the ch!cktionary

    1 Apr 2011

    Did you back up your birth control?

    The Back Up Your Birth Control campaign’s National Day of Action has come and gone. Did you back it up? My friend Rachel Kramer Bussel wrote a brave and personal piece about personal accountability and fallibility when it comes to birth control. Check out all the bloggers who wrote about their experiences.

    And if you need more reason to, the emergency contraception edition of Sex Really is now on the front page of RH Reality Check. Watch it when you get the chance :)

    30 Mar 2011

    Sex Really With Lena Chen | Back Up Your Birth Control! (via SexReally)

    Happy Back Up Your Birth Control Day! In this episode, I give the ABC’s on EC and talk about what you need to know about getting a birth control back-up plan. How many of you guys have had to use emergency contraception? And how many of you keep it on hand just in case? If you’re of the mindset that a back-up method is for “other people”, you need to watch this episode, read my Sex Really post debunking EC myths, and find out why contraceptive failure can affect anyone!

    Throughout the day, I’ll be tweeting, along with many other lovely folks, under the hashtag #BackItUp. Follow me on Twitter to see emergency contraception myths debunked. Wanna help spread the word? Reblog this post, share the short URL (http://youtu.be/BTsTiIcmBiw) on Twitter and Facebook, and send your friends a funny e-card reminding them to BACK IT UP today.

    Need free access to emergency contraception? Start by checking out Planned Parenthood, which offers sliding scale services. Run a Google search for state-funded clinics. (For example, New York City’s Health Department has confidential clinics throughout the city which offer free EC.) And if you ever need help locating affordable, local birth control or emergency contraception, email me a note (lena at lenachen dot com) with your geographic info and I’ll consult my sources! (This is a standing offer.)

    For more information about emergency contraception, visit Bedsider.org to find out your options and use the clinic locator. To learn more about the Back Up Your Birth Control National Day of Action, a campaign of the National Institute For Reproductive Health, check out the official website.

    8 Dec 2010

    What To Expect When You’re Expecting

    Poop.

    I’m just going to say it here and now, since soooo many of my female friends have expressed shock and surprise at this fact. (C’mon, we’re college grads! We should know this stuff by now.) You poop during childbirth. Almost everyone does. And there’s sometimes diarrhea beforehand, which a sign that you’re about to go into labor.

    So. The more you know! Don’t tell me I didn’t warn you when your parents turn on the video camera mid-delivery.

    Tags: sex ed.

    24 Nov 2010

    The HPV Vaccine: Risks vs. Rewards I was quoted in the November issue of Women’s Health on my experience with Gardasil, the vaccine that prevents the two strains of HPV which cause the majority of cervical cancer. (As the article notes, there are more than 100 strains of HPV.) Some quick facts about HPV: HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States, with infection rate estimates ranging from over 50 percent to nearly 80 percent of the sexually active population There is no “cure” for HPV in the traditional sense, but most strains of HPV are harmless, non-cancerous, and clear up on their own. Condoms may reduce but do NOT prevent the transmission of HPV, which is spread through skin-to-skin contact. There are usually no physical signs of HPV, though some people experience genital warts, which are easily treatable (but they are harder to detect in women than in men, because of their appearance in the vaginal canal) There are no HPV tests for men, but Gardasil has been approved for males 9-26 in hopes of preventing the spread of cancerous strains among women. In very rare instances, men may be at risk for anal or penile cancer, but typically, the disease is riskier for women. Cervical cancer is nearly 100% preventable as long as you get regular, annual pap smears to catch early precancerous cells Can anyone prevent HPV completely? Since it’s spread through skin-to-skin contact, anything — from oral sex to manual stimulation — could potentially lead to infection. Because the majority of Americans engage in premarital sexual activity, we need to be especially vigilant about our reproductive health, talk openly with our partners about our sexual history, and destigmatize the discussion of STIs. At the point where over 50 percent of Americans are dealing with HPV, it’s time to stop pointing fingers at other people and to start looking at what each of us can do individually to protect ourselves and our partners. Related posts on HPV and sexual health:Let’s Talk About (Unprotected) SexCollegeCandy: Condoms And Commitment“I thought no one would ever want me because I have/had a STD”

    The HPV Vaccine: Risks vs. Rewards

    I was quoted in the November issue of Women’s Health on my experience with Gardasil, the vaccine that prevents the two strains of HPV which cause the majority of cervical cancer. (As the article notes, there are more than 100 strains of HPV.)

