Let’s Talk about HIV
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) continues to kill Americans each year. In fact, those living in seven specific states and 48 counties across the United States are at the greatest risk. Gay and bisexual men continue to receive the majority of new diagnoses–66%! Oh, and by “gay and bisexual men,” we include any person assigned male at birth who engages sexually with another person who is assigned male at birth regardless of their gender identity, affective identity, or sexual orientation. Heterosexual men are 26 times less likely to receive an HIV diagnosis than their gay and bisexual counterparts.
So what is missing? Three components seem to be the most important to eradicating HIV among gay and bisexual men:
Sex education: Sex education remains woefully unavailable to gay and bisexual men. Teaching gay and bisexual men about sexual health can be hugely impactful to the eradication of the virus. This means counselors, doctors, teachers, parents, and more have to get comfy real quick with talking about sex…and learning about it if they need the extra education as well.
HIV testing: Gay and bisexual men can commit to a testing schedule to ensure they know their status–even if married. If you don’t know where to get tested and maybe do not want to test in your doctor’s office, check out the CDC’s test finder tool.
PrEP/PEP: Pharmacotherapy (prescribed drugs) can provide significant protection. PrEP and PEP are well-known for their ability to prevent HIV, but these drugs are not in any way meant to replace condoms.
But maybe the biggest issue we don’t seem to be discussing is what the academic types call “minority stress.” Generally speaking, minority stress describes the added stress members of the LGBTGEQIAP+ community experience due to social and legislative discrimination and stigma. And while that is a real thing for many in the community, we ask LGBTGEQIAP+ community members to please not let their discriminatory views put your life at risk regarding HIV.
