i he Well Now P.Kc 2
AIDS affects women differently
By Darnell* (rf+rffum
It «tim now that if wr turn on the 1 V .
look n i nuga/tftr. listen io the news, of go
to school, there n always someone idling us
about AIDS
Sometimes ! fed like Hudmti, aget 18
24 years old, should lx* the mem awarc since
wc vc come age hearing at* mt All >r>
(XcnurK. 41 lire! everyone warned to liehcve AIDS wit no
bird in only thotc "high ridt" groupc. hut now moil of ut
41 knowledge that AIDS lui i rowed every cotro-etonomie hound
jiv poitible
I ven w), I don't feel tli4t there n enough attention on women
and the AIDS epidemic I look at women in my age gtoup and
wondet if we trally know that there actually n a nvk for ui loo
111 admit that I toed to heheve the than* o wrte doer to noth
ing. until thu iiimmct when I opened a Newcwerk magazine to
the covet ttory on young people with AIDS and iaw a lace I
recognised I actually knew a lemale my age with AIDS It i a fact
that women out age can grt HIV' and AIDS
Aitotding to the ( enter lot I hccatc ( onttol. I I percent ol
te|>oricd AIDS taici lait vcai were women, and VS percent ol
thoie women got the vifut through heleroieaual contact Hrt
etoictiial contact including any unprotected icciial activuv wliere
ImkIiIv lltridc are dialed can provide a meant ol tranimmion for
HIV In addition, the t IX otimatei that for every one perwin
with AIDS, there are another ten infected with HIV (the virui
that cauici AIDS). I he l ilohal AIDS Policy l oalition hat made
the projection that by the year 2(XX) the cumulative numl<rr of
women infected with HIV will lx- over fill million! Ihrte ate clef
iniirlc come numbcfc lot [leoplr out age to think alxnii Ix-fotr
getting into potentially uncalr uiuatioro
I talked about AIDS and women with ( ollcen Jonev, a nuice
practitioner at the Women c Health ( him at the I ol () She
Irelt het tole o one ol prevention by hrlping women to rrali/c
the nek of 11IV and AIDS and to momatr them to practice vile
vet She ttclicvcc dial although there o a latge degree id awate
necc in women of our age group, thine of uc tcallv at nek arc
nor the ones coming in tor reeling II u warn in think that there
arc women who have no idea that they are infected and are ptc
venting thcmcelve* from receiving catty treatment
Until recently, moct receanh on HIV and AIDS hav heen
directed toward men Die medical field ic reahnng that they have
to take a timer look at how HIV' and AIDS affeetc women dil
ferenilv than men
There are several utidiec now looking at the connection
between inch thingv a> re-occurring vract inlrctionc. genital her
pcs tstrak <hj». syphilis and various
other types of vaginal infections
and HIV-potilivc women. It /
seems that tlicie rr-ocrumng gync j
sologti; al problems are a tessilt of '
HIV' attacking the immune svs f
terns of women In fact, the
(enter for Disease Control "
recently has t hanged its defini
non ol AIDS to include certain * ,
forms of icnisal cancer
Of cootie. ih*» does not mean that if a woman rm cervical
cancer (har die has AIDS, bur ictcarch has thown a hi^h mci
denir of ihoe cancers in HIV-pouiivc women. Since die ( 'IX
has changed in definmon of AIDS 10 include panicular typec
of cervical cancer, die number of women who are now consul
ered ro have AIDS hat increased by Ml percent
Die broadening of the AIDS definmon allowc women who
are HIV poemve and have these cancers to Ik eligible for neces
sary medical support and treatment
Obviotidy, there is still a lot to Ik learned alsout the risk of
HIV and AIDS to women, but at least the medic a I field is mos
mg in the right direction Mi goal in writing this is not to scare
anyone What I hope lor is simple to increase the awareness in
women my age (hat there is a ink of HIV and AIDS and that it
is definitely necessary to protest ourselves
Planned Parenthood: What do they offer?
