Opinion
Despite nerves, HIV test important
Looking for a print version?
Simply use your browser’s ‘Print’ command and a printer-friendly document will be generated automatically.
Also by Cynthia Martens:
- Religion interferes with FDA ruling (November 21, 2005)
- Duke scandal multifaceted (April 21, 2006)
- Thirsty Thursdays least of problems (December 12, 2005)
- 22 things all students must do before graduating (April 28, 2006)
- Outbursts in class unacceptable (April 7, 2005)
Sharing tools:
E-mail this article:
Getting an HIV test is not a happy thought, no matter how remote the possibility of a positive result. My friends and I had at various times discussed getting tested together, just because it seemed a responsible thing to do. But we'd always remained in the all talk, no action phase.
Recently, however, circumstances forced me to overcome my queasiness and schedule an appointment with University Health Services to receive the HIV antibody test: my parents decided to move to Moscow.
Mob, KGB and vodka jokes aside, one of the first things my younger brother and I faced in the wake of our parents' decision was a massive pile of paperwork titled "Visa application," since both of us intend to visit. And as my mother dumped a thick manila envelope and stack of frightening bureaucratic forms into my arms, she said: "You'll need to get an HIV test as soon as possible."
I tried to keep my face neutral, since any expression of discomfort would lead to an awkward discussion of my sex life, or, even more embarrassing, suspicions that I'd taken up drugs. Why else would a test make me uncomfortable?
The truth us, just as people are often reluctant to write their wills or sign their driver's licenses authorizing organ donations, they seldom are comfortable getting tested for sexually transmitted infections, because they don't like to think about dying or getting sick. Unfortunately, simply sticking our heads in the sand doesn't keep us from either.
For all the AIDS awareness groups on campus, around the country and worldwide, few students are comfortable discussing HIV, let alone going to have the antibody test.
Yet college students are a high-risk group when it comes to sexual activity. College-aged men and women account for the highest percentage of new cases of sexually transmitted infections, and a few years ago North Carolina researchers found that students represented over a fifth of the state's new HIV infections among 18- to 30-year-olds. Students were 3.5 times more likely than non-students to become infected.
According to safersex.org, roughly half of all new HIV infections in the United States are among people under 25, with most people infected sexually. HIV infections are not limited to the gay community, either, as some would like to believe. When the North Carolina researchers first publicized their findings, a representative from the Center for Disease Control told CBS that pigeonholing led people to believe that college students were immune from HIV infection.
It's amazing how the mind can create terrifying what-if scenarios, and it's easy to be paranoid. But when it comes to personal health, it's best to swallow your pride and get tested.
Because HIV tests are often required for travel purposes, and because of greater HIV awareness, getting tested doesn't carry the stigma it once did. Doctors recommend that anyone who has had multiple sex partners get tested for HIV.
If you decide to get tested for HIV or other sexually transmitted infections, be sure that the health care provider you meet with is knowledgeable and non-judgmental. If a doctor or nurse makes you uncomfortable, ask to meet with someone else.
The HIV antibody test is either anonymous or confidential, so before you give a blood sample, make sure you know what you've agreed to. Anonymous testing does not put your name with your test results, whereas confidential testing could include your results in your medical record.
At UHS, I met with a registered nurse, who gave me a brochure on the HIV antibody test and answered my questions before directing me to the lab. There, a man in a white lab coat whipped out a syringe as I closed my eyes to avoid the sight of my blood being drawn. Then I had to wait a few days. When I returned, the nurse smiled and handed me the lab report with the result "non-react" spelled out.
Even if it means confronting past behaviors or irrational fears, students shouldn't shy away from being safe and getting tested. We owe it to ourselves and to others.
Cynthia Martens (cmartens@badgerherald.com) is a senior majoring in Italian and European Studies.
2 Comments | Leave a comment
Leave a comment
Herald Blogs
The Beat Goes On
Muckrakers
President’s Visit Marked a Speech to One of the Last Groups Not Critical of Him
Extra Points
Top Classified Ads (view all)
HOUSES FOR Fall 2010. All houses are on W Dayton or N Bassett. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8 bedrooms. All have parking. madisoncampusrentals.com
I have no sympathy for someone who gets HIV due to their own sexual promiscuity. Would you feel sorry for someone who put a gun to their head without checking to see if it was loaded? It's the same thing. I can't fathom why anyone would have sex with someone else if they did not know for sure that this other person had been tested. Then again, I can't imagine why anyone would have sex unless they intended to have kids. Add to that the fact that nobody ever wants kids, I come to the conclusion that people shouldn't be having sex. I just don't get it.
Anyway, I have cartoons to watch and action figures to collect.
Your article had a very good message, but I feel you really did your community and your campus a disservice by not providing them with a real solution.
It's good to get tested, but without a solution what's the point. While at least 1 in 250 Americans are confirmed as having HIV, it's not the only STI that has potentially fatal consequences and far reaching repercussions.
With a little more than 25 sexually transmitted infections the only real solution is to tell your fellow students to wait until they are married to engage in sexual activity, and only then after both been tested for all known STIs (if they've been sexually active before.)