Abstinence kills HIV, TB and STDs not people
For every child that is left with a loss of a parent or has an absent parent, their risk of exposure to diseases increases by 10 times.
LILIANA Gillen from Gillview is the founder of 1DayNoSexDay! She wants to conscientise the community about the benefits of abstinence.
She has a plea to everyone who is sexually active – to commit to abstinence from sex on the first day of every month, thereby dramatically decreasing the level of spreadable infections and diseases.
“If we all agree on even just 12 days a year, we can and we will make a huge difference in destroying the diseases that are destroying people. This calls out to married people too. It’s a tool which you can use to speak to your children about. Be the example; choose not to leave sexual education to their peers, school or the internet. Teach them to respect and love their bodies and that no one has the right to use them, not even for ‘love’,” Liliana said.
She explained fear is a prison of the mind. Most people are scared of getting tested for HIV; she knows because she was petrified too! But it was worth knowing her status. Liliana didn’t just go once; she’s had her HIV status checked three times in the past six years, because it isn’t always initially detected.
“It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do. You and I all have the responsibility to commit to accountability, education, unselfishness, and self-control. If not for anyone else, then please do it for yourself.
“It’s strange that most people are scared of getting HIV/Aids, TB and falling pregnant, but aren’t too scared of getting a sexually transmitted disease (STD) – for instance the Human Papillomavirus (HPV). Condoms are only 60 per cent safe against HIV and not at all against HPV’s – more than 100 varieties of which are transmitted simply through skin contact,” noted Liliana.
People want condoms, vaccines and other methods to avoid getting diseases; but the best and most sure way is to learn self-respect, self-control, and self-denial.
“Notice it doesn’t say: their-respect, their-control and their-denial! The responsibility is our own. We can’t depend on the person we are with, to be our moral barometer. We need to adopt healthy lifestyle habits. What we eat, drink and watch also affects what we do and who we become. We are more than our desires; we can’t afford to have our desires dictate to us. We should tell our desires what to do and that choice can and does change our lives – and the lives of others, forever. Addictions can be overcome and there is help out there. Please seek it; it’s worth it. Your life is worth it, no matter what anyone else says about you! You matter!” she added.
“For every child who’s left with a loss of a parent or had an absent parent, (it’s estimated) their risk of exposure to diseases increases by 10 times. Children need to know that their sense of worth and value is not what they can get through their bodies, but rather in how they see and value themselves. Many children whose parent(s) have died due to HIV/Aids and TB, find themselves in dire situations as to how to survive in this world – which has many exploiters out there, just waiting for the opportunity. So choose a lifestyle that won’t put your children at risk, because you aren’t there anymore to look out for them – that is of course, if you are looking out for them now?
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