Get the test and put your mind to rest

Getting tested for HIV is the best – and only – way to know if you are HIV+.
If you think you have been at risk, get tested. A negative result will be great of course, but if it’s positive, at least you will have access to the right treatment as soon as possible – and your life with the disease will be longer and less difficult. HIV infection can be detected within three months of exposure to the virus, but it can sometimes take up to six months to detect it properly. To be 100% sure, get tested for HIV six months after the risky situation – and meanwhile, remember to be responsible and have safe sex!

What to do when you get your test results

First of all keep calm, worrying doesn’t really help; when you get your HIV-test results you’ll have to face them, whatever the outcome is.

 

You are HIV-

Keep on practising safe sex by using condoms properly. In drug injection cases, you must be sure your equipment has been sterilized before using it. You should get tested again six months later to confirm your results.

 

You are HIV+

Get medical treatment as soon as possible in order to protect your health and delay AIDS from developing. The next thing to do is to contact a specialist in treating HIV, as well as find a support system which can help you psychologically. Your habits in drug consumption, alcohol drinking or smoking must decrease because they can weaken your immune system – please be good to your body. Finally, make you sure that you have not been infected by tuberculosis at the same time you got HIV (they often happen together); get tested soon, as that way you can take a successful treatment for TBC straight away.