How common is it? The number of people infected with AIDS is increasing in Blount County. Throughout the U.S.A. and especially in some parts of the world (sub-Saharan Africa and southeast Asia), AIDS is rampant, causing epidemics which may virtually wipe out some countries.

What may be the symptoms?

MALES AND FEMALES (Partial List of Symptoms)

HIV, spread from one person to another, must enter the body through a break (cut, scratch, skin irritation, “sore,” needle stick) in the skin or mucous membrane (a surface of the body not covered by skin). HIV travels to local lymph nodes, where the virus begins reproducing itself. Early in the infection, there may be non-specific symptoms resembling influenza (“flu”) or infectious mononucleosis (“mono”). For a relatively long time, the virus remains latent (hidden), living and slowly dividing in the lymph nodes without producing symptoms. This latent period may last for seven to ten years in older children and adults, but is shorter in newborn infants and older adults. Slowly, the lymph nodes (which form a major part of the body’s immune system) are destroyed by this viral infection. As the body’s immune system becomes destroyed, HIV spreads through the bloodstream to other parts of the body. Symptoms of AIDS begin appearing. Because the immune system is significantly destroyed, the person is susceptible to a variety of infections, some a nuisance but others life-threatening. Cancers may develop, especially lymphomas (lymph node malignancies) and Kaposi’s sarcoma. As the brain becomes infected, approximately half of AIDS patients develop severe neurologic disease with dementia (loss of higher brain functions). Death occurs.

What is the treatment? There is no way of eradicating HIV from the body or of curing AIDS. Intensive (many pills each day) and expensive drug therapy may slow the progress of the disease.

What is the prevention? No AIDS vaccine is available. An AIDS vaccine may not be developed for many years, if at all. Prevention rests solely on personal responsibility:

• Practice sexual abstinence until marriage.
• Enjoy monogamous sex only in marriage (sexual activity only with a spouse whom you trust to be faithful).
• Do not use illegal drugs by injection.

Don’t become a victim of AIDS and die at a young age from this infection. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

Chlamydia
(pronounced kla-MID-ee-ah)

What is the cause? Chlamydial infection is caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis.

How is it spread? Chlamydial bacteria are spread from one person to another person, usually only by sexual contact. A ONE-TIME sexual contact is sufficient to spread the disease.

How common is it? Chlamydial infection is one of the most common STDs in America. More than 4 million new cases are reported each year, but millions of more cases probably are not reported. Chlamydial infection is extremely common in Blount County. This infection is a disease of young persons, with most cases occurring in the 15-25 year age range. Among sexually active teens, approximately 15 per cent of females and 5-10 per cent of males are infected. If gonorrhea is also present, the chlamydial infection rate is approximately three times higher. Many teens are asymptomatic (free of symptoms), and the infected person does not know to seek medical help, but he or she spreads the bacteria to sex partners and the damage to the females’s reproductive tract continues.

What may be the symptoms?

MALES (Partial List of Symptoms)
URETHRITIS, causing a discharge from the urethral opening in the penis and dysuria (painful or burning urination). EPIDIDYMITIS (tenderness and swelling in the scrotum). NO SYMPTOMS, but the male unknowingly transmits the disease to his sex partners.

FEMALES (Partial List of Symptoms)

CERVICITIS (infection of the cervix, which is the opening of the uterus). URETHRITIS (painful or burning urination). PELVIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASE, or PID (spread to the internal sex organs in the pelvis). PID causes SCARRING AROUND THE REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS. When the woman later seeks to have children, she may have these complications: INFERTILITY: (difficulty in becoming pregnant), or STERILITY: (permanent inability to become pregnant), or ECTOPIC PREGNANCY: (the fertilized egg implants in the fallopian tube, instead of the uterus. Ectopic pregnancy can lead to rupture of the tube, massive internal hemorrhage, death of the developing baby, and possible death of the mother. The problem must be treated by chemotherapy drugs or surgery.) INFECTION OF HER NEWBORN INFANT: causing eye infection or pneumonia, if the infant is delivered through an infected birth canal. NO SYMPTOMS, but the female unknowingly transmits the disease to her sex partners.

What is the treatment? Antibiotics can effectively treat the infection. Early treatment is necessary to prevent lifelong complications.

What is the prevention? There is no vaccine for prevention. Prevention rests solely on personal responsibility:

• Practice sexual abstinence until marriage.
• Enjoy monogamous sex only in marriage (sexual activity only with a spouse whom you trust to be faithful).

