Aa
Patterns of bahaviour
I found a couple of good reads lately.
This one
http://world.std.com/~wij/hiv-neg/Chapter20.html
Is about a gay male hiv counselor which I thought was very well written.
and this one a 2 part article
http://www.unc.edu/glbtsa/lambda/articles/28/1/hivpartone.htm
http://www.unc.edu/glbtsa/lambda/articles/28/3/hivpanicpart2.htm
Is written by a gay male as well but again, well written I thought. No fear mongering, only what they see and seem to know.
Both say, as most health professionals do and stas, that receptive anal is by far the most risky (other than iv drug use) activity.
I found these articles confirm, from a gay male perspective, that patterns of behaviour ultimately will determine a persons HIV status, as DR. H has said so many times. The first article is somewhat unsettling as I would never have guessed that activities like this went on...shows how naieve I am in some respects. I would imagine if an article was written about IV drug users it would be along the same lines (i.e. sharing needles on an ongoing basis).
This one
http://world.std.com/~wij/hiv-neg/Chapter20.html
Is about a gay male hiv counselor which I thought was very well written.
and this one a 2 part article
http://www.unc.edu/glbtsa/lambda/articles/28/1/hivpartone.htm
http://www.unc.edu/glbtsa/lambda/articles/28/3/hivpanicpart2.htm
Is written by a gay male as well but again, well written I thought. No fear mongering, only what they see and seem to know.
Both say, as most health professionals do and stas, that receptive anal is by far the most risky (other than iv drug use) activity.
I found these articles confirm, from a gay male perspective, that patterns of behaviour ultimately will determine a persons HIV status, as DR. H has said so many times. The first article is somewhat unsettling as I would never have guessed that activities like this went on...shows how naieve I am in some respects. I would imagine if an article was written about IV drug users it would be along the same lines (i.e. sharing needles on an ongoing basis).
Of course. But of course there will be times where they do not.
Yes they may not, but it is no guarantee that one will get HIV on the first unprotected sex nor the hundredth.
Yes they may not, but it is no guarantee that one will get HIV on the first unprotected sex nor the hundredth.
Did it occur to you that maybe those people use protection, consistantly and correctly?
"I happened to see a special on the swinger community & the study showed low rates of all stds including hiv in the community, to my surprise."
Maybe there is less (possibly zero) anal sex going on?
I have read articles that duggest the same HIV rate is low in swinger communities. Maybe the "homophobic" tendencies of the swinger communities, as MF mentioned, are the key to this. Maybe they are all hetero only hence the low rates of infection.
Maybe there is less (possibly zero) anal sex going on?
I have read articles that duggest the same HIV rate is low in swinger communities. Maybe the "homophobic" tendencies of the swinger communities, as MF mentioned, are the key to this. Maybe they are all hetero only hence the low rates of infection.
All it takes is for one of them to mess up....analogy of a domino effect.
Besides, I do not think I would much faith into the swinger community.
What about other STI's? Probably even more rampant with the swinger community.
Besides, I do not think I would much faith into the swinger community.
What about other STI's? Probably even more rampant with the swinger community.
Well, it's all what you feel comfortable with. I don't align myself with swingers, personally, mainly because a lot of them really are homophobic, conservative, and surprisingly sex-negative. But I don't feel even a little uncomfortable with that activity. I use condoms, and even if one should break or slip off, the risks are low enough from any single event that I'm certainly not worried about HIV or any STD. I am completely comfortable with that level of ambiguity.
Maybe surprisingly, I actually would trust most swingers far more than anyone else, because they ARE prepared to have sex--both mentally and physically. I think they can weigh risks a little more reasonably as a result. If they don't have a condom with them, or don't feel comfortable with a particular partner, it's not a problem. People who feel uncomfortable with their sexuality are usually caught unprepared; the guy on the down-low, the teenager who signed an abstinence pledge, the husband on a business trip... then the endless guilt and fear and anxiety, the irrational fears of STDs...
However, I am well aware that pretty much everyone here feels differently :-)
Maybe surprisingly, I actually would trust most swingers far more than anyone else, because they ARE prepared to have sex--both mentally and physically. I think they can weigh risks a little more reasonably as a result. If they don't have a condom with them, or don't feel comfortable with a particular partner, it's not a problem. People who feel uncomfortable with their sexuality are usually caught unprepared; the guy on the down-low, the teenager who signed an abstinence pledge, the husband on a business trip... then the endless guilt and fear and anxiety, the irrational fears of STDs...
However, I am well aware that pretty much everyone here feels differently :-)
You never heard me say it wasn't from unprotected anal sex. But when I got infected there was no name or cause of HIV. Now if you want to attack me fine and dandy. But the truth of the matter people in your age group have nothing to fall back on except ignorance.
Just so I'm clear, I don't think that safe sex is a high risk behavior; even if you are sleeping with more than one person. I happened to see a special on the swinger community & the study showed low rates of all stds including hiv in the community, to my surprise.
It's apparently true, although I can't put my finger on any specific studies. So take it with a grain of salt (although it fits with what I've personally seen and experienced). One of my partners is a MD and recently attended a conference on this very subject. The conclusion was that the low rate of HIV in the swinger community is a result of pretty consistent condom use for intercourse, and the fact that swingers are pretty straight (well, the guys are anyway, lol).
