Get your throat swabbed.

[Yeahman]

Test regularly, and use common sense. A load of cum in your mouth and throat is LESS safe than simply sucking, but both could transmit. I have heard conflicting things on the use of post-oral gargling, but someone above posted: https://www.menshealth.com/health/a19534807/listerine-and-gonorrhea/

 

I do use mouthwash daily. I don’t get cocks to suck very often. Only once a few years really because I am scared of STD.

[+ FrankR]

You can easily contract and transmit Chlamydia and Herpes even if you use a condom for anal. Isn't that enough risk for one encounter? And Herpes is forever.

Very true, but let’s not scare folks with incomplete information on a quick post. Know the facts - if you are worried, spend 30 minutes and do some online research; suggest you start with the CDC. As for Herpes, take a chill pill and watch the clip below...

[LivingnLA]

I love sucking hot dudes. Overwhelmingly worried about getting STD, but really don’t enjoy a plastic wrapped up cock. What are my options?

 

@Yeahman, use common sense. Talk to the guy enough to get a sense of how he views safety. Does he get tested regularly? Does he get sucked off frequently by different guys?

 

STDs are a matter of probabilities. MSM (Men who have Sex with Men) are a high risk category for pretty much every known STD. So, you're already playing with fire. Having said that, some mitigating circumstances:

 

NOTE: Some of these are controversial and may fire up some forum members. *wearing flameproof jockstrap*

 

1. When was he last tested? Comprehensively, not just a lame urine/blood screen. Frequency is key. A sexually active adult male in a developed nation should be tested at least annually. The frequency depends on risk factors. Personally, I get tested every 6 months even though I am very careful. People on PrEP are supposed to test every 3 months. Reputable porn stars are tested monthly or more depending on the studio.

 

2. How often does he engage in high risk behavior? MSM is a high risk activity. Escorting is a high risk activity. Sex without condoms is a medium to high risk activity. Is he being sucked off weekly by a different person? That's a high risk activity. Does he go to bathhouses, sex clubs, or cruise adult bookstores? Those are all high risk activities. Is he fucking "anon on all fours door unlocked" guys? That's a very high risk activity.

 

3. Does he have his vaccinations? How aware of the risks is he?

 

4. Certain geographic areas have much higher risks than others for one or more STDs. Certain demographic groups have significantly higher rates of infection for some STDs. Know your risks.

 

5. Know your body well. Know what various STDs look like and also that most men are asymptomatic (no symptoms) for most STDs. So, if you're sucking a cock, did you look at it before you swallowed it? Any marks on it? Does it smell funky? Is there puss when you squeeze it? These help you identify likely infections, but recognize most men have no external symptoms when they're infected.

 

6. If you're going to suck cock without a condom, you are playing the odds and will possibly get one or more STDs during your cock-sucking career. If you feel like you have a scratchy throat more than 4 days after deep throating a guy, you may want to go to your doctor. Keep in mind though, that STD tests don't have great success detecting infections so early. Typically, the rule of thumb is at least 7 days and more likely 14-21 days following the date of infection. HIV and HSV though require a month or more before even the best tests might reliably discover an infection. Educate yourself. Know the false positive and false negative rates for STD testing.

 

7. Lastly, I would encourage you to educate yourself on the demographic & geographic high risk areas and avoid ever having unprotected sexual contact with anyone within those groups without a high degree of trust and confidence in them and their safer sex practices.

 

Yes, this is a lot to consider and I get how difficult it is sometimes. But, we are all adults and it's our job to decide how we want to live and do so as responsibly as possible. If you're a single man, your risk profile looks different than if you're a married man who still has sex with his spouse. I am in the latter group, so I take my safety pretty damn seriously because it would personally devastate me if I ever brought something home. Know yourself. Know your risks. Live accordingly.

Edited November 21, 2018 by LivingnLA

[caliguy]

@Yeahman, use common sense. Talk to the guy enough to get a sense of how he views safety. Does he get tested regularly? Does he get sucked off frequently by different guys?

 

STDs are a matter of probabilities. MSM (Men who have Sex with Men) are a high risk category for pretty much every known STD. So, you're already playing with fire. Having said that, some mitigating circumstances:

 

NOTE: Some of these are controversial and may fire up some forum members. *wearing flameproof jockstrap*

 

1. When was he last tested? Comprehensively, not just a lame urine/blood screen. Frequency is key. A sexually active adult male in a developed nation should be tested at least annually. The frequency depends on risk factors. Personally, I get tested every 6 months even though I am very careful. People on PrEP are supposed to test every 3 months. Reputable porn stars are tested monthly or more depending on the studio.

 

2. How often does he engage in high risk behavior? MSM is a high risk activity. Escorting is a high risk activity. Sex without condoms is a medium to high risk activity. Is he being sucked off weekly by a different person? That's a high risk activity. Does he go to bathhouses, sex clubs, or cruise adult bookstores? Those are all high risk activities. Is he fucking "anon on all fours door unlocked" guys? That's a very high risk activity.

