You don't really remember that one-night stand. You forgot to ask your partners about their sexual health. STD testing just doesn't fit into your schedule.
You could have HIV and you might not even know it. 250,000 Americans do.
And you don't know who those 250,000 people are. The guy next to you in history could. Your roommate could. You could. And none of you would know about it without testing.
Without thinking ahead and asking questions, there is no way to know who is carrying HIV, gonorrhea, syphilis or any other infection. People don't wear shirts listing everything they are carrying. Often, there are no physical signs of problems, and you only find out what surprises they gave you after you have them.
You can't mess around with HIV. There is no cream, pill or shot to make it go away. The Centers for Disease Control are aware of this and are taking steps to make sure everyone else is aware by recommending routine HIV testing.
But the problem goes beyond failure to get routine testing. Take responsibility for your actions. Talk to your partners and make sure they are clean. Go to the Health Center on Tuesdays between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. for a free, anonymous blood test. Or watch for organizations sponsoring free testing by mouth swab. If those options won't work, it only costs between $2.50 and $8 for a test at most clinics.
Use the 20 minutes while the results develop to think over why you are there. Let the time spent at your testing be a chance to reflect on the importance of asking your sexual partners if they're clean, and in turn offering them information about your sexual health.
HIV is here and it isn't going away. We get it. But you can help control the spread and protect not only the people you are involved with, but also yourself.
Don't guess, get answers.
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