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Education Posts

Sex and COVID-19

by Dustin Gruber

Sexual Health Clinic

Our sexual health clinic offers $25 STI testing & treatment. Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP), & free HIV and Hep C testing.

Sex and COVID-19

I'm CJ Tobe, The Director of Community Health at Desert AIDS Project. The COVID-19 pandemic has no doubt caused stress around the world. When we are stressed we don't think about the potential consequences. We subconsciously take action to reduce stress and escape reality by overeating, change in exercise, and have more sex.

COVID-19 has changed the world including our sex life. We now live in a world where we are told to adapt social distancing. This new concept is difficult for many of us to follow since many of us use sex as a stress relief.

I utilize gay social media apps like many of you. (Grindr, Scruff, BBRT, ADAM4ADAM, Etc.) I'm still getting invites to group sex, to party n Play, like COVID-19 is a not real. COVID-19 is real. COVID-19 is as real as HIV, and as real as a STD.

What does sex look like, knowing social distancing is not a realistic 'all or nothing' concept for many of us living amid the COVID-19 pandemic?

The best sex is with yourself: Open up your favorite porn site, select your favorite scene, and masturbate. Choke the chicken as much as you want. Maybe, it's time to subscribe to the hottie's Only Fans account you have been fantasizing about. 

Be creative (Use your imagination) use technology: FaceTime, Cam, Sext, or go vintage and have phone sex. 

Pre-screen your sexual partners: Ask them if they have a fever over 100 degrees, or a cough. Anyone with symptoms, including yourself should stay home and avoid people for at least 2 weeks. But what if it's someone you have been eyeing for months, and can't pass up the opportunity to meet? Then maybe it's time to role play the doctor/patient fantasy you've had and wear a mask while you have sex.

Foreplay: You and your partner washing hands for 20 seconds before and after sex. Maybe you can start foreplay in the bathroom with some booty slaps or massaging while washing your hands.

Play with one partner: Now is the time to limit your sexual partners. More is not the merrier when living in a COVID-19 pandemic.  Pick out that one sexual partner that is most available and gives you the best orgasm. Entice them to become your regular sex partner during this pandemic to lower both of your risk of acquiring COVID-19. 

Last but not least condoms: Condoms not only help prevent HIV, STDs, but also lower the risk of acquiring COVID-19. Condoms are recommended for oral sex too. Wrap it before you tap it.

Please utilize any of the above techniques that will fulfill your sexual needs during the new world of social distancing. 

Desert AIDS Project offers judgement free HIV testing, PrEP/PEP services, and STD testing and treatment regardless how you practice social distancing. Learn more at www.thedockclinic.org.

Click here to download a copy of Sex & COVID-19 in English
Haga clic aquí para descargar una copia de Sexo y COVID-19 en Español

COVID-19: I’m a bodyworker or sex work …

by Dustin Gruber

COVID-19: I’m a bodyworker or sex worker and I want to keep my clients and me safe – what should I do?

Answer: Coronavirus is spread through close contact with a person who has the virus. It’s spread through droplets, such as from coughing or saliva. And it can stay behind on doorknobs, toilets, light switches, sinks, massage tables, and anything made of latex or silicone.

Keeping your environment wiped down with disinfectant wipes after each client is part of your role in your business. But assessing risks from your client is also very important.

  • Your client could have it on their skin if they have not washed thoroughly.
  • An infected client could transmit it to you by coughing or sneezing near you if they don’t wear a mask.
  • The virus is also present in feces, which makes touching the anal area another way of possibly transmitting.
  • You could also give it to your client easily if you are infected.

Before you begin any session with a client, we recommend you screen them so that you can assess your own risk. When negotiating services, prices, and laying ground rules, cover off on Coronavirus too. Here is how you might ask the question:

“I just want to check in with you first on a few things to make sure we’re both safe about Coronavirus.” Clarify the following:

  1. Do you know if you’ve been exposed to Coronavirus? 
  2. Have you recently had a temperature of more than 100 degrees or other symptoms of respiratory illness, like cough, fever, shortness of breath? 
  3. Have you or someone you live with traveled internationally lately?

