THE HEALTH DIARIES PART ONE:
Introduction:
The Syphilis Affair- After being diagnosed with syphilis, Danso gets an understanding into safe sex and the Sexually Transmitted Infection, Syphilis.
We have been warned several times to either stay chaste or keep protection handy, but our hormones have always been the problem, and when they’re on the rise, there’s no stopping whatever ecstatic feeling from being expressed.
I didn’t know I could take an interest in adamant research until the worst happened to me. Now, I’m salvaging through websites, AIs, and even books, trying to understand whether I’m indeed going to be free from this illness I’ve brought upon myself.
Chapter 1: My Hormones
Dede was employed by my company about two months ago, and I just couldn’t take my eyes off her. I have a thing for glowing, fair African skin, and Dede’s skin was more than that. When the sun hits her skin, she radiates, blending with the sun, so when the manager introduced Dede as the new hire, I knew I was going to make out with her, if not sleep with her, by the end of the month.
How did I know she’d give in to me?
This may sound quite stereotypical, but on her first day, Dede had on a slutty official dress with a detailed exposure of her cleavage, and the length of her dress highlighted the fairness of her thighs and legs. When we exchanged pleasantries and shook hands, she didn’t cringe at the fact that I held her hand for quite a long period and even rubbed it a little.
In addition to all these, she came back to my office to make small talk when she had settled. It was obvious she wanted a piece of me.
Two weeks later, we had our first quickie in her office, since it was at the far end of the first floor. The first pleasure was without protection, but she told me she would get some pills, so I shouldn’t worry about pregnancy. Just like she had said, the only thing I was thinking about was Dede getting pregnant. I forgot all about the consequences of unprotected sex.
Chapter 2: Bitten Lips
Two weeks later, I woke up with what seemed like a bite on my lip. I thought I might have bitten them myself while sleeping, so I brushed it off. However, at work, I visited the washroom and saw these similar sores on my sexual organ. I screamed immediately. That day, when Dede signalled me for our regular quickie, I avoided eye contact with her because I was ashamed of the sudden sores that had appeared on my genitals.
I immediately took a leave of absence to see a personal doctor.
The doctor asked me to take some lab tests while he did a diagnostic analysis.
“So, what’s wrong with me?” I asked him when he called me into his office.
“Danso, have you had unprotected sex in the last few weeks?”
I furrowed my brows and looked away. “I have. What’s it?”
“You have Syphilis, Danso.”
“Come again?”
“You have syphilis. It’s a sexually transmitted infection (STI) that is caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum. It can be contracted through other ways– like from a mother to a foetus or through direct contact with the sores or ulcers on your genitals. However, considering the infection around your genitals, you must have probably had unprotected sex with an infected person. The good thing is that it can be treated, and considering that we’ve caught this early, we can treat it with a shot of benzathine penicillin G. You would have to come back for regular checkups, though.”
“That’s good. But is there a way to trace who gave it to me?”
“That depends. How many ladies have you slept with without protection in the past few weeks?” He asked, and I scratched my head.
“Let’s just get that shot.” I told him.
The doctor required that I get tested for any allergic reaction to benzathine penicillin G. After I tested negative, he took me to the injection ward and gave me a shot.
After my appointment with the doctor, I sat in my car, where I started scavenging. There is a lot about syphilis I might have never known. I started wondering who might have given me this infection. The condom broke while I was sleeping with Eva, Hannah and Jemima, and I had unprotected sex with Dede just once. They were all around the same time. My head started spinning, so I made a long ride to my brother’s.
Chapter 3: You too?
My brother is a software programmer who works from home most of the time. It had been a while since I set eyes on him, aside from our regular phone calls. His door was not well closed when I got there. That was unlike him, so I let myself in.
“Bro!” I called, but he didn’t respond. “Dwamena!”
I walked into his bedroom and found him under the sheets. “Bro, what’s up? You still have the fever?”
“Yeah, man. I do.” He turned to look at me, and we had something similar—sores on our lips. I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Bro, do you have syphilis too?”
“Syphilis? Oh no…” His response trailed, and then he sat up.
“What’s the matter?”
“An old ex came back to town some months ago.”
“Yeah. You told me. Cynthia, right?”
“We had a pretty good time, you know…” Dwamena gestured at me, indicating they had had intercourse, and I laughed. “Since then, we haven’t spoken. We agreed it was a good one-night stand after a bad breakup. I’ve not slept with anyone after her.”
“Well, did you use protection?”
He sheepishly scratched his head, and I knew my friend had been a hormonal idiot like I was.
“And you didn’t go to the hospital like I asked you to?” I questioned him.
“No, Dee. I’ve had some serious work to do and deadlines to meet.” He buried his head in his palms.
“Will you resort to death because of work?”
“Let me give Dede a call to find out how she’s doing, so that we can find out if you’re right.” He took out his phone and started searching for a number.
“Who’s Dede?”
“Cynthia. She’s Cynthia Dede Nartey.”
Just when he dialled for his ex, her picture got me up on my feet in shock. They spoke for a while and she confirmed she was fine. After the phone call, he could tell from my expression that there was something wrong. I wasn’t exactly sure what was worse—whether we had contracted syphilis from the same girl or that I had unknowingly broken the bro code.
I sat on the bed and stared at the ground, ashamed. “Dwamena, this Dede lady has given us Syphilis.”
“What?”
“She’s a colleague from work. We banged some time ago, and then I started getting these chancres on my lips, in my mouth, and even on my genitals. Dwamena, you don’t want this to get to the latent and tertiary stage where you become a carrier of syphilis. Let’s go and see the doctor.”
“Dee, slow down! What’s latent and tertiary? What the goodness is all of this?”
“Bro, Syphilis has stages: a primary stage, a secondary stage, a latent stage, and a tertiary stage. The thing about syphilis is that, despite the fact that it can be cured, when it’s untreated, it stays with you, making you a carrier of the infection. I’m guessing that’s Dede’s case.” I already felt like a doctor at this point. That crash course in the car had already made me a Syphilis expert.
Dwamena went with me to see the doctor. Since he was allergic to penicillin, he was given the doxycycline antibiotic instead. The doctor advised him to take his health more seriously.
Chapter 4: Here we go again
I took a month off for my sores to heal completely, so that I could confidently go back to my old ways. However, I heard something that got me ready to step out. Dede was at it again. According to rumours, she was dating my best pal at the workplace, Jerry, so I had to meet up with him and warn him, just in case he had plans to sleep with her.
So I called him and set up a meeting during his lunch time.
I sat at the restaurant, thinking of how to break the news to my work colleague, but I was less agitated as I saw him walk into the restaurant and towards the table. Jerry had a sore on his lip too.
“Oh God, not another one. Here we go again. It had definitely become a Syphilis affair.
Dear readers, let’s appreciate our health and do well to have safe sex instead of being controlled by our hormones.