(no subject)

[edeniell.livejournal.com]

Genital Warts

This is a request for any experiences with genital warts, including (if possible) a list of the things that can and cannot be safely done with a person who has genital warts, and perhaps the different risks involved with different sexual acts.

I think I have a good idea of what wouldn't be 100% safe (basically everything involving genitals), but I am just trying to gather as much information as possible. My yearly gynecological exam is coming up, so I'm planning on asking them for all the details as well.

Thanks in advance, I appreciate this community. :)

Comments

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

I thought I had genital warts for awhile, but they were misdiagnosed.

But while I thought I had them, I learned a fair bit. Especially if they're on the vulva, it's almost impossible to keep them completely covered. Any genital contact is going to have some risk. If you want to be completely safe, have any visible warts removed -- though you'll still carry the virus, and there might be invisible warts. In addition, your lovers can use gloves for handling you, and remove them before handling their own genitals. Conversely, if you're handling your own genitals, you should be careful not to get your own secretions on your hands then transfer them to your lover's genitals. That's extreme care, though. You and your partner(s) can discuss all the implications and decide what works best for you.

Of my two committed lovers, one has been with me for 7 years, and we have a fluid bond (we don't use safer sex stuff with each other except for pregnancy prevention) so we just didn't worry about it. We figured he was already totally exposed. The other one was newish at the time (it's been 2 1/2 years now) and has a separate relationship with a fluid bond to consider, and he had to protect her health as well as his own, so we were more careful. We used dental dams for oral sex, and the female condom (which covers a bit of the vulva) for intercourse. Beyond that, we just used standard safer sex. And he made sure his other partners knew that I had HPV, so they could rethink their own safer sex limits with him. My fluid-bonded partner also told any other lovers he had (which wasn't a common thing, then) that I had HPV.

(A while later, a pap smear of my vulva indicated no HPV, and my bumps were re-diagnosed as calcified sebaceous cysts.)

[edeniell.livejournal.com]

Is open-mouth kissing safe?

What about the infected person giving the non-infected person oral sex.. do you think that is safe?

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

The warts are spread by contact with the virus. As long as the warts don't exist orally (getting them orally is rare, but it can happen) wet kissing and giving oral sex (from the infected person) shouldn't be a problem.

[edeniell.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the information.. also, congrats on your mis-diagnosis. That had to be a relief.

At least I know that if we ever hooked up, I could probably get some tongue action. *evil grin*

[zulupetalz.livejournal.com]

Basically condoms don't protect against HPV aka genital warts. The thing you really have to be careful about is that HPV causes cervical cancer in women. If you know he has warts, than he also has the virus that causes those warts. Even if he treats the external warts, he still is harboring the virus that causes them. That puts you at risk for having an abnormal PAP smear in the future, getting genital warts and getting cervical cancer.

Oral sex is also unsafe because you can feasibly get warts in your mouth.

[edeniell.livejournal.com]

Thanks a lot for the info.. it sounds like the female condom might be the only relatively safe method of protection. :\