Don’t develop a chlamydial infection and risk permanent sterility. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

Genital herpes
(Herpes genitalis)

What is the cause? Genital herpes is caused by a virus, herpes simplex virus, type 2 (HSV-2). [NOTE: HSV-2 generally causes infections below the waist. A related virus— herpes simplex virus, type 1 (HSV-1)— generally causes infections above the waist, usually of the lips and mouth. HSV-1 infections— usually fever blisters or cold sores— are NOT considered sexually transmitted diseases, although they can be spread by kissing someone with active sores or blisters.]

How is it spread? HSV-2 is spread from one person to another:

• BY SEXUAL CONTACT (in older children and adults).
• BY BEING DELIVERED THROUGH AN INFECTED BIRTH CANAL (in newborn infants).

A ONE-TIME sexual contact is sufficient to spread the disease.

How common is it? Genital (sex organ) herpes, caused by HSV-2, is common in America and in Blount County. Approximately 2 per cent of young persons and middle-aged women and up to 10 per cent of homosexual men are infected with HSV-2. Genital herpes usually begins in young adults, but reappears throughout life at all ages.

What may be the symptoms?

Genital herpes exhibits varying degrees of symptoms based on stages:

MALES AND FEMALES: PRIMARY STAGE (Partial List of Symptoms)

Any body site may become infected. In males, the penis is usually infected; in females, the cervix (opening of the uterus) is usually infected. Any break in a body surface (skin or mucous membrane) permits the virus to enter the body. At first, there may be fever, headache, malaise (sick feeling), myalgia (muscle pain), and lymphadenitis (painful lymph node enlargement). In the skin, blisters develop, which become crusted before disappearing. In mucous membranes, painful ulcers develop.

MALES AND FEMALE: LATENT STAGE (Partial List of Symptoms)
“Latent” means “hidden.” As the skin and mucous membranes heal, the virus travels along nerves, where it remains for the rest of the person’s life, ready to cause a recurrence at any time.

MALES AND FEMALES: RECURRENCE (Partial List of Symptoms)

“Recurrence” means “re-appearance.” Due to some event (for example, trauma, fever, menstruation, ultraviolet light exposure, sexual intercourse, or emotional distress), the virus moves from the nerves back onto skin or mucous membrane. During this time, the person may have no symptoms, but may unknowingly spread the virus to unsuspecting sex partners. Or, the person may have another bout of blisters and ulcers. Some persons have several recurrences per year.

NEWBORN INFANTS (Partial List of Symptoms)
An infected mother may transmit the virus to her newborn infant as the infant passes through the birth canal. The newborn infant may develop HSV encephalitis (brain infection), a most serious condition from which 90 per cent of the infants die.

What is the treatment? There is no cure for herpes, but medication may reduce the severity of recurrences.

What is the prevention? No HSV vaccine is available. Prevention of genital herpes rests solely upon personal responsibility:

• Practice sexual abstinence until marriage.
• Enjoy monogamous sex only in marriage (sexual activity only with a spouse whom you trust to be faithful).

Don’t risk a lifetime of suffering from genital herpes and don’t infect your future husband or wife or baby. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

Gonorrhea

Hepatitis B, hepatitis C

What is the cause? Two types of serious infection of the liver may occur: hepatitis B, caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C, caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV).

How is it spread? Either type of hepatitis can be spread from one person to another in any of these ways:

• By sexual contact: Any sexual contact which spreads body fluids— whether oral, vaginal, or anal/rectal; and whether male-to-female, male-to-male, or female-to-female— can spread either HBV or HCV and lead to hepatitis.
• By contaminated needles: Needles contaminated with blood containing HBV or HCV can spread the virus and lead to hepatitis. An example is sharing needles for injection of heroin. Other needles (tattoo, acupuncture, and ear-piercing equipment) may also spread HBV or HCV, if contaminated with the virus.
• Other methods of spread: HBV or HCV can be spread to healthcare workers through accidents in hospitals (although most healthcare workers are given the hepatitis B vaccine). HBV and HCV can be spread through transfusion of blood and blood products (now uncommon). HBV and HCV can be spread from an infected mother to her infant before or during delivery.

A ONE-TIME contact is sufficient to become infected.

How common is it? Hepatitis is a major health problem. In America, 1.2 million persons carry HBV, and can infect others; up to 4 million persons carry HCV, and can infect others.

What may be the symptoms?

MALES AND FEMALES (Partial List of Symptoms)

When HBV or HCV infects the body, death of liver cells occurs. Symptoms depend upon how much of and how fast the liver dies and the body’s response to the liver death. Many symptoms may be present, and may be confusing even to a well-trained physician. Some persons have no symptoms at all; some, a mild “flu-like” illness; and some, acute hepatitis, with jaundice (yellow discoloration of the skin) and other symptoms of a severe infection. Some persons with hepatitis recover completely. Some persons die with the infection soon after becoming ill. Some persons develop chronic disease, and may experience one or more of the following: becoming a carrier, always able to infect other persons; cirrhosis of the liver; bleeding from varicose veins of the esophagus, associated with cirrhosis; liver cancer; and liver failure, with death.

