling about how far is too far, 14:08 I could be with somebody, 14:10 they've had oral sex with somebody else. 14:12 All they do is kiss me 14:14 but I could have gotten something 14:16 that they've got from oral sex just from kissing, 14:18 is that what I understand? 14:20 If I get those symptoms in my mouth, 14:22 and I've never even had oral sex with the person, 14:24 we just kissed. 14:26 You can be exposed. Yes, you can be exposed. 14:28 Right. 14:29 I think, this is bringing up a conversation 14:34 that a lot of students 14:35 are going to be uncomfortable about having. 14:38 And that conversation is kind of checking up 14:40 on the people's background that you're interested in. 14:44 Especially males, we don't like 14:46 when a female approaches us and say, 14:48 "So who you've been with? 14:49 And what you've done before?" 14:50 "Hey, girl, don't worry about all that. 14:52 You know what I'm saying. I got you. I got you." 14:53 You know, we, brothers usually... 14:56 They got to be right. In case you got sober. 15:00 Well, it's interesting that you should say that 15:02 because we're running billboard campaigns. 15:05 And last year, 15:07 we had a billboard 15:08 actually right up on 565 on Interstate. 15:11 And it talked to that very thing 15:13 is that who are the 63 people 15:15 that you had sex with last night? 15:17 And there's a man and a woman there, 15:18 and it has two people. 15:20 But what happens is, 15:21 it grows and it goes out behind 15:24 because the message is that everybody 15:26 that you had sex with, 15:28 I just had sex with because that's your past, 15:31 that's your history. 15:33 And so, you know, the graph 15:36 just kind of grew out from there. 15:38 So that is a powerful message, 15:40 you know, because a lot of people 15:43 don't realize that, 15:44 you know, they're bringing 15:46 that forward to the next person. 15:49 And those symptoms may not manifest right away. 15:53 Dana, as you just kind of broke that now, 15:55 it just kind of brings you back to some of our, 15:56 you know, other shows in the sense 15:59 that we're talking about, like you said, 16:00 how far is too far, 16:01 friends with benefits and stuff. 16:03 I mean, you're really 16:04 in some dangerous territory in the day 16:06 and age that we live in, 16:08 just even the casual things that you do. 16:11 Because like she said, 16:13 I mean, that person could have had oral sex with somebody, 16:16 they could have something, 16:17 and just catch it. 16:19 It's just really makes you up... 16:20 It's too risky. 16:21 Yeah, it's too risky, but then it also makes you appreciate 16:23 even more just from the Christian standpoint, 16:26 what God's talking about. 16:28 I mean, God kind of knows what He's talking about. 16:30 When you follow His ideal, it saves you from so much, 16:35 you know, unnecessary stuff. 16:37 You know, when you make a decision, 16:38 you know what, I'm gonna save myself for marriage, 16:39 or if I have gone down that road, 16:42 I know from this point forward, I'm gonna commit to purity, 16:45 you know, and I'm gonna seek that. 16:47 It saves you from so much drama. 16:48 The thing that I've often found that was interesting is that 16:50 when dealing with young people, 16:52 it seems like every, and I don't want to generalize 16:54 but a lot of young people that deal with, 16:55 they have this mentality of, 16:56 "It won't happen to me," 16:58 you know, like, "Oh, yeah, you know, we see it. 17:00 And we know but it won't happen to me 17:02 until that happens to them," you know. 17:04 What do you say to young people 17:06 who have that approach to life like, 17:07 "It won't happen to me," like, 17:09 "Yeah, I hear what you're saying, 17:10 you know, 63 in the whole, 17:12 you know, disease amount but it won't happen to me." 17:15 Well, what you have to look at too is, 17:19 that whole age group that I mentioned earlier, 17:22 you know, they all have a certain set of risk factors. 17:26 And as teen's growing up, 17:28 you have lack of awareness. 17:33 And again like I said, those are formative years. 17:35 Those are the years that they're finding themselves 17:38 that, you know, they're wanting to do and experiment, 17:40 and have fun, and get out there. 17:42 So messages that you send them as parents, as pastors, 17:46 as other Christians, 17:49 and other people who are in their lives, 17:51 they come in and they go out. 17:53 And they don't really think about those things 17:55 and it doesn't stick. 17:57 The cause and effect. Right. 17:59 And because they, you know, moving on. 18:00 And I'm not saying that that's all young people 18:03 because there are some who are very focused. 18:05 But, you know, for the most part, 18:06 that's not where most of the teens are, 18:09 that's not where a lot of young people are. 18:11 And so you really have to send a message 18:15 that helps them 18:17 to target number one who they are, 18:19 you know, to having interest in developing themselves. 18:23 You know, if you don't have a goal to shoot for in life, 18:27 where am I gonna be five years from now, 18:28 where am I gonna be ten years from now, 18:31 then you kind of right here in the moment. 18:32 And that goes back to lack of awareness again. 18:35 You know, you really have to be aware. 18:37 So I have a question for you on awareness. 