If you don't know what your HIV status is, it's probably because you haven't been tested anytime recently. Bad boy! If you're sexually active, and especially if you've had bareback sex, you have an obligation not only to yourself but also to your sex partners to be tested for HIV and other STD's on a regular basis. You're not the only one in the equation, and the only time sex is all about you is when you masturbate... by yourself.

There are generally two factors that prevent guys from getting tested for HIV. The first is often fear. We're afraid of what the test result may say, or we're afraid of what the test administrator will say if it comes back positive. Or we're afraid of divulging our private and sometimes sordid sex life with someone who has the power and position to lecture us. Well, here's some advice:

Get over it, Mary!

If you're a big enough boy to go around having sex, you're a big enough boy to start dealing with the realities of sex in this era. Sex is not like a live porn show: all fantasy and fun until you cum, and then you can hit the stop button. It's not something you can put back in the box, or shove in a drawer, or hide under the bed when you're done so that no-one else can see. Sex is real and it involves real people, each of whom is depending on you to have as clear an idea as possible as to what your status is. So swallow that fear and get your ass over to your doctor, your County Health Clinic, or your local HIV resource, and get that test done! And if it's needles and pinpricks that scare you, some testing sites may now have an oral swab test that can be administered which won't require you to shed even one drop of blood. So get to it.

The other factor that prevents guys from getting tested is more insidious: Machismo ~ which is a fabulous Spanish word for describing a false sense of invincibility. Machismo = "masculine pride". And machismo is nothing more than posturing: a cover-up that tells the world "I'm in denial".

Well here's a news flash: pride doesn't prevent HIV. You may think you're invincible... that your youth or masculinity protects you from harm. But guess what. It doesn't. It protects you instead from the truth. And it sets you up for a greater fall if the truth turns out to be that you're POZ. That aura of masculinity you've been using in place of a condom is only good for protecting your ego, so here's my advice to you if you think you're too macho to get HIV:

Get over yourself, Mary!

With the finding that ass juices (clinically referred to as 'rectal secretions') pose as much if not greater threat to topmen as a load of HIV-infected semen up the ass poses to a bottom, it is even more crucial that we each learn to bite the bullet that keeps us from getting tested, and start going through the process routinely. By doing so, you'll know with more certainty on which side of the HIV fence you stand, and you will be better prepared to start sero-sorting when choosing your sex partners.

Here's a simple HIV testing schedule that should be easy to memorize. It is recommended that you get HIV and STD tests based on your sexual behavior and frequency of activity.

MEN WHO ARE SEXUALLY ACTIVE ON A REASONABLE OR AVERAGE BASIS: Test every 6 months Reasonable or average frequency of sexual activity would include engaging in anal sex (protected or unprotected) 2 or 3 times a month to once every few months. Also includes receptive oral sex and cum-swallowing with the same frequency. MEN WHO ARE SEXUALLY ACTIVE ON A FREQUENT BASIS: Test every 3 months Frequent sexual activity would include engaging in anal sex (protected or unprotected) or receptive oral sex on a weekly basis to several times weekly. MEN WHO ARE SEXUALLY ACTIVE ON AN EXTREME BASIS: Test every 6 weeks to 2 months Extremely sexual activity includes those who engage in oral or anal sex (protected or unprotected) on a daily or almost daily basis with a variety of different partners. Also included in this category are men who engage in extreme sexual behavior, such as intense receptive assplay, watersports, bareback gangbangs (top or bottom), fisting, etc. Men who party and play - pnp - with crystal meth or other drugs should also get tested on this schedule.

Once you have received your results, you can (and should) ask for a copy of them. If you're positive, this will serve as proof if needed for services. If you are negative, you can use your copy as a means of showing your future sex partners that you were tested recently and the test came back negative.

Remember, your test results are only a reflection of your HIV status as it was several months ago. Even a negative result today may not detect the persence of HIV antibodies in your system. One test does not cover you for the rest of your life, even if you play safely from this day forward. And should someone present his HIV test results to you as proof of his negative status, ALWAYS check the date of the test. If between 3 and 6 months have passed since the test was administered, don't take that result as proof.

---

REMEMBER: Public health is EVERYONE'S concern! It is our basic human responsibility to contain and help eradicate HIV and other STD's. If you do not know your HIV status or you only "think" you know, GET TESTED! You are more of a danger to yourself and others when you do not know with reasonable certainty whether you are HIV-Negative or Positive.

And when it comes to other STD's. knowing what to look for and when to avoid sexual contact ~ even when sucking cock ~ is essential to maintaining your health and protecting the health of those you engage sexually with. Get to know how to identify the different STD's and be on the watch when you play. One STD is often a sign of others lurking within. The only way to know you are STD-free is by testing for them.

So get your butt off that fence and go get yourself tested. And then, start sero-sorting to protect yourself further and to help reduce the transmission of HIV and all the other STD's.

---

Jack's Testing Tip: When going for your next HIV test, ask if your testing site offers the Ora-Quick Advance 20-minute HIV test. It is extremely accurate, it is sensitive to HIV Types 1 & 2, and you can leave with your results in hand instead of waiting for the results for that week or two of mental anguish! And, the Ora-Quick Advance test can use either a tiny sample of blood, or fluid from the inside of your mouth, which means no more painful or lengthy blood draws!

For further information on STD's, plesae visit the CDC website at: http://www.cdc.gov/nchstp/dstd/disease_info.htm.

Also please visit http://www.healthypenis.org for information on the recent epidemic of syphilis affecting gay men.

Back to the Health Menu