What is the treatment? There is no specific treatment (such as an antibiotic), once hepatitis is diagnosed. A skillful physician can reduce symptoms and the severity of the disease.

What is the prevention? There is a vaccine against hepatitis B. There is immune globulin, which can be given early after exposure to prevent infection from that single exposure. Prevention rests upon personal responsibility:

• Practice sexual abstinence until marriage.
• Enjoy monogamous sex only in marriage (sexual activity only with a spouse whom you trust to be faithful).
• Do not inject any substance into your body. Never use a shared or unsterile needle.
• Become vaccinated with the hepatitis B vaccine. Follow up with a blood test to be sure you have developed protective antibodies. (Hepatitis B vaccine offers no protection against hepatitis C.)
• Seek medical advice possibly to receive immune globulin, in case of recent exposure to hepatitis.

Don’t risk lifelong complications of hepatitis B or C. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

Human papillomavirus

What is the cause? Human papillomavirus diseases are caused by a virus— the human papillomavirus (HPV).

How is it spread? HPV is spread from one person to another usually by sexual contact. Cells infected with HPV are shed from one person and picked up on the skin or genital tract lining of another person, causing that person to become infected also. An infected male or female may have living HPV for years without any symptoms, during which time he or she unknowingly spreads the virus to his or her sex partners. A ONE-TIME sexual contact is sufficient to spread the disease.

How common is it? HPV disease is one of the most common STDs in America and in Blount County. In America, approximately 1 million new cases of HPV infection are known to occur each year, but the true number of infections is probably much higher. Up to 30 per cent of females in some areas are infected with HPV, although many of them don’t know they are infected.

What may be the symptoms?

MALES (Partial List of Symptoms)
NO SYMPTOMS, but the male unknowingly spreads the virus to his sex partners. VENEREAL WARTS, warts on the skin of the penis, scrotum, thighs, and anus. (NOTE: Certain types of warts that occur on the hand and elsewhere do not represent a sexually transmitted disease.)

FEMALES (Partial List of Symptoms)

NO SYMPTOMS, but the female unknowingly spreads the virus to her sex partners. VENEREAL WARTS, warts on the skin of the genital tract (vulva), thighs, or anus or on the mucosa of the vagina or cervix (opening of the uterus, or womb). (NOTE: Certain types of warts that occur on the hand and elsewhere do not represent a sexually transmitted disease.) CELLULAR ATYPIA, various cellular abnormalities diagnosed by Pap smear or colposcopy, in which cells of the lining of the birth canal become more and more abnormal and ultimately lead to cancer, if not treated. CANCER OF THE CERVIX, VAGINA, OR VULVA, resulting from untreated cellular atypia.

What is the treatment? There is no easy cure, such as taking an antibiotic. Treatment depends upon removal of the HPV-infected tissue from the infected sex organ. Such removal may include surgery or destruction of the infected tissue by laser or freezing. Since the infection is chronic, multiple expensive treatments over many years may be required to prevent cancer. The treatment can cause a condition, called INCOMPETENT CERVIX, which causes the opening of the cervix not to be tight enough to keep the developing baby inside the uterus, and miscarriage (death of the baby) may occur.

What is the prevention? There is no vaccine for prevention. Prevention rests solely on personal responsibility:

• Practice sexual abstinence until marriage.
• Enjoy monogamous sex only in marriage (sexual activity only with a spouse whom you trust to be faithful).

Don’t risk a lifetime of HPV infection and its complications. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

Syphilis

What is the cause? Syphilis is caused by a bacterium, Treponema pallidum.

How is it spread? In older children and adults, syphilis is contracted almost exclusively by sexual contact. In newborn infants, syphilis is contracted by the baby passing through an infected birth canal during delivery. A ONE-TIME sexual contact is sufficient to spread the disease.

How common is it? Syphilis is common in America and in parts of Tennessee, but is fairly uncommon in Blount County.

What may be the symptoms?

