Many sexually transmitted diseases have no symptoms. STD testing is the only way to know if you have an infection. Are you sexually active and have or had vaginal, anal, or oral sex? If so, you are at risk and should talk to a doctor or nurse about getting tested.

Once you decide to get tested, our caring medical staff is ready to assist you. Our family planning and health care services include the following types of tests:

Urine Test: Urine STD testing is available to detect if you have chlamydia or gonorrhea. This test may not be as good as swabs, but it is less likely to be rejected and it has become widely used. A urine test does a pretty good job of finding most infected people and it is less invasive than some of the other STD testing methods

Blood Test: For STDs like herpes, hepatitis, HIV and syphilis, a small blood sample is all our testing center requires. We can draw the blood from your arm or finger.

Physical Exam: One of our nurses or doctors can examine your genital area to check for discharge, rashes, sores, warts or irritation. Sometimes they can see STD symptoms during the exam.

Testing Sores: One of our nurses or doctors can use a swab to take a sample of fluid from any blisters or sores you have.

You can get tested for most STDs whether or not you have any symptoms. Some STDs look and act alike, so you might need to be tested for a few different infections. Our doctors may be able to tell immediately if you have an STD, but some tests take a few days or weeks to come back from a lab.  If you do not hear back from us after your STD test, do not assume everything is okay. Call us to find out for sure what your results are.

The best thing to do when you find out you have an STD is to follow your doctor’s treatment directions carefully. You should also tell anyone you are having sex with, so they can get tested and treatment if they need it. It is not an easy conversation, but it is necessary and important to inform them. Some very helpful tips are below:

• Many STDs can be cured easily with medication, so you can simply finish your treatment and get on with your life.
• Although some STDs are incurable, there are several ways to treat your symptoms and prevent you from giving your STD to anyone you have sex with.

Having an STD is nothing to feel ashamed about, and it does not mean you are filthy or a bad person — it just means you are a normal human who got an infection.