Celibacy the only option?

It was two and a half years ago, after having sex with a woman, that she had HPV. I thought it was no big deal because I had heard of people having it, but heard it was treatable. To the woman's credit she told me to use a condom and made sure even to put it on me. But, like a lot of guys I have trouble having an orgasim with a condom on, so I took it off thinking I would be safe. I know it was a stupid decision to make, and it was partly caused by my being under the influence of alcohol. Anyway, the woman took it very seriously when I told he I took off the condom and we never spoke after that all she said was "You don't want this."

About a year later and I had been in another sexual relationship with a woman, and in this one I had no reason to use a condom because she had an IUD device. Fear of SDI were not on my high priority list considering I had no symptoms and I was just trying to avoid being afraid. A few months later, however, I developed a small genital wart on the left side of my penis near the head, but I never spoke if it and just tried to ignore it since it didn't bother me much. I felt that she too had developed a wart in her vagina, but I said nothing about it. We broke up later for other reasons, and neither of us spoke of the wart or perhaps warts.

About six months later, I began to fel the effect of what I deemed to be HPV. Soreness in my scrotom, itchiness, sometimes sharp and stinging pain shooting down the shaft of my penis. Well you can imagin my dread at this so I visited the Doctor, and showed him my genital wart, and expained my story. He gave me some medicine called "Podilox" to get rid of the wart, but told me he didn't think I had HPV. This was obviously I misdiagnosis, but I believe it was done to settle my nerves as worry lowers the immune system. I took the medicine, and the treatment was very painful and uncomfortable, but the wart did go away. I had a small scar at first, but after swimming in the ocean for a few days the scar healed and went away to. Now I show no signs of any genital warts ot HPV. Yet, I still have some itching at times...

From all the reading I've done on the subject this itching leads me to believe I have one of the more serious forms of HPV, the kind that could cause Cancer. Yet, since their are no tests for men at this time I can't be sure. This leaves me in a state of pergatory, not knowing if I am able to be sexually active ever again, or if I should resign myself to a life of celibacy. I don't know what to do. For the last year and a half I have decided to play t safe and not be sexually active with anyone. I wish I could know if I had HPV, but right now it seems that my intuision is the only judge. All I can hope for is that my body "clears" the virus away completely one day. Until then I can't try to be with anyone, not knowing if I could be spreading a deadly STD to them.

What bugs me the most is that vaccines are availiable, but not for men, what? One good thing that has come out of this is I have become much more concerned about my health, knowing that I was taking way to many chances before this scare.

The worst part of all of this is the not knowing whether you are going to develop Cancer or give it to someone, it makes me want to join the Seminary!

A man in California, age 20-24

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