Hy / U'lLi ( *nn
Planned Patent
hood n ttimcihing
we ve ail heard of, but
what exactly do they
idler? I lopefully this
article wdl ilatdv any
or
miuoiHrj'iMirn
tiuctoom about tlio public service organ i
ration
I he nituiun of Planned Parenthood i\
that every individual ha* the fight to man
age ho or her own fertility , rcgardlrv* of that
individual % income, marital tuiui, age.
national origin or residence I’ach mdivid
uai should have the fundamental fight to
decwlc when and whether to have a child Av
uted in the Planned Parenthood pamphlet
(1W0). the goal* of Planned I'a rent hood ate
as follows:
• fo provide comprehensive reproduc
tive and complementary health care service*
in setting* which preserve and protect the
resentul privacy and rights of each individ
ual;
• I o advocate puMk policies which guar
anter these nghu inJ ensure kccia to these
tnvkci;
• I« provide educational pri^ranu which
enhance understanding of individual and
societal implication* of human scsuaiitv;
• 1o promote rt-vcarch and (hr advance
mem of technology in reproductive health
care and encourage understanding of their
inherent htocfhitai. behavioral and societal
implications
In I ugene. Planned Parenthood utilizes
Turn to HEALTH, page3
file Student Health Center Newsletter
Norplant newest option
By Sori SahatLi
As women. most of us nmu lace the real
ity of (King responsible for controlling our
fertiliiv. so n is important to stay updated
on the new forms of contraception now on
the market.
I
I hr pill is one of (he most popuhr forms
of contraception today, hut Norplant is
another option if the pill isn't right for you
Norplant comes in the form of six rubber capsules. A spe
cially trained practitioner inserts the capsules in the upper part
of a woman 's arm Within 24 hours the capsules start to release
a hormone that prevents pregnancy. Norplant is effective for up
to five years.
Ihe effectiveness of Norplant is high, but it decreases each
year after the capsules are inserted. Ihe pregnancy rate in Nor
plant users is .2 percent for the first year, ,S percent for the
second year, 1.2 percent for the third year and 1.6 percent for
the fourth year For five years of continual use. the pregnancy
rate is 3.9 percent That means whereas the pill is 98 percent
effective. Norplant is. by the fifth year. 'X> percent effective.
In addition to the high effectiveness. Norplant has other
advantages. Norplant users do not have to interrupt sexual activ
ity nor do they have to think about taking a pill every day. Anoth
er Norplant bonus is that it can be removed at any time by a
trained practitioner and a woman's ability to become pregnant
alter Norplant use is about the same as women who use no con
traception.
Some draw backs do exist with Norplant. 7S percent of Nor
plant users re [sort irregular bleeding in the first year of use. Irreg
ular bleeding varies from irregular menstruation to excessive
bleeding to no menstruation at all. However, many women
return to a regular menstrual cycle a veer after the Norplant inser
tion. ( fiber effects common with Norplant, and most any hor
mone containing contraceptives include: headaches, acne, weight
changes and breast tenderness.
Norplant^has also Ix-rn associated with depression, nervous
ness, hairiness and nausea, but women base rarely discontinued
use of Norplant as a result of these symptoms. Norplant also
docs not protect us user from the contraction of S I I)s includ
ing the I lt\ situs I be use of a condom in addition to Norplant
prevents S I 1) and I ll\' transmission.
Norplant is a relatively new form of contraception, so its
long tt rm safety has not been established. 1 he use of Norplant
is not suggested for women who smoke, have blood-clotting
problems, heart disease or other specified health conditions,
he sure to discuss any possible safety problems w ith your physi
cian before deciding it Norplant is the contraceptive method for
you Norplant is available through the Student Health Center.
I he cost is S-tlO.lH) tor the five-year contraceptive, for more
information about Norplant or other forms of contraception,
contact the Women’s l lime at the Student 1 lealth Center or
come by the I lealth 1 ducanon ( )fFice and talk w ith a Peer Health
ads isor or consult one of our books, Ihr New dur Hodm Our
irltfi, the source for this article.
■■■MHIIIIIIIIHHCMMMI
Look into Books J
l:or more information on AIDS. 111V. preg
nancy, birth control and relationships, come by li
the I lealth ldiK.ition nxtm across from the I’har- £
macy in the Student Health center.
These are |iixt a few of the books available ||J
to U of O students
IVtrow. Steven, ed. fritting the ///1 F.putemu
Community Strategies in I)neu>e Prevention unit
tteulth Promotion. Santa Cru/: Network Pub
lications. 1900.
This collection of scholarly essays discusses
various aspects of the 1 11V epidemic using San
Francisco as us model lot studying the history
and consequences of I 11V' in a community. The
last part ot the book is dedicated to an expla- |
nation of prevention in and among communi- .
tics. I
Butler. Pamela. Self-Aaertton for Women. San 1
Francisco: Harper fie Row: 1981.
