Wednesday 15 February 2017

Guest column by Alix Lovell (STDs within the porn industry)

Today is another one of our guest columnists. She's approaching the subject of STDs which is something many people don't understand. So sit back and find out some home truths from the inside the Industry by the gorgeous Alix Lovell 
 
The last time I wrote as a guest columnist I discussed the topic of safety within the industry and clearing up a lot of common questions I've heard regarding safety on mental,emotional and physical levels. This time I want to cover the STD topic. It's possibly the most common fear to people coming into the industry and most commonly talked about when the conversation of porn comes up around civilians. I also feel it's so important to talk about because it's the most misunderstood and typically the thought process I hear from people and assumptions made are mostly wrong and even completely opposite from the truth at times. So I'm going to present this with what I hear most often and respond with the facts that I have. Mind you this could be different info from European industry. I can only fully speak for US porn industry. However, I know we do share lots of similarities in the manner of how we conduct our business. So for the states most people know you get tested but they don't always know how often or what the tests cover or how we get the info to one another. 

I recently had a civilian friend freak out when I told her most of the time we don't use condoms but we get tested and her response was "it's to risky".My response in return was "what if I told you in a lot of ways you're at a high risk of catching a STD then I am". She told me she couldn't see how. Her sex life from what she shared with me is to sleep with a random guy here or there with condom use. She probably tests once a year if that. It only takes one broken condom or one sliding around because condoms are not as secure as seeing a proven clean test. 1 of those guys alone could have slept with thousands. Imagine if 2 or 3 guys she chose had each slept with as many or more. So that's a painted picture for the amount of security the average American citizen who is sexually active is receiving or so this is what i most commonly hear from people not in porn.

One thing about porn I love is it helped regulate my sex life in the safest and healthiest ways possible. I embrace my sexuality but it's with the same group of people. The industry is like one fat orgy! Most of us know having sex outside of the industry especially without protection is asking to pull in a STD to a community that has all but cut out possibility of contracting STDs. With it being a direct link to our income most performers do not stray with this in mind. Not to mention we still have a large community with lots of sexy people to choose from. It takes about 14 days for a STD to show up after you test so that's the mandatory amount of time before your test is considered expired. So we test every 14 days and it's mandatory. With every performer and the director checking each other's tests before shooting. Performers get sent home and often times will have more of a struggle getting hired again if you show up with a dirty test. 

 I've had one person say that even testing isn't always that credible and that's fair. We can't ever be 100% sure, but then I said I would take my odds testing every 14 days over testing once a year, especially when most people don't even test that often.  Not to mention our testing is not a test you can go have done at your local clinic with your local doctor. It's extensive testing and the best testing in the world on all the major STDs. They do blood and urine test. I think there are lots of hurdles to think about when wanting to join the industry or even if you're someone who is just curious and wants to help strengthen the industry. This in my opinion is one of the strongest areas and if anything if your sexual appetite is intense and you aren't into the managomy relationship life this is the healthiest career for that lifestyle. When it comes to STDs and alleviating that worry, that for me was so much worst when I was out of porn. Hope this was a good educating read for most and I am looking forward to hearing any responses! 

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