If you’re looking to pigeonhole Blain O’Connor* into some kind of ready-made personality profile, good luck. He’s just a self-described “fun-loving dude” who also happens to be an Afghanistan War Veteran and a former nationally ranked kickboxer. He loves cooking, cleaning, and gardening, and he adores his grandma. Until about four years ago, the born-and-raised Midwesterner specialized in blue-collar mechanical engineering work. Then, laid off during the pandemic, he decided to try a career in adult entertainment (did I mention he also loves sex?) and has since become a breakout star with hundreds of thousands of loyal fans and followers.
“I’m also very health conscious,” says Blain, a patient of Avita’s onsite pharmacy at ASHwell Sexual Health and Wellness clinic in Austin, Texas. That includes his sexual health. “Inside the gay community, a lot of people don’t disclose their sexual health because they don’t know their sexual health,” he says. “And that’s scary. You could be with somebody, and they might not have been to a sexual health clinic in five years, but they’ve probably had sex with 100 different people.”
Blain discards the outdated stigma surrounding the prevention of HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and has embraced the compassionate care he receives from providers at Avita and ASHwell, where he goes for his primary healthcare services and prescriptions for the HIV prevention medicine pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and Doxycycline Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (Doxy-PEP), a treatment that can prevent bacterial STIs after unprotected sex.
“I don’t understand why people feel a stigma about being safe when there are things out there that will keep you from getting sick,” Blain says. “I need these medications for my well-being, my safety, my health, and my comfort. I don’t ever want to put myself in a situation where I don’t feel good about what’s happening. At the end of the day, I would rather know that I’m practicing sex safely.”
I don't understand why people feel a stigma about being safe when there are things out there that will keep you from getting sick. I need these medications for my well-being, my safety, my health, and my comfort. I don't ever want to put myself in a situation where I don't feel good about what’s happening.
With compassionate sexual health care, “everybody’s equal.”
Growing up in Omaha, Nebraska, the opportunities for sexual health education and access to PrEP and Doxy-PEP were limited, Blain says. “It was really inconvenient,” he explains. “Providers didn’t make it friendly; it was like you were being frowned upon as a person. They would give me kick-back about PrEP being so expensive, even though I had good insurance, or tell me I didn’t need it because I wasn’t high-risk.”
That all changed when Blain moved to Austin, Texas, and connected with Avita Pharmacy and the ASHwell clinic, which are conveniently located right next to each other. “Everything became so easy,” he says. “I don’t feel judged, or like I’m different than everybody else. I feel like I’m a normal person, which I am. Everybody’s equal, and they make it simple. You can speak with the pharmacist. You can talk to a doctor. Everyone onsite makes that patient journey seamless, so you can get what you need.”
Blain’s experience with Avita and Ashwell is “next to none,” he says. “People there know my name; I’m not just a number. They want to see me. I feel so safe when I go there and have real peace of mind knowing that they have my best interests at heart.”
Take Avita Pharmacist-in-Charge Andy Doan. “Andy is probably one of the nicest people I’ve ever met,” Blain says. “I’ve messaged him at times saying, ‘Hey, Andy, I probably need to get into the clinic.’ He quickly responds and helps me get an appointment with Dr. Werntz at ASHwell, and I can easily discuss my sexual health.
“You can’t get that level of customer service from any other company,” Blain says. “When you have providers who genuinely care about you, it makes you feel important, and that makes you feel better.”
Pharmacist Andy Doan has insights on what makes the patient experience so special. “I actually have time for my patients, and they have the time to get to know me,” he says. “The clinical space we occupy is truly unique because it serves as an innovation hub. There’s something beautiful about figuring things out side-by-side, and I learn just as much from Blain as he does from me. I feel truly fortunate that our paths and his mentorship, as different as they are, crossed.”
I actually have time for my patients, and they have the time to get to know me. The clinical space we occupy is truly unique because it serves as an innovation hub.
Know your status: "Knowledge is power.”
While Blain takes full advantage of all the resources at his disposal to stay at the top of his wellness game, he knows that talking about sexual health can be a source of shame and embarrassment for many people. His advice? “Knowledge is power,” he says. “Educate yourself about sexual health, learn about preventative options, and take care of yourself first.
“Rid yourself of those stigmas, those thoughts about ‘This could never happen to me,’ he continues. “Honey, it’ll probably happen to you. But if you’re practicing safe sex and using preventative medications, there’s a good chance you can avoid a lot of those smaller inconveniences (like STIs) and a very large inconvenience–HIV. Otherwise, you risk having a very eye-opening experience the next time you go in for blood work.”
For Blain, being healthy is extremely important because he wants to always be there, not just for himself but for the people around him, including his mom, dad, and grandma. “If I’m not healthy and taking care of myself, who’s going to help my parents when they’re older?” he asks.
“I’ve seen a lot of very humbling things in my life, and sometimes we take health for granted,” he says. “Sure, in a week or two, I could get diagnosed with some terminal illness. But for now, I’m completely healthy and doing everything I can to stay that way.”
Knowledge is power. Educate yourself about sexual health, learn about preventative options, and take care of yourself first.
*For privacy, Blain chose to use his adult entertainment name for this profile.
