EP80: Jenelle Pierce on Unraveling the STI/STD Stigma, Genital Herpes, and Developing Sexual Agency, and Relational Communication

Oct 30, 2019

Jenelle Marie Pierce is the Executive Director of The STI Project, the founder of the Herpes Activist Network, and is the spokesperson for Positive Singles.  As an STI + Sexual Health Educator and content creator, Jenelle is dismantling STI stigma through awareness, education, and acceptance.

What She Shares:

•     The definitions of STI and STD, and how they differ
•     Safe sex vs safer sex
•     How many sexually active people contract STIs in their lifetime
•     Her own journey with untangling STI stigma 

What You’ll Hear:

•     Understanding that you are not alone with an STI diagnosis
•     The majority of people living with STIs are unaware of their status
•     Untangling the stigma around genital herpes
•     Understanding that STI stigma originated with stigma around sex
•     How different cultures view herpes
•     Removing the differentiation between HSV1 and HSV2
•     Examining your own views on promiscuity and what it means to be ‘good’
•     Understanding the impacts of a positive STI status and learning to communicate about it
•     Identifying the reasons why we engage in sex so we can have full agency over our choices
•     Determining how and when to disclose your STI status
•     How having an STI can increase the authenticity of relational communication
•     Giving yourself time and space to determine if you want to move forward in a sexual relationship with a positive partner
•     Remembering to embrace the pleasure of sex
•     Holding personal agency in sexual decisions
•     Finding an STI educator that fits your needs and style