I believe everyone should be tested. I know that HIV can happen to anyone. Hell, I'm a white female in my mid twenties & I myself have been tested a couple dozen times b/c of irrational fears. But I have found it empowering to know my hiv status, which is negative. I'm not a high risk person though & I never will be. I don't get involved with people who have risky lifestyles by means of sex or iv drugs. I'm in a monogomous relationship. Can by some means I get hiv one day? Sure. Is it likely? No. Certain groups are higher risk. It's just a fact.
Lets just clarify for the worriers out there ok?
You (teak) said I could possibly have got HIV " By unprotected sex"
TO better clarify this statement maybe it should say " it could have been by unprotected receptive anal penetration that I had". That way people will not assume it was by vaginal means as you intended it to seem.
You (teak) said I could possibly have got HIV " By unprotected sex"
TO better clarify this statement maybe it should say " it could have been by unprotected receptive anal penetration that I had". That way people will not assume it was by vaginal means as you intended it to seem.
Someone correct me if I am wrong...
But the fastest growing HIV infected group is African American women...that's what I had seen on a PBS documentary lately.
But the fastest growing HIV infected group is African American women...that's what I had seen on a PBS documentary lately.
Did you work on that response for three days? I don't hide that I'm gay. So your not telling anyone on here anything. Most of the ones that post here are ones from AidsMeds.
It might have been your mother. Mine could have been by three ways. By unprotected sex. Laceration by a broken bone in the morgue, or working in the box or stuck in the funeral home. What I do know for sure, is that I have advanced HIV disease and I've know it since 1984.
I saw that hiv in black women is on the rise on Dateline or one of those shows. They state it's becaus alot of black men are on the down low; meaning no one knows they also like men. They continue to have sex with their wives or girlfriends unprotected.
Then the wife and girlfriend go out and have unprotected sex with persons that are NOT on the low down and they become infected and the cycle continues. That is the reason for the health guidelines that Dr. H pretisipated in writing for everyone to get tested. There are between 180,000--280,000 who do not know they are infected with HIV.
Oh and by the way, I think the numbers game is a bit dodgy too. I don't believe that, because the odds of transmission are low that you should take your chances. I understand that safe sex is the way forward and I'm thankful that this experience has made me learn that. I'm trying to pay it forward by educating others.
Wear condoms correctly, use plenty of water base lube and you can alleviate most of that worry.
Teak,
Yes I've read about them. I do understand that transmission can happen after one encounter, and it's best to be safe.
But if a lot of the experts reckon it's unlikely, where does HIV education go from here?
When I went to Ireland's leading HIV specialist and said I'd had two unprotected exposures to white, non IV drug using females, He said he knew before I tested that I'd be negative. Is that ignorance, or a measured understanding of Epidemiology?
I'm not afraid of HIV, and I think you, Teak, are in a great position to show people that it's not a death sentence. And occasionally when you come out of your shell, you're not all that gruff!!!
I jest. Thanks for the reply, it's nice to learn
Yes I've read about them. I do understand that transmission can happen after one encounter, and it's best to be safe.
But if a lot of the experts reckon it's unlikely, where does HIV education go from here?
When I went to Ireland's leading HIV specialist and said I'd had two unprotected exposures to white, non IV drug using females, He said he knew before I tested that I'd be negative. Is that ignorance, or a measured understanding of Epidemiology?
I'm not afraid of HIV, and I think you, Teak, are in a great position to show people that it's not a death sentence. And occasionally when you come out of your shell, you're not all that gruff!!!
I jest. Thanks for the reply, it's nice to learn
Bottom line is anybody can get HIV - gay, hetero, bi - whatever.
Although I believe that hetero HIV is on the rise I believe that gay and IV drug users are still the majority of new infections.
Reading the first article - I will say what the author would not - these people are f^^cked up! Anyway you spin it whether it's mental or not you have to be an utter moron to expose yourself to the high risk activities described in the article. Do I feel empathy - YES - would I say - you should have known better - Damn Right I would!
I agree though that this article does give the gay community a bad rap - this type of activity also happenes in the hetro community as well but I suspect that HIV infection is not as high becuase HIV is not as prevalent in the hetro community as it is in the gay community. When will people learn?
I'm so sick of HIV talk that I am pertified everytime I have sex now with a new partner. That's not the way it should be!
Although I believe that hetero HIV is on the rise I believe that gay and IV drug users are still the majority of new infections.
Reading the first article - I will say what the author would not - these people are f^^cked up! Anyway you spin it whether it's mental or not you have to be an utter moron to expose yourself to the high risk activities described in the article. Do I feel empathy - YES - would I say - you should have known better - Damn Right I would!
I agree though that this article does give the gay community a bad rap - this type of activity also happenes in the hetro community as well but I suspect that HIV infection is not as high becuase HIV is not as prevalent in the hetro community as it is in the gay community. When will people learn?
I'm so sick of HIV talk that I am pertified everytime I have sex now with a new partner. That's not the way it should be!
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