He'd tell me if he's poz.
Anecodotally, we often trust our boyfriends, our buddies, our friends, our hook-ups to know their HIV status and to tell us. Sometimes, we assume they'd say so we don't ask those tough questions before having sex...
If we're HIV-negative, we often tell ourselves:
"I trust him... he'd totally tell me if he's positive."
If we're HIV-positive, we often tell ourselves:
"He's not asking my status, so he must also be HIV-positive."
Communication breakdowns happen all the time, and it makes negotiating sexual safety tricky!
Even if we do ask our sex partner their status before hooking up, we have a new problem: What if they are HIV-positive and don't know it yet?
It can take 3 - 6 months for an HIV test to detect HIV in someone's body. More often than not, people aren't lying about their HIV status to a sex partner... it's just that people don't know yet.
New HIV cases in young gay and bi men DOUBLED in MN in 2009. We think that 3 - 6 months "window period" of time has a lot to do with it.
He may think he's negative. You may think you're negative. But if someone has barebacked in the last 3 - 6 months... you can't know for sure.
Get tested. Get tested together! Wait for your window period to be up before considering barebacking.
FAST FACT:
According to the Minnesota Department of Health, new HIV cases rose 13% in 2009. New HIV cases nearly DOUBLED in young gay/bi men ages 15 - 24.
You may be fabulous, but you're not immune to HIV. Get tested. If you're positive, seek care.
- Get tested for HIV.
- Get connected to HIV care.
- Check out the CAPS Program of the Red Door for more information.
CAPS services are free and confidential.
"Fabulous" Poster (pdf) | Profile of HIV in MN
