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HIV Testing - June 2000 June 27 is National HIV Testing Day. What better time to get tested? Uh-huh. We see that "What? Who me?" look on your face. Are you at risk for HIV? Let's start with whether you know how big the AIDS epidemic has been in the U.S.
More Americans have died of AIDS than the number of Americans who died in which war:
Some call AIDS the war at home. You may see why after learning the answer: more Americans have died of AIDS-more than 420,00 people-than all of the Americans who died in those wars combined, according to the government's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). But what about HIV today? Americans got hip to using condoms in the 90s. We know better now, right? Condom use is higher today, but way too many people are still becoming infected. The CDC estimates that 800,000 to 900,000 Americans are HIV-positive. What's really scary is that one in three of those folks don't know they are infected. What's this gotta do with being young? Dr. Donna Futterman, Director of the Adolescent AIDS Program at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx says HIV is much more common in teenagers and young adults than people think.. She says it's important for young people to know that "HIV is real in teenagers. One in four people in the U.S. with HIV got infected by age 21." From working with HIV-positive teens, she's learned that the vast majority of young people who get HIV had no idea their partner was at risk. "They all thought they could tell by looking-but we know that you can't tell by looking. And not everyone's sex partner is going to tell them they have HIV." And not everyone's sex partner who has HIV knows they are infected. Why scare you with these deets? Young adults and teens aren't getting tested for HIV. Some have been tested once. But few get an HIV test before they have sex with a new partner. And almost no one asks-and waits-for their partner to get tested before they'll have sex. Sound like we're making this stuff up? Try on these numbers for size: 75% of 15- to 17-year-olds who have had sex say they have never been tested for HIV. Only half of men and women 15-44 say they had a conversation about STD and HIV risk with their current or most recent partner (56% women, 51% men)-but only half of them talked before they had sex with them. Nuff said. You gotta get tested. You and your hottie. But don't worry: testing is easy to do, free or dirt cheap, and confidential. Dr. Futterman tells the teens and young adults she works with that "Taking the test doesn't mean you have HIV. It doesn't even have to mean you think it's likely you have it." (See below for the 411 on testing.) Some of you say, yeah that's cool dude, I could get tested. But no way am I gonna talk to my main squeeze about doing it. You crazy? We don't even talk about condoms-we just use them. HIV experts like Dr. Futterman say that kind of thinking is gonna get you into trouble. "Talking about HIV testing with your partner is part of the conversation of why it's important to use condoms and why it's important to protect ourselves. If you are ready to have sex, you need to be ready to do it safely-for yourself and others," she explains.
Here's how the experts suggest you talk to your partner about the two of you getting tested:
The 411 on HIV testing: What's going to happen at the test? Waiting, waiting...and getting the Results Flashback to high school sex ed: How is HIV transmitted, class? We should all get this one right: HIV can be passed through unprotected sex (oral, anal, or vaginal) or sharing needles (getting a tattoo or doing drugs, including steroids). Um, so what were you saying about not being at risk for HIV? It can take having unprotected sex or sharing needles only once with an infected partner. Many of the HIV-positive girls Dr. Futterman sees got HIV from their one and only sex partner. Flashback fact number two: you can't tell by looking if someone has HIV. Dr. Futterman reports: "All the kids with HIV I see thought they could tell by looking...But as far as we know, there's no visual test for AIDS." Plus, lots of young people who have HIV don't know they have it. It's estimated that one in three people infected with HIV don't know they're infected. Hey, these feelings are OK. It can be scary to find out your HIV status. But think of this way: if you do have HIV, you want to know like, NOW, because getting treated early on is better for you; HIV medications can help prevent HIV from progressing and keep you healthier. You can save years of your life by seeing a doctor and getting treatment early-or lose years because you were too afraid to get tested. So, take a deep breath, and go get an HIV test. So, you decide you're going to get tested - now where do you go for the test? Finding an HIV testing site may not be as easy as finding Ricky Martin's latest CD, but you have lots of different HIV testing options. Your regular doctor can probably do the test. Some young people want to go to a place where no one will know them. If that's the case, there's a hotline just for you-the National AIDS Hotline at 1-800-342-2437 (AIDS). They'll tell you about the free or dirt-cheap HIV testing sites near you. For you couch potatoes out there, the home HIV test may be your bag. You buy the test in a drug store, online, or over the phone, mail in your blood sample, and then call their hotline for your results (look for the one government-approved