Dr. Ina Park is an associate professor of Family and Community Medicine at the University of California San Francisco, Medical Consultant at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of STD Prevention, and Medical Director of the California Prevention Training Center. Check out her new book Strange Bedfellows: Adventures in the Science, History, and Surprising Secrets of STDs to learn the untold stories of sexually transmitted infections (STIs). You can follow her on Twitter.
Inspired by her 7 year old son's candid conversations, Ina embarks on a mission with her new book to normalize talking about sex and STIs. Ina talks about the importance of moving beyond beyond the fear of stigma and STIs to make it easier to take care of our sexual health. We talk about how common STIs are, how stigma produces feelings of shame, and how stigma varies by STI diagnosis. We also discuss sexual networks in local bars, how television perpetuates stigma towards herpes (hello The Bachelor!), and how our reactions to STI disclosure can be part of the solution.
Episode hosted by Dr. Carmen Logie. Supported by funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Canada Research Chairs program. Original music and podcast produced by Jupiter Productions, who have various production services available to support your podcast needs.