Some college kids have sex, some don’t. Either is fine, but both should know the facts.
Emily Hegg is the health and wellness promotion coordinator at North Dakota State’s student health services.
“Health and wellness has always been a passion of mine,” Hegg said. “(Students are) open-minded willing to learn, love new things, so that brings fun into every day.”
Hegg said she is a big believer in peer to peer education because it’s a good model to share this type of information.
Relationship tips
Hegg emphasized communication, respect and trust within any relationship.
Conversations about what you do and don’t want to do are high on the list of important things to do while engaging in a sexual relationship with another person, Hegg said.
She added,“If you choose to participate in a sexual relationship, I want emphasize that it is a choice, no matter what kind of relationship you’re in, no matter who it’s with, it’s important to know that you have a choice.”
The overall message Hegg communicated was that having sex and a sexual relationship is a choice; just because you are a student and you are in college does not mean that you need to engage if you do not want to, but know that it is okay to engage in those activities, and knowing how to protect yourself is of the utmost importance.
STIs
In April the North Dakota Department of Health comes in and offers free sexually transmitted disease testing.
In the event that a student did contract a sexually transmitted infection, Hegg said the next steps would look something like receiving treatment and providing support to the student in the emotional sense and understanding what that means.
“It can be overwhelming or devastating so we would like to offer that support and continue to provide their health needs,” Hegg said.
Healthy Herd
Hegg works with multiple organizations on campus that educate about sex.
Sexual education events happen in April, such as the Women’s Activist Organization’s sex positivity expo.
Hegg works with healthy herd champions, who promote healthy lifestyles to students. In April, the group is getting active about sex to promote getting tested for STIs, safe sex practices, healthy relationships and Sex in the Dark.
Sex in the Dark is an event in Memorial Union’s Century Theater hosted on April 20th where a panel of experts answer questions from the audience anonymously via text, allowing students to get fast answers to the questions they never felt like they could ask.