home HIV test called Home Access). Hey couch tater-tots, be warned that these tests are expensive ($40-$60) and only have telephone counselors. So what about if you want your HIV test to be more secret than the X-files? First, you gotta pretend you're Scully or Mulder: ask the testing site if they're going to keep your info private, and how. If they do keep your results top-secret, then you want to know whether they do confidential or anonymous testing. The difference between them is that in confidential testing the medical people, your insurance company, and, in some states, folks in the state health department, can see your test results (but no one else can-no matter how nicely they ask). In anonymous testing, you never actually give them your name! Instead, you get a number to find out your results later that day or in a couple weeks-and only you will ever know the test results. What's going to happen at the test? What'll happen at the test? First, someone (usually a nurse or counselor) talks to you about the test, your risk factors (including your sexual history), as well as HIV prevention methods to reduce your risk of any future HIV infection. You can ask questions and talk about your fears. Next, you agree to take the test. You might get a blood test, which means there will be a needle, but it's QUICK! If needles are really a problem for you, you can call the National AIDS Hotline to find a site offering oral tests or urine tests. More info about the different kinds of tests: ·When a person has HIV their body makes antibodies to fight the virus. The HIV test detects if any HIV antibodies are present. The types of tests you can get are: ·Blood test - you get a blood test and get the results within a few days to two weeks. There are also "rapid" blood tests that get results in as little as 15 minutes, but they are not as common as the standard blood test. ·Oral test and urine test - you can get these at some doctor's offices and clinics. They take a sample from your mouth or pee and test it. You can get results within a few days to two weeks. ·Home HIV test - Home Access is the only home HIV test with government approval. It costs about $40-60 and you can buy it at a drugstore, over the phone, or through the Internet. You prick your finger and send the blood sample to the lab with a number that identifies you (they don't have your name). You can usually get your results in a few days by calling them to check. Waiting, waiting...and getting the results The waiting time before you get the results can make you real nervous, just like waiting for the results of any kind of test. Being scared is normal. Think about other risks you've taken in your life, like telling a person you liked how you felt about them, or sticking up for someone you saw being picked on. Was that scary? Was it worth it? Try talking about your feelings with someone you trust - a friend or someone in your family, or you can try calling the counselors at your testing site. [To speak to someone about your feelings, call the CDC National HIV & AIDS Hotline at 1 800 342 AIDS.] What do those test results mean? If you test positive on an HIV test, it means that you have HIV. But actually getting AIDS symptoms and infections can take up to 10 or more years. If you take the new HIV drugs like the character Jeannie Boulet on ER did, you can delay developing AIDS even longer. So being HIV-positive is not a death sentence. It's a call to action: find out NOW if you have the virus, so you can see a doctor and start the HV treatments that will help you live longer. If you test negative, it means that the test found no antibodies to HIV. Now, it can take up to six months from the last time you had unprotected sex or shared needles for the antibodies to show up on the test. So, to be sure, you're gonna want to keep up the condom use and get tested again six months later-or six months since the last time you had unsafe sex (no condom or dental dam). If you get tested again and it's still negative, then you probably are HIV-negative. Right on! Finally you and your heartthrob can stop using condoms, right? Michael Stalker says he says to young people who ask him that, "When was the last time that you were burned in a relationship, and didn't expect it?" Err... right. No one likes to imagine their honey shagging someone, themselves cheating on their honey, but well, it happens. So stock up on your condoms. They're gonna stay in style for you longer than any of today's fashions. WHAT NEXT? Having safe sex every time you have sex, and never sharing needles can prevent you from getting HIV. Some folks add to the mix getting tested for HIV before every new sexual partner. Better yet, they make their new partner get tested too. Some chicks get an HIV test when they go to the ob/gyn for their annual check-up. If you like the gimme-the-test-while-I'm-here idea, just make sure you ask for HIV testing, because it's not included as part of your regular check-up care. Resources for more information on HIV/AIDS:
·CDC National HIV & AIDS Hotline: 1 800 342 AIDS
June 27 is National HIV Testing Day, created by the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA) to spread the
word about HIV counseling and testing. The CDC created a website with loads of easy-to-understand deets on preventing
HIV, how and where to get tested, whether you should test, and treatment info. Check it out at www.hivtest.org/testday
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