If your client answers “yes” to one or more of these, you are taking a risk by continuing the session. If you choose to continue, here are some tips to help cut down the risks:

  • Make sure you are already washing your hands several times throughout the day for a full 20 seconds with warm water. Use hand sanitizer when you cannot wash your hands.
  • Latex gloves, condoms, and dental damns are highly recommended for sex work, now more than ever.
  • Have your client wear a paper mask during the entire session if they have symptoms like coughing or shortness of breath, or wheezing. If wearing a mask, use it only once and then throw away immediately in a trash can. Do not reuse masks.
  • Use sanitizer gel generously. You can make your own by mixing 3 parts isopropyl alcohol to 1 part aloe vera gel. It’s perfectly OK to also add a few drops of your favorite oil (like tea tree) to give it a nice smell.
  • Do not touch your own face – this is one of the surest ways to contract any virus.
  • Shower thoroughly after each client and change clothes to minimize possible spreading of Coronavirus.

Have questions about COVD-19?

Call our COVID-19 hotline at (760) 992-0407

Where You Get Your Rx Filled Can Make a …

by Dustin Gruber

When your DAP clinician sends your prescription order to a participating pharmacy, DAP receives valuable cost savings that translate into better health outcomes for you and our whole community.

Already picking up your medications from our onsite Walgreens pharmacy at DAP? Great–you’re doing your part!

Please consider getting your prescriptions filled at DAP or at any participating pharmacy throughout the Coachella Valley.

There are almost 50 participating walk-in and mail order pharmacies you can choose from.

In addition to all Coachella Valley Walgreens, here are some other popular 340B pharmacies nearby:

Desert Hospital Outpatient Pharmacy 1180 N Indian Canyon Dr., Palm Springs, CA 92262

Vons Pharmacy #2384 4733 E Palm Canyon Dr., Palm Springs, CA 92264

Albertsons / Sav-On Pharmacy #1569 1751 N Sunrise Way, Palm Springs, CA 92262

Walgreens Store #01079 1700 E Vista Chino Road, Palm Springs, CA 92262

CVS #01520 68010 Vista Chino, Cathedral City, CA 92234

CVS #09804 425 S Sunrise Way, Palm Springs, CA, 92262

White Cross Pharmacy 1717 E Vista Chino Road Suite B2, Palm Springs, CA 92262

You can quit smoking. We can help.

by Desert AIDS

Join the American Lung Association’s eight-week quit smoking program, conveniently held at the Desert AIDS Project. Hundreds of thousands of people have become smoke-free through a Freedom From Smoking® Group Clinic which offers a structured, systematic approach to quitting smoking.

Overseen by a certified facilitator, you will learn:

  • How to know if you’re really ready to quit
  • Medications that can increase your success
  • Lifestyle changes to make quitting easier
  • How to prepare for your quit day
  • Coping strategies for managing stress & avoiding weight gain
  • How to stay smokefree for good

Freedom From Smoking Group Quit Program

Fridays (beginning on October 4, 2019) at 2:00 p.m.

Call (760) 992-0469 or email [email protected] to RSVP. Our first session starts on Friday, October 4th at 2:00 p.m.

Visit Lung.org/ffs for more information about the program or our online Freedom From Smoking® Plus if a Group Clinic isn’t right for your quit.

DAP Client Social Security Disability In …

by Desert AIDS

Social Security Disability informational session – new claims and/or termination from disability

Attorney and Law Professor, Troy A. Tureau, LM, J.D., B.A. will be answering DAP Client questions on Social Security Disability pertaining to new claims, appeals and potential termination.

Location: DHD Room

Aging Positively – 4th Annual HIV  …

by Desert AIDS

Event Contact: JP Allen
(760) 992-0440
Desert AIDS Project
[email protected]

Press Contact: Jack Bunting
Desert AIDS Project
(760) 656-8472
[email protected]

When: Wednesday, September 18, 2019, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Where: Joslyn Senior Center 73750 Catalina Way Palm Desert, CA 92260

Complimentary beverages, snacks and lunch provided.

