Day 7.5 kbw goes for HIV test

For World Aids Day, I encouraged my students and colleagues at SIUC to go and take a free HIV test c/o the local county health department. Much shifting, hemming and hawing among the undergraduates, and I even offered extra credit for end of term motivation. After lunch, I went for my test, but they had lines and I got a safe sex kit to keep me occupied until I could return.



After office hours and more motivational chats with students, I went for my test, which used an OraSure mouth scraping instead of blood work. This test does not involve blood or needles and is very accurate. My test took place in a private screened area, my long-time friend "Chris" took down my personal information, brief discussion list of any recent-if ever risky behaviors (injectable drugs, sex in exchange for money, drugs, goods, intoxicated sex, and anonymous sex among others), as well as the last time I had unprotected sex.






Then then we opened the test kit...which consisted of a blue plastic scraper with a coated white end for the mouth and a tube for the collected skin cells.

I scraped on the inside of both cheeks and gums and then kept the white end in my mouth for four or so minutes while Chris gave me counseling on what I and family might do if I had a positive result, how I would react (first thought "damn" ) and then seek medical treatment, and that I would have access to local health department facilities around the USA. If negative, I learned what I could do in the future to protect myself and partners, including condoms, dams, and non-microwaveable plastic wrap.



I took the scraper out of my mouth and put it into a small white tube containing preservative, reattached the lid and handed it over to Chris ( no photos of this process). My tube has only an identification number and I am to go and get my results on 10 December with my number and in a private session with a nurse. The entire session took around 25 minutes with some discussion of how to use my Blackberry camera.

I got another safe sex kit....for educational purposes, of course....

one small packet holds eight condoms, two lube packets, instructions, local card for information

So there-- stop worrying and take advantage of the free and anonymous HIV testing, which is also held on alternative 1st and 3rd Thursdays , 2-6pm at Newman Center and 2nd and 4th Thursdays at Longbranch Coffee House from 2-6pm in Carbondale, IL

I did it...and I encourage others to be brave and check on their status as well...instead of the head in the sand approach that I heard from some of my students today. I will report on my results next week.

Balinese cat Madhu inspects contents of the safe sex kit

Meanwhile, I am locating some music for my next post...for Day 8....and will include some Ms. Aretha Franklin, among others.....

P.S. I got my "negative" HIV status results on 10 December and based on my counseling I can keep my status that way, too.

Day Seven - 1 Dec –World AIDS Day | Talk About SAFE Sex

Let's talk about SAFE sex! AIDS has made its way into a variety of communities-gay men, heterosexual men and women, blood transfusions, and injectable drug users, and now migrant workers and truckers who move across regions and countries. However the majority of people living with AIDS are heterosexuals and increasingly women, many of whom lack the knowledge and power to insist on safe sex with their partners.

For example, in many cultures, men visit sex workers and then the men refuse to wear condoms. Some sex workers have made organizations and compaigns to insist on condom usage, such as in Thailand or India. At the same time, if the sex workers are unorganized in such a campaign, "No Glove, No Love", then they face economic pressures to insist that their customers wear a condom because the customer can move on to the next sex worker.

Or women trafficked and/or migrated to India or the Middle East and in sex work may have the same problems and can return HIV positive and face the social stigma from their previous activities and HIV infection.

Migrant workers--men and women--become HIV positive during their construction and domestic-sex-care work(s) and are deported back to their country of origin, for example, Nepali women or Bangladeshi male -female migrant workers, who in turn infect their wives-husbands.

Although the levels of HIV infection are still relatively low for Bangladesh sex workers, I am very concerned about their high client loads and low condom use by clients. For Bangladeshi sex workers in hotels, they may see 8-10 customers per day and really increase their risks of STDs and HIV, if the customers refuse to wear condoms.

In turn, the male customers go home and have unprotected sex with their wives--who due to social practices about sex within marriage--may not be able to ask their husbands to wear a condom b/c this would acknowledge his sexual activities outside of marriage. VAW mean that husbands and male partners may sexually assault wives and girlfriends who are unable to use safe sex protection and/or birth control and hence risk STDs, HIV infection, and unwanted pregnancy.

Other researchers have discovered that MSM (who have sex with men) in Bangladesh and other countries often are married, too, according to heteronormative social pressures to marry and procreate.

And the cycle of infections go on largely because we do not talk about or insist on SAFE sex with our partners. The central players in this story are the men who refuse to have safe sex-use condoms with their assorted partner(s). The people who have the most problematic sex histories are also the most likely to lie about their precautions, HIV status or even get tested, even if the facilities are available, which are very few in countries such as Bangladesh. Testing continues to carry shame-stigma for many people, hence, the publicity surrounding celebrities and politicians getting HIV tests.

During my time in Bangladesh, I have talked with sex workers how about to educate and motivate men for more condom use and created this safe sex poster. This poster stars Mr. Bunny, driver Ripon's rear view mirror-toy, because no men would hold or pose with condoms for this type of poster. I found that we could use Mr. Bunny in a variety of educational poses, storytelling, and situations.






Mr. Bunny has two condoms in hand and some taka tucked into in his little vest & lungi attire. In Bangla, Mr. Bunny says: "I have condoms and money. Let's make love. Smart rabbits always wear-use condoms."



Hence, on World Aids Day, let's talk about Safe sex with our partner(s), friends, family, and others. Let's also remember the people who have passed on as well as the large numbers of people living with AIDs around the world, and particularly in Africa and South Asia who are trying survive without access to the expensive anti-viral medicines used by people in the North.