Frothing at the mouth every time I see a sex ed resource that says "use condoms" without any further elaboration. "Condoms prevent STIs and pregnancy in the vast majority of cases when used correctly" but then they don't talk about what correctly IS
Correct use of a condom means
Using the right size, because if it's too big it can slide off or leak and if it's too small it can break or come off. Condoms usually come in 5 sizes, I'm sure you could find others outside of that as well but in ten years of sex work I found they covered everyone
Using lube, even if you think you don't need it. With the exception of oral sex, condoms should always be used with lube, 100% of the time. Most important lube should be applied to the outside but a drop in the tip of the condom before putting it in is also a good idea
Being mindful that latex is prone to wearing out, being damaged by heat etc. Condoms should be kept somewhere cool, not folded in wallets or sat on in back pockets and should be changed between activities and after about 15 minutes of any vigorous activity. Ask me how I know (a condom snapped on my leg when a client was pulling out, because I didn't change it when I should have)
The penetrative partner should hold the base of the condom when they pull out, and should do so immediately after they ejaculate so the condom doesn't leak or come off as the penis gets flaccid
Bonus: a lot of people think hand stuff can't transmit STIs. Wrong! If you give your partner a handjob and then touch yourself you can get HPV, herpes (low risk), and infections like chlamydia and gonorrhea
This isn't meant to be stressful, and the most common STIs are the most treatable - and often curable - but getting gonorrhea in your eyes after a facial still extremely sucks and yet no one talks about the fact that any mucous membrane can be effected, not just your genitals (yes this includes your mouth and throat)
In ten years of doing sex work where I saw 10 clients a day most of the time I've had 4 condom fails ever. One was what I mentioned above when it snapped on my leg, one was a client on top of me didn't get off fast enough after he finished and the condom came off, and the other two were a Glyde brand magnum that was inexplicably twice the thickness of a regular condom and didn't stay put on anyone so I suggest just avoiding Glyde entirely (their water based lubes also stain fyi). With all other brands correct use = extremely safe
Oil-based lube and latex condoms are also incompatible! Condoms can and should be used on toys.
I'd normally tag nsfw but I never got sex ed in school or at home. Even if you yourself don't need to use this information, it's still good in general to know, whether that be for fiction writing or advice to a friend or just to have in your back pocket (which is apparently hopefully not where you're keeping the condoms). The more you know!
is it safe to use condoms with silicone toys? i get scared about them melting each other
It's both safe and a good idea. Latex is compatible with silicone sex toys
People in the notes have been mentioning that oil based lube doesn't work with latex condoms (something I left out because it's common knowledge and water based lubricants are standard these days anyway) but you want to avoid silicone based lube for a silicone sex toy, water based is broadly the safest and most versatile. That means you want to make sure the condoms you're using are also pre lubricated with water based lubricant (which again is now standard in the industry but it's good to check)
This is a really good article about sex toy safety and maintenance
Also unrelated but I don't wanna spam reblog this: @ this shit
It's standard advice shared in peer based sex worker education programs and I added my own experience because people always get hung up on it but of course civilians know better right? 🫡
Obviously it's more relevant to us because when you're talking about instances of risk, how often you encounter that risk matters a lot so we take more precautions than non swers do, and in fact we take more caution at work than in our personal lives according to the research. So perhaps you don't feel it's necessary but the latex doesn't care. Besides deterioration condoms can also come loose and broadly speaking people don't change them as often as they should (the rule of thumb is a condom for every change of person and every change of hole). Also, "they come pre lubricated" yes but not enough, you should be adding lube throughout as needed and as standard for anal sex especially