18:39 Yes. 18:41 Have you actually noticed awareness changing 18:44 the decisions of young people? 18:48 I have friends, we sat in sex-ed in high school, 18:51 we saw the graphic photographs, we had even people coming, 18:56 giving their personal experience, 18:59 telling us what they're dealing with on a day to day. 19:02 And then some of my boys, couple days later, 19:06 we're chopping it up in the locker room, 19:07 talking about who smashed and who didn't, you know. 19:10 Is awareness really changing the teenage mind 19:14 when it comes to their choices? 19:16 It should. You would think it would. 19:20 Think about it, smoking bad for you? 19:23 How many people smoke? 19:24 What does it take for you to stop? 19:26 I mean, it's like a habit, you know. 19:28 And how long does it take you to break a bad habit? 19:31 You know, you need to be aware of what it's gonna be. 19:35 And you have to be motivated. 19:37 You have to be motivated to change that. 19:39 You know, is it gonna take a heart attack? 19:42 Is it gonna take you getting a disease to say, 19:43 "You know what, 19:45 I'm gonna have to back up off of this"? 19:46 But I guess when I was younger, 19:49 my mother used to say a thing to me 19:51 that really I didn't understand at then, 19:52 but I understand it now. 19:53 And she used to say, 19:55 "It's better to stay out than have to get out." 19:57 And, you know, why I have to go and deal with this when really, 20:02 if I just do certain things now, 20:04 I don't have to deal with them at all. 20:07 And so if younger people, and even adults, 20:12 if we can get the message right 20:13 and get it and get people to understand 20:16 that if I apply this, this is gonna work for me. 20:18 One of the things... 20:20 Well, I was just gonna say, one of things in our last, 20:21 one of our other shows, 20:23 we talked about just kind of how sex, 20:26 the topic of sex is taboo within the faith community. 20:29 I think we all know that. 20:30 What are some things though that churches, 20:34 people in the faith community can do to help as we, 20:39 you know, it's health department, 20:41 other individuals in creating awareness and just kind of, 20:44 you know, really providing 20:46 some type of positive impact on this whole issue? 20:49 Well, it's so interesting 20:51 because, you know, 20:52 some people can't even say the word sex. 20:54 I mean, we all got here because somebody had sex. 20:57 But, you know, you really need to have somebody in a church 21:01 who is comfortable... 21:03 Talking about it. 21:04 Just talking about it, approaching it, and say, 21:06 "Okay, I'm just gonna be your sex person." 21:09 You know, you would think that it's a part of life, 21:12 it's who we are, 21:14 you know, it doesn't have to be a bad thing. 21:16 But you know, you've got to have some people there 21:19 who are comfortable, 21:21 who are interested 21:23 and making sure people have the right message, 21:27 you know, behind it. 21:28 With the right decisions. Right. 21:29 And so, you know, it may take some training, 21:33 it may, you know, and you want 21:34 to bring other people in of course 21:36 because if that's something 21:37 that you truly want to develop in your ministries, 21:40 then, you know, that's just where you have to go. 21:42 You know, I wanted to ask... 21:45 I think there's another parallel epidemic 21:47 as it were in the African-American community, 21:50 that's children out of wedlock. 21:52 And I'm wondering, 21:53 with some of the diseases and things, 21:55 do those outside of, 21:57 maybe we would say the obvious HIV, 21:58 do those effect? 22:00 Can those be passed down to the children? 22:03 Can the children come in, like I said, maybe besides HIV, 22:06 I think some people already have, 22:07 we kind of know that." 22:09 How does that, 22:10 and if there are some of those specifically 22:12 that you could share with us? 22:13 Oh, most definitely. 22:16 What mom is carrying can be passed on to the baby. 22:19 Not necessarily in utero 22:21 while there are diseases like 22:22 syphilis can be passed to the baby, 22:25 while she's carrying it. 22:26 But other diseases like chlamydia and gonorrhea, 22:29 the baby can be exposed to that in the birth canal, herpes. 22:33 And so can the baby be treated for? 22:35 Yes. 22:37 Is mom getting prenatal care 22:39 where she can even be tested for these diseases? 22:41 You know, that's another thing. 22:43 But Alabama actually ranks in the top 10 22:48 for those diseases syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia. 22:52 You know, we reported several cases 22:55 of congenital syphilis last year 22:57 which one case is not good. 23:00 But we are in the top 10 for congenital syphilis. 23:05 Congenital syphilis can be deadly, 23:07 while syphilis is curable. 23:10 You know, you don't want babies to have to deal 23:13 with the complications from any of those diseases. 23:15 So if someone who is sexually active, 23:18 maybe they're not having any symptoms, 23:19 what would you say? 23:21 You know, two scenarios. 23:22 Let's say someone does have symptoms, 23:23 what do we do? 23:25 What do we tell them? 23:26 And let's say someone has had unprotected sex, 23:28 you know, or is sexually active, 23:29 what then is our counsel to them 23:30 when it comes to STDs and protection 23:32 and that type of thing? 