 

3. Does he have his vaccinations? How aware of the risks is he?

 

4. Certain geographic areas have much higher risks than others for one or more STDs. Certain demographic groups have significantly higher rates of infection for some STDs. Know your risks.

 

5. Know your body well. Know what various STDs look like and also that most men are asymptomatic (no symptoms) for most STDs. So, if you're sucking a cock, did you look at it before you swallowed it? Any marks on it? Does it smell funky? Is there puss when you squeeze it? These help you identify likely infections, but recognize most men have no external symptoms when they're infected.

 

6. If you're going to suck cock without a condom, you are playing the odds and will possibly get one or more STDs during your cock-sucking career. If you feel like you have a scratchy throat more than 4 days after deep throating a guy, you may want to go to your doctor. Keep in mind though, that STD tests don't have great success detecting infections so early. Typically, the rule of thumb is at least 7 days and more likely 14-21 days following the date of infection. HIV and HSV though require a month or more before even the best tests might reliably discover an infection. Educate yourself. Know the false positive and false negative rates for STD testing.

 

7. Lastly, I would encourage you to educate yourself on the demographic & geographic high risk areas and avoid ever having unprotected sexual contact with anyone within those groups without a high degree of trust and confidence in them and their safer sex practices.

 

Yes, this is a lot to consider and I get how difficult it is sometimes. But, we are all adults and it's our job to decide how we want to live and do so as responsibly as possible. If you're a single man, your risk profile looks different than if you're a married man who still has sex with his spouse. I am in the latter group, so I take my safety pretty damn seriously because it would personally devastate me if I ever brought something home. Know yourself. Know your risks. Life accordingly.

Yep. Demographics are the key. Simple things like staying away from guys that have PNP in their profiles. As a former Partier I can tell you that it's EXTREMELY risky to hook up with them. They pick up std's like a sponge. Also groups and sex clubs are another great way of picking up std's.

 

Age and maturity play another big part. Of course that is in the escorts favor. Lets face it. Who's more of a risk? Some twenty something that's fucking like a rabbit on Grindr/Scruff or some middle aged guy who has sex every once in a while which would define most clients. Just having sex with clients is a new definition of safe sex.

 

Lastly, fewer sex partners. Having regulars is a great way to cut down on risk.

Edited November 20, 2018 by caliguy

[+ FrankR]

Age and maturity play another big part. Of course that is in the escorts favor. Lets face it. Who's more of a risk? Some twenty something that's fucking like a rabbit on Grindr/Scruff or some middle aged guy who has sex every once in a while which would define most clients. Just having sex with clients is a new definition of safe sex.

 

Lastly, fewer sex partners. Having regulars is a great way to cut down on risk.

Actually, according to the CDC younger people are having less sexual intercourse as compare to the older generation (us) at that same age. This was reported in The Atlantic recently. Most days I see more middle age guys on Scruff. I guess it could just be my location.

[+ Funguy]

Where might one go, let's say in LA, to get all the appropriate swabs and tests for possible STDs? I doubt if my primary care provider would be the best choice.

 

LA has a Gay and Lesbian Center In West Hollywood.

[SROSFanboy]

I often chuckle at how focused people, especially younger guys, are about contracting HIV - even to the point of posting ads for a J/O buddy, and saying DDF or safe only - for crying out loud, how much safer an activity can you engage in than J/O side by side?!? And, in the case of oral, because of this obsession with HIV, they don't even think about the laundry list of other STDs they are a thousand times more likely to contract by having oral sex. I think, also, that if I see this "DDF" expression one more time I'm going to scream - all they really want is for someone to TELL them they're "DDF" and they're good to go and ready to jump into any unsafe act you can imagine. In our time of enhanced information availability, and medical knowledge that's light years ahead of where it was even 30-35 years ago, I really wonder how there can still be so many misinformed people walking around? One blatant example of this is how the expressions "AIDS" and "HIV" are still often treated as synonymous, while they can represent two vastly different levels of illness, depending on how eroded the immune system is.

[+ E.T.Bass]

LA has a Gay and Lesbian Center In West Hollywood.

Does it focus mainly on HIV testing? I'll check.

[LivingnLA]

Where might one go, let's say in LA, to get all the appropriate swabs and tests for possible STDs? I doubt if my primary care provider would be the best choice.

 

http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/dhsp/STDClinics.htm

 

California's public clinics do comprehensive testing.

[LivingnLA]

Oh and regarding the gargling claim, sorry I forgot to address it above.

 

That's a very old claim from the original creator of Listerine.

 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tarahaelle/2016/12/21/got-gonorrhoea-try-gargling-with-listerine-no-really/#1657d2f37930

 

A very small study found that the original claim (gargling with Listerine cured gonorrhea) was false, duh! But, another very small study found gargling for 1 minute as far back in the throat as possible with Listerine (or a chemically identical generic) alcohol-based mouthwash reduced gonorrhea transmission.

 

In other words, a responsible cocksucker, would gargle for 1 minute as deeply as possible with undiluted Listerine alcohol-based mouthwash before and after performing oral sex to reduce the chances of spreading gonorrhea.