If you’re in a relationship, you and your partner might be thinking about having sex- if you haven’t already. If you’re both ready to take that step, then it’s really important to start having a conversation about HIV and how to keep each other safe, right? I know that it’s not an easy chat to have, but it’s a very necessary one. So here’s a little motivation to help you have that conversation.

Build trust

Being able to talk to your partner about the risks involved with having sex can help you build a lot of trust with them, because you’ll know that they’re interested in protecting not just their health, but yours too. If you can trust each other with the big, intimidating stuff, you can definitely trust each other with the little things too.

Peace of mind

Once you have that chat and decide that you should both get tested for HIV, you’ll have complete peace of mind in just knowing your status. Most of the time, what makes it seem so scary is just the fact that you don’t know- but it’s not ideal to live your life in constant fear, right? Having peace of mind will allow you and your partner to be free and enjoy the simple joys in your relationship and just be happy.

Building healthy habits

It’s a great feeling to know that you’re growing in your relationship, and part of that means getting into healthy habits together. When you’ve tested just once, it’ll be easier to make it a regular thing that you do with your partner every 3 months.  

I know it can be really intimidating, but you shouldn’t be scared to talk about HIV with your partner- especially if you love them, and more importantly, love yourself. You see, the more we make it normal to talk about HIV with our friends, family and our partners, the less stigma there’ll be around it, and the more you’ll be able to protect yourself and the one you love. The first step to having the chat is to read up as much as you can, so here are a few articles that will get you started:

9 questions you may have about HIV

What you need to know about HIV testing

Why should I get tested for HIV?

Should you tell your partner you’re HIV+? 

If you need someone to talk to, you can also speak to me for advice or help here on Ask Choma, send me a Facebook Message, a Twitter DM, or a WhatsApp Message (071 172 3657).