MALES AND FEMALES (Partial List of Symptoms)

Skin or a mucous membrane (a covering of any body surface not covered by skin) may become infected, if it comes in contact with syphilis bacteria. Because syphilis is a STD, genital (sex) organs, anus, mouth, and pharynx (throat) are infected most commonly. Syphilis begins as the primary stage, and, if untreated, passes into other stages. Symptoms depend upon the stage: FIRST STAGE— PRIMARY SYPHILIS: Within two to three weeks of exposure, an ulcer of the skin or mucous membrane develops. This ulcer is called a chancre (pronounced, shang-kerr). The chancre causes no pain. If the chancre occurs in the cervix or vagina, the female probably does not realize she is infected. If antibiotic treatment is not received, the chancre heals by itself in three to eight weeks, but the infection passes into the next stage. SECOND STAGE— DISSEMINATED SYPHILIS: Four to ten weeks after the chancre appears, a flat (not raised) skin rash occurs, which later becomes a raised rash. Individual lesions of the rash may measure up to an inch in diameter. The rash affects the skin of the body and extremities, including the skin of the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. If antibiotic treatment is not received, the rash disappears in three to twelve weeks, but the infection passes into the next stage. THIRD STAGE— LATENT SYPHILIS: An untreated infection passes into a latent (hidden) stage. The infection may re-appear at any time during this stage. One-fourth of infected persons have their symptoms re-appear during the first year or two of infection. FOURTH STAGE— TERTIARY SYPHILIS: An untreated infection causes a chronic syphilis infection of the nervous system (neurosyphilis), with devastating symptoms and impairment. Neurosyphilis develops within two to twenty years after the primary syphilis stage.

NEWBORN INFANTS (Partial List of Symptoms)
A mother infected with syphilis during her pregnancy may transmit the bacteria to her developing baby, with devastating results.

What is the treatment? Antibiotics can successfully treat the infection. Early treatment is necessary to prevent serious complications, including neurosyphilis.

What is the prevention? There is no vaccine for prevention. Prevention rests solely on personal responsibility:

• Practice sexual abstinence until marriage.
• Enjoy monogamous sex only in marriage (sexual activity only with a spouse whom you trust to be faithful).

Don’t risk serious complications of syphilis. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

What is “safe sex”?
The truth about condoms, contraceptive (birth control) medications, spermicides, and abstinence until marriage

How many times have you heard the term “safe sex”? If you’re like most teens, you’ve heard it so often you probably think you know what it is.

If you ask a group of teens what “safe sex” is, most of them will say that it is sex protected by a condom. This answer is wrong, but it’s understandable why they will give the wrong answer. Through a combination of political correctness, desire to use the most expedient method of protection available, and through ignorance, the government and the news media have spread the message that safe sex equals sex with a condom. This message is a misrepresentation. While sex with a condom is safer sex, it certainly is not completely safe.

While the government has been promoting the safe-sex-through-condom-use message, examine the statistics compiled by the same government. Following an intensive, multi-billion dollar federal government education campaign to persuade all Americans to wear condoms during sex, the following have occurred:

• Sexually transmitted diseases in teens have continued to increase,
• Pregnancy in unwed teens remains the highest of any developed nation on the world,
• Death rates from AIDS spiral upward and out of control, and
• The abortion rate remains alarmingly high.

The government can claim little success in its condom-use educational campaign. We won’t put all of the statistics here because they would fill up this Web site, but you know how to surf the Web. Check these statements out, if you don’t believe us.

There is only one way to be sure of safe sex. Practice sexual abstinence (don’t have sex) before marriage, marry someone you can trust, and demand that both of you remain faithful to each other during marriage.

Let’s summarize the ways suggested for safe sex:

Compare the methods, and you’ll immediately recognize that sexual abstinence until marriage is the ONLY smart, safe sexual practice for you as an unmarried teen. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

Reproductive impairment caused by STDs

STDs are spread by the act of reproduction— sexual intercourse. It should not be surprising that some STDs will interfere with your ability to bear children in the future.

The sad truth is that a thirty-minute sexual encounter in the back seat of a car with someone whose name you will not even remember next year can prevent you from having any children for the next thirty years. Thirty minutes of “fun” now in exchange for thirty years of heartbreak in the future— is it worth it?

The following are impairments of reproduction that may follow from some STDs:

