National HIV Testing Week returns from Monday, February 5 and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is calling on people across the country to test for HIV – and this year’s a special one as it marks a decade since it started.
Testing, which is free and confidential, is the only way to know if you have HIV and worth doing because people can live with HIV for a long time without any symptoms. It’s easy to take an HIV test, whether you use a sexual health clinic, a GP, or prefer the convenience of using an at-home test kit.
During National HIV Testing Week, you can order a free self-test, which you take yourself to get a result in just 15 minutes, or a postal test where you take a sample yourself and send it off to a lab who will then contact you with your result.
Terrence Higgins Trust say: “Regular HIV testing benefits all of us. If you are HIV negative, you can still use protection such as PrEP or condoms to stay negative. If you are HIV positive, you can go on treatment and live a long and healthy life — people on effective HIV treatment can’t pass it on to partners.
“The sooner you know your HIV status, the sooner you can get on treatment if needed to stay healthy and avoid passing the virus on to anyone else. Most people will get a negative result, but whatever happens, it’s important to know that anyone diagnosed with HIV in the UK can access free treatment and support.”