    Some quick facts about HPV:

    • HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States, with infection rate estimates ranging from over 50 percent to nearly 80 percent of the sexually active population
    • There is no “cure” for HPV in the traditional sense, but most strains of HPV are harmless, non-cancerous, and clear up on their own.
    • Condoms may reduce but do NOT prevent the transmission of HPV, which is spread through skin-to-skin contact.
    • There are usually no physical signs of HPV, though some people experience genital warts, which are easily treatable (but they are harder to detect in women than in men, because of their appearance in the vaginal canal)
    • There are no HPV tests for men, but Gardasil has been approved for males 9-26 in hopes of preventing the spread of cancerous strains among women. In very rare instances, men may be at risk for anal or penile cancer, but typically, the disease is riskier for women.
    • Cervical cancer is nearly 100% preventable as long as you get regular, annual pap smears to catch early precancerous cells

    Can anyone prevent HPV completely? Since it’s spread through skin-to-skin contact, anything — from oral sex to manual stimulation — could potentially lead to infection. Because the majority of Americans engage in premarital sexual activity, we need to be especially vigilant about our reproductive health, talk openly with our partners about our sexual history, and destigmatize the discussion of STIs. At the point where over 50 percent of Americans are dealing with HPV, it’s time to stop pointing fingers at other people and to start looking at what each of us can do individually to protect ourselves and our partners.

    Related posts on HPV and sexual health:
    Let’s Talk About (Unprotected) Sex
    CollegeCandy: Condoms And Commitment
    “I thought no one would ever want me because I have/had a STD”

    (Source: womenshealthmag.com)

    12 Nov 2010

    ask lena: how can I help the cause against bullying? | gURL.com

    Do you have to be a celebrity to stop gay bullying? Absolutely not! My latest “Ask Lena” vid for gURL.com responds to a reader who wants to know how everyday teens can do their part for social justice.

    Previously on gURL:

    Talking Virginity With Therese Shechter of “How To Lose Your Virginity”
    Lena’s Advice: “I’m The Only One Of My Friends That’s Single”
    Lena’s Advice: “I Really Want A Baby And I’m 15”
    Lena’s Advice: “At 13, Am I Too Young To Have Sex?”
    Sex vs. Abstinence: Lena’s Perspective

    3 Nov 2010

    Anonymous asked: do you squirt? is it normal?

    At this point, I can’t tell if you are a 15-year-old girl trying to figure out if her body is normal or if you are a random dude with an unhealthy fixation on my G-spot. Luckily, Wikipedia, unlike yours truly, does not discriminate.

    More burning questions? Ask Lena Chen.

    Tags: Ask Lena. sex ed.

    3 Nov 2010

    Anonymous asked: Can all girls squirt?

    No.

    More burning questions? Ask Lena Chen.

    Tags: sex ed.

    3 Nov 2010

    Anonymous asked: Do you think when a girl is recieving sex anally that it is her "submissing" or "submitting"?

    “Submissing” is not — to my knowledge — a word. I also don’t think sexual acts and roles are easily categorizable. Submission implies some sort of power play, but not every act of anal intercourse is power play and not every power play involves penetration.  Even if two people engage in anal intercourse, the role of the dominant and the submissive are not determined by who gets penetrated by whom. Every hear of the term “power bottom”? Google it.

    Sexuality is diverse, and occupying a certain role (being a top/bottom/flexible) on one night with one partner doesn’t mean that you occupy that exact same role every time you have sex, even if the specific sexual act is the same. A lot of the psychological aspects of sex (including dominance) vary depending on the partners and situation, and of course, good sex is based on mutual trust, respect, and consent, regardless of who’s calling the shots in bed.

    More burning questions? Ask Lena Chen.

    3 Nov 2010

    talking about virginity with therese shechter of “how to lose your virginity!” | gURL

    We talk about giving away your “precious gift,” like your virgin status is really all you have to offer someone. When Taylor Swift sings in her song “Fifteen” that her friend ‘gave everything she had’ to a boy, it means she gave him her virginity, doesn’t it? And it ended badly because, well, if all you have is your virginity, then you’re left kinda worthless.That was EVERYTHING SHE HAD! Really, she has nothing else of value to offer this world? Like being a kind person or being good at math, or being able to run really fast? There are a lot of very excellent reasons to wait to have sex, but the fact that your virginity is the only thing of value you have to offer the world is NOT one of them.

    -Therese Shechter, director, “How To Lose Your Virginity”

    I have a great convo (now up at gURL!) with Therese, who was a panelist at my Rethinking Virginity conference in May. We talked double standards and pop cultural manifestations of the virginity myth (think: Miley Cyrus, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, etc.). Check it out!