How Did I Get Chlamydia If I Didn’t Cheat?
Chlamydia is a commonly contracted sexually transmitted disease that, if left untreated, can lead to complications with future reproductive health. It is normally contracted through sexual contact between people who don’t use protection.
If you contract chlamydia whilst in a committed relationship with someone and you haven’t cheated, you may want to speak with your partner. It is likely that you have caught it from them, but it is also possible that either one of you had the infection before entering into a relationship. Catching chlamydia through non-sexual contact is not medically recognised.
Whilst we can’t give you too much advice on how to approach your partner about how you both caught chlamydia, we can offer you advice on getting tested, and what chlamydia means to you both and your reproductive health.
Let’s review chlamydia, how you can catch chlamydia, and how it is treated to provide some clarity on the matter.
Can You Catch Chlamydia Without Cheating?
Yes, you can catch chlamydia whilst in a committed relationship where cheating isn’t the cause. Unlike many other STIs, a person can catch chlamydia but not know about it. The infection can remain dormant within the body for long periods of time and not present any symptoms.
With this in mind, it can be possible to enter into a relationship with chlamydia, only for the symptoms to bloom further down the line. It is also true that your partner could have had chlamydia whilst entering into a relationship with you and not know about it. In either case, it would be useful to consider the length of your relationship with your partner to assess the likelihood of chlamydia being brought into the relationship.
Below we discuss the symptoms of chlamydia further to determine how they develop over time.
What Are The Symptoms Of Chlamydia?
Chlamydia can be asymptomatic for some individuals. Reports show that around 50% of men and 75% of women don’t exhibit symptoms as a result of catching chlamydia. In others, it can present issues with the urinary tract and the pelvic area. These issues are normally:
- Burning during urination
- Swelling in the testicles or pelvic area
- Vaginal bleeding between periods
- Discharge from the urethra during the day
These symptoms usually present themselves in the first 14 days after contracting the disease. However, not everyone encounters all of these symptoms. In some cases, people only experience discharge, and some only experience burning during urination, for instance.
As stated, many people don’t encounter any symptoms at all. It is for this reason that the NHS recommends that single people under the age of 25 get tested for chlamydia every 12 months.
How Is Chlamydia Transmitted?
Here are the ways in which Chlamydia is transmitted:
- Unprotected vaginal, anal or oral sex.
- Sharing sex toys that are not properly washed in between uses, or covered with a new condom.
- Your genitals come into contact with your partner’s genitals. Chlamydia is transmitted through the touching of genitals. You can catch the infection even if you haven’t penetrated or had an orgasm.
It can also be passed by a pregnant woman to her baby. This wouldn’t be relevant to our question, however, as natal chlamydia often precipitates as an early eye infection, and wouldn’t transmit to adulthood in any way.
You can get chlamydia without being sexually active. Read our helpful blog to learn more.
Misconceptions About Chlamydia Transmission
Chlamydia is typically one of the most common STIs and, as such, there is a lot of misinformation surrounding ways in which it can be transmitted.
The following myths are not true when it comes to chlamydia:
You Can Get Chlamydia From A Toilet Seat, Sharing A Towel Or Clothes Or From A Swimming Pool
Chlamydia is only transmitted between warm, wet bodies. As such, it can’t be transmitted through ordinary objects. Sex toys, however, can transmit chlamydia.
Find out more on this topic with our blog – Can You Catch An Sti From A Toilet Seat?
You Can Get Rid Of Chlamydia Without Medical Intervention
Once chlamydia is present in the body, it can only be treated with medical intervention. You must get tested right away and treat chlamydia to prevent it from causing harm to your reproductive organs.
Two common types of antibiotics are prescribed to treat chlamydia, they are:
- Azithromycin: The course will consist of 2 or 4 tablets taken in one sitting.
- Doxycycline: This is taken as 2 tablets taken every day for a week.
Your Sexual Health offers quick, easy and discreet sexual health screening for chlamydia across the UK, and also by home testing methods, too.
Read more on chlamydia testing with our recent blog – How Do You Treat Chlamydia?
You Can Only Get Chlamydia Once
Unlike some infections, your body doesn’t build up an adequate defence against chlamydia. It can be caught multiple times. Taking medication for chlamydia doesn’t provide a future defence against chlamydia.
You Can Tell If Someone Has Chlamydia
No, there is no real indicator that someone has chlamydia. If you believe someone you have been in contact with has chlamydia, the only way to be sure is to seek testing.
For more information on Chlamydia, consider some of our other blogs on the topic:
When Should You Get Tested For Chlamydia?
At this point, if you believe you have caught chlamydia, yet you have not cheated, it should be imperative that you get tested. Tests for chlamydia are non-invasive and don’t require a blood test.
It is our advice to seek testing about 14 days after you have had sexual contact with someone who has contracted chlamydia.
Where To Go From Here – Getting an Instant Chlamydia Test
Whilst you or your partner having chlamydia whilst in a committed, monogamous relationship isn’t always indicative of cheating. However, you should seek testing immediately.
Your Sexual Health is a private provider of sexual health tests for a variety of diseases. For peace of mind, you may want to be screened for a variety of other diseases too. In such cases, you can buy our Same Day Test. This covers;
- Chlamydia,
- Gonorrhoea,
- HIV,
- Syphilis,
- Herpes Simplex I/II (Current & Past Infection).
These tests can offer you peace of mind across a whole spectrum of other infections, including chlamydia, and can give you accurate results the same day. If you believe your partner has had sexual contact outside of your relationship boundaries, testing is the only way to keep you up to date with your current sexual health as an individual.
Contact Your Sexual Health and find out about our quick, safe, discreet and comprehensive sexual health tests today.