Lessons I Learned in High School: Just Go Get Tested Already!

By Danika, TeenSource Blogger

I know here on TeenSource it’s like we’re constantly telling you, “Go get tested! Go get tested!” If we say it’s not scary or it’s no big deal, it’s like, well of course you’re gonna say that, you reaaallly want me to go get tested. I’m from a small town, so I know that the scariest thing for the people there was that they might go in and see someone they knew and then that person would spill the beans and suddenly the whole school, and then the whole town, and then most likely the whole world, would know you got tested.

But I am telling you not only from experience, but deep down from the very bottom of my heart: TeenSource is not lying! And I, as your tried-and-true “Lessons I Learned in High School” blogger am not lying either. Getting tested is not scary.

For one, even on the few occasions that my friends did run into other people they knew, it was almost like a secret pact. What happens in the clinic stays in the clinic. I mean, how are you going to tell the whole wide world that someone was there without admitting you were there too? (And in the end, what’s the big deal anyway?)

Two, after giving my name and information (which remains confidential) and answering a few questions about my sex life, the entirety of my getting tested pretty much went like this: peeing in a cup.

Now while I’ll say that I’ve gotten tested a few times and that has been my experience each time, it can vary. Other possible tests might involve:

  • A blood sample
  • Swabs from the inside of the mouth
  • Swabs from the urethra or cervix
  • Swabs of any discharge or sores
  • An examination of your genitals

Nevertheless, getting tested was still a very quick and easy experience. The nurses were kind and caring, the test was painless, and I got my results back a couple days later.

Which led me to realize, at least from my own experience, that what scared me and my friends most was not necessarily getting tested, but rather just fear of the unknown. What’s it going to be like? What if I test positive? What if the whole town really does find out and I’m chased by them with pitchforks? (Which is truly not going to happen, by the way).

In the end, it’s really just about choosing to put your health first and trusting that there’s not much to be afraid of. There are a lot of those “fear of the unknown” choices you’ll have to end up making all throughout life, so you might as well start with one that is at least somewhat familiar. I mean you pee all the time anyway! How much scarier can it be to pee in a cup?!

And now… here is your chance to go. Find the scary clinic which in actuality really isn’t so scary whatsoever. Face the unknown! Just go get tested already!