• INFERTILITY: Reproductive-tract scarring may cause a person, especially a female, to have extreme difficulty in achieving pregnancy when married. An infertile couple may need to resort to expensive medical procedures to implant a fertilized ovum (egg) into the wife’s uterus (womb).
• STERILITY: Reproductive tract scarring may cause a person, especially a female, to be unable to ever become pregnant when married.
• ECTOPIC PREGNANCY: Reproductive tract scarring may cause an ovum (egg) fertilized by the husband to implant in the wife’s fallopian tube, rather than the uterus. This condition is called “ectopic (or tubal) pregnancy.” An ectopic pregnancy cannot be successfully carried to term in a fallopian tube. After a few weeks of pregnancy, the developing baby and placenta cause the tube to swell to a size it cannot maintain. Like a balloon with too much air, the swollen tube suddenly ruptures (breaks open). A ruptured ectopic pregnancy is a true medical emergency. After rupture, the developing baby certainly dies, and the mother will die from hemorrhage unless she can be rushed to a hospital capable of providing emergency blood transfusions and immediate surgery to remove the ruptured, hemorrhaging tube. Ectopic pregnancy can also be treated without surgery, if diagnosed at a very early stage of the pregnancy. Non-surgical treatment requires the use of chemotherapy drugs and frequent blood tests to assure safety. Even with non-surgical treatment, the risk of rupture of the tube with life-threatening hemorrhage still exists.
• MISCARRIAGE: A STD may cause a woman to have a miscarriage. STD infection of the developing baby may cause him or her to die in the mother’s uterus (womb), and the dead baby is expelled as a miscarriage. Also, repeated treatment of a cervical STD may make the cervix incompetent (unable to stay closed during pregnancy), and the developing baby is delivered many weeks too soon and dies.
• INFECTION OF AN UNBORN BABY: A STD may infect an unborn baby, causing him or her to be gravely ill at birth or to die.

Don’t jeopardize your ability to become a parent in your future marriage. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR! Also, your sexual actions today can deprive your future spouse of having children. YOUR FUTURE SPOUSE AND YOUR FUTURE CHILDREN ARE WORTH WAITING FOR!

Role of alcohol and other drug use: Impairment of judgment

People use and abuse alcohol and other drugs because these chemical substances alter the way the mind (brain) functions. One of the mind alterations is impairment of judgment.

Males: With impaired judgment, a young man on a date becomes sexually more aggressive and may force sex— and, may even commit rape— which he would not do, if his judgment were not impaired.

Females: With impaired judgment, a young woman on a date may submit to sex which she would not do, if her judgment were not impaired.

Important warnings:

• Date-rape drugs: Certain drugs, commonly called “date-rape drugs,” are used by some young men to cause their dates to loss consciousness, after which they rape their dates. These drugs can cause death or permanent brain damage. A young man responsible for using these drugs may be convicted of a felony— rape, with or without homicide, depending on the outcome— and may spend many years in prison. A young woman must always be aware of her company, should select dates of good character, and should never accept any beverage or food which she suspects might have a date-rape drug added.
• Safety considerations: Even if date rape does not occur, an automobile driver impaired by alcohol or other drugs is definitely a safety hazard. You should never accept a ride, if the driver is impaired or under the influence of alcohol or other drugs. If your driver-date begins drinking or using drugs, call your parents, a taxi, the police, or someone else who can drive you home safely.
• Legal defense issues: You cannot use as a legal defense that you caused a crime (rape, for example) because you had used alcohol or other drugs and were impaired. You are responsible for all of your actions, whether sober, drunk, or stoned. Also, think of your defense in court if you raped and possibly killed a young woman after mixing her soft drink with a date-rape drug. Do you think you can convince twelve Blount County jurors— most of whom are fathers and mothers— that giving the young woman an illegal drug to cause her to lose consciousness so that you could rape her was only a “boys-will-be-boys” prank and that you should not be sent to prison?

Don’t ruin your life or someone else’s life through the use of alcohol and other drugs. YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

Role of pornography (mind over body)

Someone has said that a human’s most powerful sex organ is located between his or her ears. That is, all sexual desire, all initiation of sex, and all refusal of or consent for sex begins in the mind (brain).

Pornography greatly increases the desire for sex. Visual images are especially powerful in causing a person to desire sex and even act out his or her desires by finding a sexual partner. Pornography’s relation to sexual behavior is a classic example of “mind over body.”

If you are truly serious about remaining abstinent until marriage, you should avoid pornography completely. Soft porn and hard-core pornography are everywhere— on the Internet, in movies, on television, in magazines, in music, and in books.

Avoid pornography, and you will find it much easier to remain abstinent. Do not let popular celebrities with low moral standards drag you down to their level because YOU’RE WORTH WAITING FOR!

How to get medical evaluation and treatment

IF YOU SUSPECT YOU HAVE A SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASE (STD), IT IS CRITICALLY IMPORTANT THAT YOU OBTAIN A DIAGNOSIS IMMEDIATELY AND RECEIVE APPROPRIATE TREATMENT. Prompt treatment of a STD may prevent serious, lifelong complications from developing.

These options are available to you in Blount County:

• For free evaluation and treatment:
  • Blount County Health Department
    Call 983-4582, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Tell the receptionist that you think you may have a STD, and ask for an appointment. You will be evaluated by medical personnel, and will receive testing for gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, and HIV/AIDS. If a STD is found, you will receive treatment.
• For evaluation and treatment at reduced fees:
  • Good Samaritan Clinic
    Call 983-9802. Tell the receptionist you think you may have a STD, and ask for an appointment. You will be evaluated by medical personnel, and, if necessary, receive treatment. Fees for treatment will be reduced, based on your ability to pay.
• For evaluation and treatment at regular fees:
  • Call your personal physician’s office. Tell the receptionist you think you may have a STD, and ask for an appointment.