23:33 Well, of course, if they're having symptoms, 23:34 they definitely want to be seen by medical professional, 23:38 get help because you don't want them 23:39 to actually develop complications from that. 23:42 And so, you know, our health department is here, 23:46 we have a free clinic, the visits are free, 23:50 the medication is free that we have there. 23:53 Dana, real quick with that, can you maybe describe 23:55 with that environment's kind of like, 23:56 because I know some people 23:58 don't like to get checked out because they're kind of afraid, 24:00 they don't know what it is they're walking into, 24:02 there gonna be all these eyes on them, 24:03 and everyone's gonna know 24:04 'cause there might be someone 24:06 who needs to do a test sitting right now. 24:07 Yeah, and for the most part, 24:11 you know, I guess most people would feel that way, 24:12 especially if you know something's 24:14 going on with yourself. 24:15 But it's not gonna go away, you know... 24:18 Even if you ignore it. 24:20 If you ignore it, it's not gonna go away. 24:22 It's not going anywhere. 24:23 And so that's a situation 24:26 that you definitely have to take care of. 24:30 Our clinic is a confidential clinic. 24:32 You know, other people can't call there 24:34 and get information about your visit. 24:36 Your mother can't call 24:37 and get information about your visit. 24:40 You know, we test for syphilis, 24:41 gonorrhea, HIV, chlamydia. 24:47 You know, anything shows at that time, 24:50 they'll give you the necessary medication 24:52 that you need. 24:54 Of course, if something does, 24:55 if the lab result comes back positive, 24:57 we'll notify you to come back 24:59 and get any medications that you will need. 25:02 But it's just important to make sure 25:03 that you follow up on that screenings. 25:06 Screenings are important. 25:07 If you're sexually active, 25:09 and you're not having any problems, 25:10 you feel fine, doesn't mean that everything's okay. 25:14 Screenings are important because what a screening does, 25:17 it detects disease 25:19 that you wouldn't even think are there. 25:21 Basically, a woman goes in for her annual pap smear 25:27 which is cancer detection. 25:29 But then the physician decides, okay, 25:30 I'm going to run this panel of STDs as well. 25:33 She's not having any symptoms form so you would think, 25:35 "Well, why would he test me?" 25:37 You know, "I'm a young lady. 25:38 And may be I'm between the age of 15 and 25. 25:42 And I'm in that targeted population 25:44 where STDs are prevalent. 25:46 So I'm just gonna screen it anyway. 25:47 Or lo and behold, 25:49 she comes back positive for chlamydia, 25:51 but she never knew it. 25:52 So she was screened which is a good thing. 25:56 And I think maybe more physicians should get 25:58 in that practice of screening individuals. 26:01 Now females more so than males 26:03 because males don't go to the doctor 26:04 like most females. 26:05 Right. 26:07 On the 15 to 24, 25, 26:10 let's say I'm 16. 26:13 Yeah, I'm having some discomfort. 26:15 But I'm definitely not going to Mom or Dad. 26:19 Can I get checked out 26:21 or can I get the medical attention 26:23 I need without Mom and Dad taking me there? 26:25 You can. 26:27 In the state of Alabama, and I don't know 26:28 what the law is in the other states, 26:30 but in the state of Alabama, 26:32 you can be 12 years old 26:34 and come without parental consent. 26:36 Most people don't like that, 26:37 but that's the way it is in our clinic. 26:40 So, you know, this is a real topic, you know. 26:43 And, you know, I thank you for coming and sharing. 26:45 We're running out of time. 26:46 Our whole purpose for this topic 26:48 is to really just inform our audience 26:49 that this is real. 26:51 You know, please do not think that it won't affect you. 26:54 If you are making decisions to live a sexually active life, 26:57 this is real stuff that you have to deal with. 26:59 And we encourage you to protect yourself. 27:01 But here and again you must remember 27:03 that a condom or contraceptives, 27:05 it won't protect your heart, it won't protect your spirit. 27:08 And God has so much more in store for you. 27:10 And so we here at Pure Choices, 27:11 we are very intentional about making sure 27:13 that we promote abstinence. 27:16 Abstinence is the best way 27:18 that we can live pure lives in Christ. 27:21 Are there any last thoughts or comments real quick? 27:25 You know, I think you really hit it, 27:27 just reminding everyone that purity 27:29 is not the absence of something, 27:30 it's the presence of someone. 27:32 And while these things are gonna be struggles, 27:34 very struggle you know to get 27:35 through to maintain the abstinence 27:37 just because you're not having sex, 27:39 our idea is please be pure. 27:40 Pure in God with your thoughts, 27:42 your words, your actions, everything. 27:43 We just want you to be pure in Christ. 27:44 If you have questions, please look us up on Facebook. 27:47 Go to Facebook, type in Pure Choices. 27:49 We would love to hear from you, we love to dialogue. 27:51 We thank you for joining us today, 27:52 come back next week. 27:54 Thank you for being here. 27:55 You know, we hope to see you next week. 27:57 Thank you so much. 27:59 Right. That's it. |
Revised 2018-01-18