Part 2- Antiguans and Barbudans, and by implication a few other Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) countries, had somewhat of an alarm bell last month when a young man chose to confess on his dying bed, the number of men he had slept with (90).
It was obvious that this young man was confessing his sins. Perhaps he was seeking to be absolved by God in a last ditch effort to enter the kingdom of Heaven. Although confession is good for the soul, a revelation of this magnitude raises serious public health concerns.
What compounds this otherwise Christian act of wanting to see God’s face are that according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), during a man’s life time, he would have slept with an average of five women and a woman with an average of three men. While this may be a surprisingly low fact in the United States, in Antigua and Barbuda and the Caribbean, for that matter, where men validate themselves in pointing out the village stud (the man who has slept with the most women or has the most children by several different women), it is reasonable to assume that on average, an island man would bed 10 persons over his lifetime.
If this young man had sexual intercourse with 90 men, and each of the men he slept with sleeps with five men and/or women, then this young man alone may have infected indirectly 450 men or women, according to the CDC’ s average rate. But it gets even bleaker. If each of the five men or women that the 90 men who slept with this young man then sleeps with five other men or women, then that young man has infected or at the very least exposed to HIV, just over 2,250 persons.
One of our biggest problems with HIV and AIDS is that we have not been able to see what HIV/AIDS looks like in much of the Caribbean. Due to fear of rejection, and social stigma, persons who are infected continue to refuse to come forward to participate in a public heath educational effort that puts a real face on this disease. This dimension of education is sadly lacking in Antigua and Barbuda and the Caribbean, and until we are able to look at, and interact with someone living with AIDS/HIV, hear that person’s story and respond with compassion, our chances of changing our sexual behaviour will be retarded.
Part of the problem also is the fact that young people and some adults tend not to hear or see the warning signs. Most feel that their youthfulness will save them from the life-threatening consequences of reckless sexual indulgences. Many young people refuse to use a condom and would posit that sexual intercourse is more enjoyable live and direct. Others who do not wish to engage in unprotected sex are pressured to do so in response to the need to be loved and affirmed by others. There is a false belief and much guilt that if they do not engage in unprotected sex with their lovers, they do not love them.
Due to the lack of education about sex on a whole, many young men will tell you that they do not want to waste their sperm. They feel that putting on a condom is a futile exercise. For the young women who insist on the use of a condom, I am told that many men would pierce the condom while it is still in its wrapper with a needle, then unwrap it and put it on. Most do this with the intention to burst the condom during intercourse.
See related stories:
New!
Dr. Oswald R. Thomas is a Certified and Registered Clinical Hypnotherapist / Psychotherapist with the American Board of Hypnotherapy, the International Association of Counselors and Therapists, and the International Board of Medical and Dental Association. He is founder of the Thomas Center Human Development, Inc. and serves on Bronx Mental Health Committee, served on Community Board #5 in the Bronx, and the Bronx Neighborhood Planning Committee as Chair of the Youth Committee. With a Ph.D. in Psychology, a Master’s in Public Administration, and a Bachelor’s of Professional Studies in Human Services, Dr. Thomas is a counseling therapist/Behaviorist, and Professor at Metropolitan College of New York.
Download Caribarena's Android App
Click To Download
3 Comments In This Article
Flow
Life Savingn Article!
Dr Isaac Newton
We Wish
All I saying just keep it real, if you are so smart then you should pay the people back their money that you borrwo.
Sue
RSS