When you receive medical evaluation and treatment, all aspects of your visit are confidential (will not be told to your parents).

Pregnancy

Pregnancy options: A common outcome of sexual activity in unmarried teens is pregnancy.

If you become pregnant, you have two options:

• ABORTION: You may submit to an abortion, which means that your unborn baby will be killed and suctioned or scraped from your uterus (womb).
• DELIVERY: You may carry the pregnancy to term and give birth to your child.
  After delivery, you have two options:
  • CHILD-REARING: If you keep your newborn son or daughter, you may rear him or her as if you were married. You should understand that there may be hardships, such as not choosing to go (or delaying to go) to college, reduced income, and the possibility of requiring welfare assistance. However, many single moms raise their children and make successful lives for themselves. IMPORTANT NOTE: If you do keep your child, consult an attorney (look in the yellow pages of the telephone book, if you do not know an attorney) to discuss the option of filing a paternity suit. Any male who fathers a child is legally responsible to assist with financial support of the child until the child is eighteen years old (or, in some instances, completes college).
  • ADOPTION: There is a shortage of adoptable children, and many wonderful couples would feel blessed to adopt your son or daughter. Your adopted child would be placed in a safe, loving home with parents who would love him or her as their own and who would provide all necessities, luxuries, and an education for him or her.

Pregnancy counseling: For help in diagnosing whether you are pregnant and counseling about options other than abortion, contact:

• In Blount County: PREGNANCY RESOURCE CENTER:
  Call 977-8378.
  To read more about the Pregnancy Resource Center, contact:
  http://www.prcbc.com/; OR
• Outside of Blount County: Consult the yellow pages of your local telephone book under “Abortion Alternatives” for your nearest pregnancy resource center; OR
• Outside of Blount County: Contact PREGNANCY CENTERS ONLINE http://www.pregnancycenters.org/ for a list of pregnancy resource centers throughout the country; OR
• For anonymous advice by telephone:
  Call toll-free BETHANY CHRISTIAN SERVICES: 1-800-BETHANY (1-800-238-4269); AND
• YOUR PERSONAL PHYSICIAN for diagnosis and prenatal obstetrical care.

Assistance for unmarried pregnant teens: There is help for unmarried pregnant teens. The Florence Crittenton Agency, Inc., is a residential home where the pregnant teen can receive all medical care for her and her newborn infant through the University of Tennessee Medical Center, Knoxville; parenting classes; continuation of high school education; group and individual counseling, as needed; and drug rehabilitation, as needed. All room and board and medical care costs are provided. After your baby is delivered, you may keep your baby or you may place him or her for adoption. If needed, contact:

• THE FLORENCE CRITTENTON AGENCY, INC., in Knox County:
  Call 602-2021.
  To read more about the Florence Crittenton Agency, Inc., contact:
  www.korrnet.org/fca

Emotional consequences of sexual activity:
How to get help

Sexual matters may cause emotional distress: You may be hurting emotionally, feel guilty, or be depressed because you have had sex, are or have been pregnant, have had an abortion, have or have had an infection, or for other reasons associated with sexual activity. Such feelings are not uncommon in teens.

Don’t be ashamed that you have these feelings. But, don’t let them linger or worsen into something worse, such as thoughts of suicide. There are many people and agencies ready to help you right now. Don’t hesitate to ask for help. The main thing is get good help and get it immediately. Life is too good not to enjoy every minute of it.

Possible sources of help: We will not try to give you advice on how to handle your emotional distress, but we will suggest a few resources for you to receive help. You may think of other resources on your own.

• PARENTS, GRANDPARENTS, OR OTHER TRUSTED FAMILY MEMBERS: Consider discussing your problems with a trusted family member. You may be surprised at the depth of unconditional love the relative has for you— love based on who you are, not what you have done. —OR—
• SCHOOL RESOURCES: Consider discussing your problems with someone at school— a teacher, your principal, a school nurse, or a guidance counselor. These professionals deal with teens every day. They probably have already talked to and helped other teens with exactly the same problem you think is uniquely yours. —OR—
• RELIGIOUS LEADERS: Consider discussing your problems with your minister (pastor), priest, or rabbi. Any conversation you have with your spiritual leader is privileged (that is, it will remain confidential and will not be told to your parents). You will find that men and women of faith believe that all persons are sinners and that God has provided us with specific ways for receiving forgiveness of sin. —OR—
• PERSONAL PHYSICIAN: Consider discussing your problems with your personal physician. Any conversation with your physician is privileged (that is, it will remain confidential and will not be told to your parents). Your physician may be able to give you short-term medication to relieve your symptoms or provide or arrange for counselling. —OR—
• COMMUNITY AGENCIES: Consider discussing your problems with agencies set up to help teens in distress. Some of these agencies— including suicide-prevention crisis agencies— are:
  • Emergency assistance: 911
  • Contact Ministries, Inc., Hotline: 523-9124 (Area code: 865)
  • Mental Health Center Crisis Hotline: 588-2936 (Area code: 865)