Butler discusses innovative ways lor women
to learn to be assertive in relationships, both pro
fessional and personal
F.isenbcrg, Arlene. I leidi 1 Murkoff and Satulce
1 Hathaway. Whit to Expert When You're Kvpeet
trig. New York: Workman Publishing 1984.
Fisenherg, Murkoff.»nd Hathaway give a
1 detailed guide to major (and minor) concerns 5
I for women duung all nine months of pregnan
I cy. From bodily changes to visits to the doc
|J tor. they tell you what to cxjK-ct.
SKILLS
Jill *o srltt entered'
Sell intcrcu 11 a part ol human
nature, but see should all lememhet that
other people * thought*, feeling* and
idea* ate important too Without li*
tening there tan he no undmtanding.
and this tan only lead to a communi
cation htraltdown.
Student-educator communication
teemt very tine tided on the univet
titv Iced. Usually, the professor lecture*
and the students take note* in class
Moat undents lately speak to the pro
lessor* of then iatge Inline cla**r* Sue
doesn't permit much two-way com
munication in tlav*.
Of course, there ate those who do
speak up in class and who do ask ques
non*. Often these students get labeled
a* “brown no*er*.“ Some ol them are
trying to get a lew extra brownie points,
but some are genuinely try ing to under
stand the concept* that the professot is
try ing to convey
So how do vou communicate with
xour professor without coming off as a
brown noser' It vthi don't hive j hang
up about speaking out in daxx. go ahead
ami axk questions, but nuke tliem intd
ligent
Remember that wording o impor
tint in lormulating anv question and
being dear and concise it necessary for
good communication, for example, it
would he mote effective to ask vour
I nglidi teachcf, 'OC'hat wax the them
xutement ol Smiths nai ■" than to axk.
■\X’lut wax that one guy trying to xav
in the alignment lao week*”
If vott don't like to axk qttettmnx in
tlaxx, ot arc intimidated to speak out.
see vour professor after daw or go to lux
ot her olliic hourx to axk a question
Professors ate requited to hold office
hourx for outxide help, to ytxu arc not
firing a nuivancr by utxluing this ter
vice.
It is important in verbal communi
cation not only to linen (not |uxt hear
but actively listen) to The other person's
ConlmurJ from pagr I
words, but also to allow yourself to look
at things (tom the other perron's |>cr
tpeclive Interpreting the (Krson's words
should lead to understanding new
insights as well.
Ms( iregor and White believe that
when you look at something from
someone else s perspective, it allows you
to affirm your sense (the sense you
already had) ol the world (realizing.
” I hat's tight"' At the same time, the
different perspective throws si Kit under
standing into a "new light," so to speak,
by producing some tvpe ol creative
insight (thinking. “I hadn't thought of
it that way").
Communication is the key to every
relationship whether it be a patent
child, student■ professor relationship, a
friendship, a marriage or girllnend and
boyfriend relationship It is essential to
the functioning world Sharpening
communication skills, which involves
both speaking and listening, can only
enhance out existing relationships. .
NEEDS
two hours June ssith each other every week bind j babysit
ter if necessary and it money is a problem, try to hnd j
litem] of fdkiw student who might be willing to exchange
child care.
During this sjkx itl time togethet. give your tptiuse/pan
ne* your undivided attention fry not to think about all the
other things you may have to do. since this is an important
time lot the two of you alone to enjoy the things alsout each
other that brought you togethet in the first place Be cre
ative, telax and enjoy yourselves.
Coir ( omrijufiua Although this is probable the haidest
thing tot many of us to do. it is one of the most important
Your spouse/partner and family must realize that your goals
are important to you. It is nevrssatv lot them to become
( atttmufti from pagr I
aware that if they arc willing; Co help meet your needs, there
Mill Ik positive consequences tor everyone and it they are
not, then the consequence’- will Ik negative
because prevention is always the best medicine,
I suneyoshi emphasises that students who anticipate that
problems may arise lor them when they return to school
should come to the Counseling Center and make an
appointment to discuss ways to divert these problems or
lust become aware of potential problems betore they arise
Counseling IS tree to all students, and couples ot families
may receive counseling even if only one tamilv member is a
student Appointments may also be made by telephone at
X<s-.f227. Don’t lei family challenges keep sou Irons reach
ing your dreams'