I went for my annual HIV test today. The clinic is about 30 minutes from where I live; I did get a bit scared the further down this street that I went (if you’re local, it was at Washington and Arsenal). A few people did stop at stare as I drove by. One old man shook his head, like, what’s that crazy white girl doing here?! But I finally found the clinic and figured out where to go. Chuck, the guy who was my counselor, was a nice guy; it turns out he’s a DJ at a bar I go to sometimes.

I told Chuck that I have no problem telling a guy that sex is not gonna happen without a condom, but I always feel awkward asking a guy if he’s been tested. He suggested that I approach it from the standpoint of looking after my own health, and if a guy doesn’t know his status, well, he can be tested in under an hour. (He did the oral test on me and it took 20 minutes.) We laughed about condoms and I brought up the Pastor Carl story and asked what can you do if a condom is too big? He thought about it and his only suggestion was to use a female condom, which he made me take. (I refused his offer of dental dams, though. LOL)

Anyway, my test was negative. It was a lot less nerve-wracking than it was last year (the first time I was tested). Honestly, I felt a bit silly going in to get tested, but I admit, I did have to answer “yes” to about half of the questions on the risk factor test. I’ve had more than one partner, I haven’t been in a long-term, monogamous relationship, I’ve had sex under the influence of alcohol … will I stop any of those behaviors? Doubtful. But I will speak up more; after all, if I could be a big girl and go to the ghetto by myself to be tested, some guy can too. Here’s a good place to start: The Damien Center

∗ Posted by Monique on 05.19.2007
∗ Accomplishments, My life