Child support

WARNING FOR YOUNG MEN: If your sexual conduct results in your becoming the father of a child (even if you are under 18 years old when you fathered the child), the courts will require you to provide child support for that child until he or she is 18 years old (and in some instances until he or she completes college). Child support is presently 21 per cent of your income for one child, and more for two or more children. Modern DNA technology can prove without doubt whether you are the father.

ADVICE FOR YOUNG WOMEN: If you become pregnant, you will need financial support for your child. The law provides for child support and expects you to obtain this support from the father, rather than tax-supported welfare rolls.

• PARENTAL GUIDANCE: Keep your parent(s) involved in events during this critical time of your life. You need love and support, as well as the advice of older, more experienced persons.
• ATTORNEY CONSULTATION: Contact an attorney (yellow pages of the telephone book, if you do not know an attorney), who will file a paternity suit on your behalf. It is the responsibility of the father to support his child to the child’s maturity, unless he can prove his innocence through genetic (DNA) testing.

Legal financial assistance: If you do not have the money to pay for an attorney, contact the State of Tennessee Child Support Division. This agency can assist you in a paternity suit and in obtaining child support, at no cost to you. The telephone number of the Blount County Child Support Division office is 981-2373.

IMPORTANT: BNHE does not offer legal advice. Consult an attorney for legal advice and for any legal proceeding you may wish to pursue.

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Rape

WARNING FOR YOUNG MEN: You commit rape if you force another person to have sex with you against that person’s will. Rape can be committed against females or males. Rape can be committed with or without the use of a weapon. Impaired judgment due to the use of alcohol or other drugs by you or the victim is not a legal defense.

No always means no: If the person you want to have sex with says “NO,” you had better respect this protest. “NO” never means “YES” or “MAYBE” If you don’t understand the word “NO,” you may have many years in prison to think about what “NO” means. In prison, you may also have the opportunity of trying to convince your cell mate what “NO” means.

Prison sentence: Conviction of forcible (aggravated) rape can carry a sentence of 15 to 60 years in prison. Even if you are a minor (less than 18 years old), you can be tried as an adult and receive the full prison sentence.

Advice for a rape victim:

• Get to safety as soon as possible. Anyone who has raped you has committed a crime (a felony). You should seriously consider cooperating with full prosecution of the rapist. If you let the rapist “get by” with raping you because you know him, or feel sorry for him, or because you were wearing suggestive clothes, the rapist may become bolder and may rape others in the community since he was not punished for the first rape. There is no excuse for rape, and a civilized society cannot permit rapists to roam the streets. Rape has nothing to do with love or sex. Rape is only about violence, hatred, lack of respect of the victim as a person, and the need of a stronger person to control a weaker victim. Do not be ashamed to report the rape. The rapist has committed the crime. You, as the victim, have done nothing wrong and have nothing to be ashamed of.
• Report the rape immediately to law authorities and receive a medical and scientific evaluation for rape. You can withdraw your prosecution of the rapist at a later date with the permission of the District Attorney’s office, if you wish, but you cannot obtain medical evaluation for rape at a later date.
• Report the rape to the local law authorities having jurisdiction where you were raped. If you are uncertain about the jurisdiction, choose one of the authorities you think might have jurisdiction. The officers will determine agency jurisdiction after you report the crime. See also How To Contact Others.
• Collection of evidence for the rapist’s trial is critical. Especially critical is the collection of the rapist’s semen. Do not bathe or shower after the rape. Do not discard any condom the rapist may have used. Do not change your clothes or underclothes, especially your panties. Do not brush any of the rapist’s hairs, including pubic hairs, from your body or clothing. Do not remove any of the rapist’s skin fragments, if present, from under your fingernails.
• Request that an officer meet you at or take you to a hospital emergency room. The officer’s presence will be needed to take direct custody (possession) of evidence so that the rapist’s trial cannot be dismissed on a technicality. The officer will also need to take a statement from you so that the rapist can be arrested as quickly as possible.
• Insist that the emergency room physician or another physician (for example, a gynecologist) perform a complete rape evaluation. This evaluation should include photography of any trauma (bruises, scratches); evaluation of your clothing; and collection of any semen, hair, or fingernail scraping samples. Insist upon— and do not take “No” for an answer— that genetic (DNA) testing be performed on semen or other suitable samples. DNA testing can establish conclusively the identity of your rapist.
• Understand that you may experience an emotional roller coaster after the rape. Don’t hesitate to seek comfort and advice from your parents; other trusted family members; or your minister (pastor), priest, or rabbi. Have faith that your emotional distress will heal in time.
• You may need counseling to sort out your emotions. Don’t be ashamed to seek and receive help from experts.
• You may want also to seek assistance from groups set up to help rape victims. One such group is:
  Sexual Assault Crisis Center
  Call: 522-7273 (24-hour crisis line).
  Web site: www.cs.utk.edu/~bartley/sacc/sacc.html
• The local district attorney general will represent your legal interests in court and will conduct prosecution of the rapist. You can decline to have the rapist’s prosecution move forward through a trial, with the permission of the District Attorney’s office, but discuss carefully your options with the attorney general and your parents. Remember, an unpunished rapist is left free in society to rape again.