Please RSVP your attendance to J.P. Allen phone: (760) 992-0440 or email: [email protected]. Please also RSVP for FREE Shuttle service from Desert AIDS Project Campus to/from Joslyn Senior Center as well as for ASL services. Thank you!

Palm Desert, CA — Aging Positively, the annual Coachella Valley conference aimed at providing practical information as well as inspiration for those aging with HIV, will explore Self-Care, Sexual Isolation, Loneliness and Medicare/Prescription Drug Coverage. And this year, the 4x Gold Medal Olympic Champion Greg Louganis will provide an uplifting and inspirational keynote address.

People with HIV are living longer lives, thanks to advancements in scientific research and medical treatments; about half of HIV positive individuals in the US are age 50 and above. This is in stark contrast to the days when Desert AIDS Project was founded (1984), when HIV was a death sentence.

Speaker line-up

  • Moderator: Brad Fuhr, California Oasis Marketing Group and Gay Desert Guide
  • Keynote: Olympic Champion Greg Louganis
  • “Own Your Future: Essential Conversations You Must Have Now” by LKAPS Social Committee Co-Chair Richard Bass and Dr. Brian De Vries, ProfessorEmeritus of Gerontology, SFSU.
  • “Sexual Isolation & Loneliness” by Jill Hingston, PhD, The LGBT Center Palm Springs
  • “Medicare & Prescription Drug Coverage” by Brian Bilhartz, Bilhartz Desert Insurance

About Greg Louganis

Greg Louganis is simply the greatest diver in history. You would be hard pressed to find a person who watched either the 1984 or 1988 Olympics who was not enthralled by the poetry that was Greg Louganis: the beauty and power of his diving captured the world. 2016 marked the 40th Anniversary of Greg’s first Olympic win- a silver medal at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, in platform diving, at the tender age of 16. Eight years later he became the first male diver to get double gold in springboard and platform in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, and again in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. He has earned a total of 5 Olympic medals, 5 World Championship titles and 47 national titles — more than any person in U.S. history. His records remain unbroken.

In 1988 Greg Louganis also tested positive for HIV. Coming out as a gay athlete in a time when it simply was not done, his 1995 autobiography, Breaking the Surface, spent five weeks at Number One on the New York Times bestseller list and his PGA and Emmy nominated Documentary Back on Board is receiving rave reviews nationwide and can now be seen on HBO. In 2016 General Mills announced that Greg would receive a Wheaties Box for his achievements, and that development was so significant it warranted a New York Times exclusive. He had the honor of being included in ESPN’s 2016 annual Body Issue, and in 2017 was the first openly gay Grand Marshal of The Rose Parade. In 2019, he continues to serve as Sports Director for Red Bull Cliff Diving, a division of Red Bull, one of the world’s best known brands.

The story of Greg’s life, is a story that has inspired millions, and he regularly speaks to the most significant organizations and companies in the world to share that story. Today, as a speaker, author, actor, activist, humanitarian and designer, he continues his tradition of excellence in every field he touches.

About The Aging Positively Conference

The Aging Positively Conference is conceived and sponsored by medical and service providers, researchers, community groups, and media groups from the Coachella Valley:

Borrego Health

Desert Arc

Desert AIDS Project

Desert Care Network

Desert Oasis Healthcare

Eisenhower Health

Gay Desert Guide

HIV + Aging Project – Palm Springs

Jewish Family Service of the Desert

Let’s Kick ASS Palm Springs (LKAPS)

PromoHomo.TV

The DOCK

The LGBTQ Community Center (AKA The Center)

The Joslyn Center

About Desert AIDS Project

Desert AIDS Project (D.A.P.) is a Federally Qualified Health Center in Palm Springs, CA offering D.A.P. Total Care – a combination of medical, dental, counseling, social services, support groups, alternative therapies, in-house pharmacy and lab, and other health and wellness services. D.A.P.’s sexual health clinic, The DOCK, offers STD testing and treatment, Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP), and free HIV and HCV testing. D.A.P.’s Get Tested Coachella Valley campaign, the nation’s first region-wide HIV testing and access to care initiative, was recognized by the White House for helping to bring about an AIDS-free future. D.A.P. is rated a “Top 20 HIV Charity” by About.com.

