Doctor's ADVICE: Do I owe him sex for Christmas?

Q. Doc, my boyfriend keeps trying to get me to have sex with him. He says I owe it to him as his Christmas present.

One of my friends says that I will not get pregnant if I do it only once. Is she correct?

A. No, she is not correct. This is a myth that many teenage girls believe. But I am afraid that it is foolishness. In reality, plenty of young women get pregnant the first time they have sex. Don't let this happen to you!

Also, do not accept this guy's suggestion that you owe him sex. It is impossible for one human being to owe sex to another. This is just a trick that boys use in order to get girls into bed.

It is likely that you will give in to this young guy during Christmas. If that happens, please at least make sure you use a condom.

Q. I am a guy of 17, and I am wondering if there is any way in which I could catch a sexually transmitted infection (STI) through masturbation?

A. No, there isn't. STIs cannot be transmitted in this way.

Q. I would like to go on the Pill, but I have no idea how to start. Help!

A. Well, you should see a doctor or nurse, who can quickly check that you have no contra-indications to the Pill. In particular, please remember that females who smoke heavily are at some risk of vein thrombosis (clotting) if they go on the Pill.

The nurse or doctor will explain to you how to get started. But these days, the normal thing is to begin taking your first pack on the first day of your menses. There are usually 21 Pills in a pack. You have a week's break between packets.

So once you have started, it is generally a question of three weeks on, and one week off.

Q. I am thinking of having a coil fitted so that I can have sex with my college lecturer. But can I be sure that my regular boyfriend would not notice it?

A. Are you certain that you want to have intercourse with your lecturer, thereby cheating on your boyfriend? This does not sound like a very good idea to me.

As it relates to the coil (IUD or intra-uterine device), it is possible that your boyfriend will be able to detect the thread of the device during petting or intercourse - particularly if he is sexually knowledgeable. And if he does detect it, there will doubtless be quite a fuss.

Q. Last week, I got a bad kick in the testicles while playing football. How could I find out if this has harmed my fertility, Doc?

A. If your testicles have ceased to pain you, and if you are still getting erections, then it is probable that you will be OK. But if you can afford it, you could get a doctor to organise a sperm test for you.

Q. A doctor has suggested to me that I should take the 'mini-Pill' instead of the real Pill because my pressure is a little high.

But would it protect me against pregnancy?

AYes. It will give you around 98 per cent protection against pregnancy, provided that you take it exactly as prescribed - which means swallowing it every single day at approximately the same time.

When I say 98 per cent protection, I mean that if 100 women took it for year, two would get pregnant.

Incidentally, although you are only going on the relatively mild mini-Pill, you should have your blood pressure checked by a nurse or doctor from time to time.

Q. I have been told that I will not get a girl pregnant if I pull out at the last moment. Is that true, Doc?

AThis is a very old method of trying to prevent pregnancy. Medically, it is known as coitus interruptus, which just means interrupted intercourse.

If you look those two words up on the Internet, you will see that this practice is very likely to lead to pregnancy. I suppose it is better than nothing, but really, you should choose a reliable method of contraception such as a condom.

Q.Doctor, I am 20 years old and I get severe pain during my menses. Could this be caused from cancer?

A. No. But the severity of it means that you do need medical help. Please see a doctor who could put you on medication that would relieve or abolish that pain.

Q. My boyfriend recently went to England. He has emailed me to say that he is thinking of getting something called a Prince Albert.

He says that this will give me great sexual pleasure when he returns. But what is this Prince Albert thing?

A. A Prince Albert is a large metal ring which is put through the guy's organ. This somewhat brutal operation is carried out in tattoo parlours and piercing studios in England and America.

The procedure is really an amateur surgical operation, and it can cause heavy bleeding or infection. If you have any influence with your boyfriend, I suggest you urge him not to have it done.

The evidence that a Prince Albert ring will give a woman sexual pleasure is rather unconvincing. Many females are not too keen on the idea of having a large piece of metal pushed into them.

Q. Doc, does water make you put on weight? My friend, who is a nurse, says no way, but when I stand on the scale and drink a glass of water, my weight goes up.

A, Your nurse friend is absolutely right. Water cannot really make you put weight on because it contains no calories at all.

When you stand on the scales and then drink a big glass of water, the reading on the dial will immediately go up by half a pound or so. The same thing would happen if you just picked up the glass of water and held it in your hand!

But when you have swallowed the water, it soon passes through you and is then excreted in your urine. So it does not really put on weight at all.

Q. I am 21 and I have serious difficulty in reaching an orgasm. A friend has suggested to me that I should try using an electric toothbrush on myself. Is that a good idea, Doc?

A. No, it isn't. The toothbrush could damage your delicate tissues. If you want to use something that vibrates fast and helps a woman to orgasm, buy yourself a purpose-designed vibrator.

Email questions to Doc at saturdaylife@gleanerjm.com and read more in the Outlook Magazine tomorrow.