IMPORTANT: BNHE does not offer legal advice. Consult the district attorney general, in conjunction with a parent or both parents, for legal advice and for any prosecution you may wish to pursue.

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Date rape

WARNING FOR YOUNG MEN: You commit date rape if you force sex with a date, or with someone you know, or with someone you meet in a social setting (such as a party) against that person’s will. Date rape can be committed against females or males. Date rape can be committed with or without use of a weapon. Impaired judgment due to the use of alcohol or other drugs by you or the victim is not a legal defense.

No always means no: If your date says “NO” to having sex with you, you had better respect this protest. “NO” never means “YES” or “MAYBE.” If you don’t understand the word “NO,” you may have many years in prison to think about what “NO” means. In prison, you may also have the opportunity of trying to convince your cell mate what “NO” means.

Prison sentence: Conviction of date rape typically carries a sentence of 8 to 30 years in prison, but in some cases conviction may carry the full sentence of aggravated rape (15 to 60 years in prison).

Even if you are a minor (less than 18 years old), you can be tried as an adult and receive the full prison sentence.

WARNING FOR BOTH YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN: A male may mix a “date-rape drug” in his date’s drinks. These drugs cause the date to lose consciousness, at which time the male rapes his defenseless date. Unfortunately, the drugged date may die or sustain severe brain damage from the drug.

• WARNING FOR YOUNG WOMEN: Don’t accept a drink or food from a date unless you are certain it is safe and you trust your date.
• WARNING FOR YOUNG MEN: Putting aside issues of personal morality and concerns of safety for your date, think about your trial for date rape in which you have used a date-rape drug. Do you want to explain to twelve Blount County jurors— most of whom are fathers and mothers— that you thought it would be “fun” to slip a drug in your date’s drink so that she would become unconscious and you could rape her without her knowledge? Think which way the 12-0 jury vote will go!

Advice for date-rape victims:

• Get to safety as soon as possible. Anyone who has raped you has committed a crime (a felony). You should seriously consider cooperating with full prosecution of the rapist. If you let the rapist “get by” with raping you because you know him, or feel sorry for him, or engaged in kissing or petting before the rape, or because you were wearing suggestive clothes, the rapist may become bolder and may rape others in the community since he was not punished for the first rape. Even if you were kissing or petting, your date must respect your wishes when you tell him the activity must stop and not proceed to sex. There is no excuse for rape, and a civilized society cannot permit rapists to roam the streets. Rape has nothing to do with love or sex. Rape is nothing but violence, hatred, lack of respect, and the need of a stronger person to control a weaker victim. Do not be ashamed to report the rape. The rapist has committed the crime. You, as the victim, have done nothing wrong and have nothing to be ashamed of.
• Report the rape immediately to law authorities and receive a medical and scientific evaluation for rape. You can withdraw your prosecution of the rape at a later date, if you wish, but you cannot obtain medical evaluation for rape at a later date.
• Report the date rape to the local law authorities having jurisdiction where you were raped. If you are uncertain about the jurisdiction, choose one of the authorities you think might have jurisdiction. The officers will determine agency jurisdiction after you report the crime. See also How To Contact Others.
• Collection of evidence for the rapist’s trial is critical. Especially critical is the collection of the rapist’s semen. Do not bathe or shower after the rape. Do not discard any condom the rapist may have used. Do not change your clothes or underclothes, especially your panties. Do not brush any of the rapist’s hairs, including pubic hairs, from your body or clothing. Do not remove any of the rapist’s skin fragments, if present, from under your fingernails.
• Request that an officer meet you at or take you to a hospital emergency room. The officer’s presence will be needed to take direct custody (possession) of