Last week, on October 11th, we celebrated National Coming Out Day’s 29th Anniversary! Coming out is when you decide to share your sexual orientation or gender identity, whether it be gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender to family, friends, or others in your life. Many celebrities have taken to social media to openly reveal their sexuality, and others to support equality, and encourage the LGBTQ community that it’s ok to be yourself.

When people think or talk about condoms, they usually mean the male condom. It is called a male condom or sometimes called an external condom because it goes on the outside of the penis and is used externally. The female condom or “internal condom” goes inside a person’s body – either their vagina (if they have one!) or anus for use during anal sex.  

Teens have the power to make change.

Even if you are not old enough to vote, you can still voice your opinions and push for things you care about. If something is affecting you, your friends, family, or your community, you have the right to speak out. If you want to change something happening at your school, neighborhood or community, there are many ways you can take action to make that change happen. 

You can become an ADVOCATE for the things you believe in.

Happy World Contraception Day (WCD)! WCD is all about informing and empowering young people to make healthy decisions that are right for them, including using contraception to protect against unintended pregnancy and STDs. If you’re looking for hassle-free birth control, long acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) are the way to go. These types of contraceptives include the implant and intra-uterine device (IUD).

Next Tuesday, September 26^th, is World Contraception Day and it has us thinking a lot about birth control! While it is great that teens can get birth control and other sexual + reproductive health services for free and without a parent, sometimes it can be helpful to talk to a parent or trusted adult about these tough subjects. It may be weird to think about-but they were teens once too!

We’ve all heard things like “everyone is different” or “you are great the way you are!” but did you know, this goes for ALL your body parts too? This includes penises, vulvas, vaginas, and breasts! They come in different shapes, sizes, and colors. They may also be different on one side from the other. All of this is NORMAL!

The Trump Administration announced that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, also known as DACA, will end by March 2018. Read the story here.

Everyone deserves to be treated equally no matter their gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation. Everyone deserves equality not only at work or school but also in intimate relationships. While there are many different types of relationships, from family to friends and bosses and teachers, we are going to focus on intimate or romantic relationships. No matter what type of romantic relationship you are in, this information is the same.

August is National Immunization Month. The HPV vaccine is an important immunization that helps protect against cancer and genital warts. Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common STD in the United States. There are over 150 types of HPV. Most of the time HPV goes away on its own, but some types can cause cancer in both boys and girls and other types cause genital warts.

Finding out that you or your partner are pregnant can be exciting, scary or a mix of both! When you, a friend or partner find out about a pregnancy, there are 3 options to consider: carrying the pregnancy to term and becoming a parent, adoption , or ending the pregnancy.