Visit www.desertaidsproject.org, www.thedockclinic.org, and www.gettestedcoachellavalley.org to learn more.

MyChart Users – Important Information

by Desert AIDS
Desert AIDS Project (DAP) has transitioned from “OCHIN” to a Desert AIDS Project MyChart log-in page.
 
What do I need to do?
 
1. Switch from the OCHIN MyChart selection on your phone application to the new Desert AIDS Project MyChart selection
 
2. If using MyChart from a PC / Device, update any saved URL (web address) to this new URL (web address): https://mychart.ochin.org/mychartdap/
 
Call 760-323-2118, ext 711 and ask for Albert or Curtis if you have trouble with your username or password or if you have questions about the new MyChart.

The ABCs of working with LGBTQ Inclusion

by Desert AIDS

Pre-Conference Workshop for the Finding Freedom LGBTQ Symposium: Desert AIDS Project presents The ABCs of Working With LGBTQ Inclusion

Presenters will examine regional trends, issues and concerns, and discuss what is on the horizon both socially and legally for LGBTQ+ treatment staff, community members and clients. Attendees will explore personal and professional inclusiveness and what could be improved to create a safer space for community members and clients.

Attendees will be able to:

  • Identify areas in personal and professional lives where we are not creating an open, safe space for community members and clients, specifically LGBTQ+
  • Discover ways to be more inclusive, personally and professionally
  • Examine trends specific to the Coachella Valley in regards to LGBTQ+ Issues and Concerns
  • Explore what is on the horizon for LGBTQ+ rights, both socially and legally.

3 CEU’s for Addiction Professionals

Click here to RSVP!

DAP Leadership Presents Infectious Disea …

by Desert AIDS

D.A.P.’s own David Morris MD and Matt Moran MSN, ANP-BC, presented their research at the prestigious Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI), happening this week in Boston.

CROI brings together top clinical researchers from around the world to share important developments and best research methods in the ongoing battle against HIV/AIDS and related infectious diseases.

CROI is a global model of collaborative science and the premier international venue for bridging basic and clinical investigation to clinical practice in the field of HIV and related viruses.

We are so proud!

Sex Toy Talk, How To Do It Safely at Tou …

by Desert AIDS

If you thought you knew everything about sex toys, you’re in for a surprise. When Joey Valenzuela, co-owner of Not So Innocent adult store presents to the crowd at Toucan’s, it will be about more than latex. He will explore the benefits of role-play for sexual health, as well as the potential for human disconnection due to online porn, and how we can avoid isolation.

“I want people to be OK with sex, with what’s in their mind, and then go have a safe experience.”

To get to that place, however, sometimes it takes self-exploration. “It’s OK to admit you don’t know what you want or like,” he says. “Once you decide what’s realistic in your own mind, we want you to then be safe with what you do.”

While the latest sex toys and supplies will be explored, the underlying theme will be how we humans approach sex. Clay Sales, Mr. Leather Washington 2016 will be onstage to help with the conversation.

Valenzuela is concerned about our digital world and the prevalence of people accessing sex and pornography online, but not for the reasons one might think.

“We have access to sex all the time, but we don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes with the actors.”

When people attempt to mimic what they see in porn, especially with sex toys or BDSM scenarios, without knowing the proper techniques, they could experience physical injuries.

The actors in videos he says, “They are either educated on what they’re doing, or they’re likely hurting themselves.”

Valenzuela has a lot of experience counseling people on sex toys and BDSM. He and his husband opened up Not So Innocent on North Palm Canyon Drive in 2014

“It’s hard to talk about sex,” says Joey Valenzuela, but he and his husband Bill Freyer encourage people to do so daily at their shop.

Sometimes he feels like a private counselor, and he’s just fine with that.

“There’s times after a long day that we’re so tired after all the conversations, but it’s really rejuvenating.”