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Testing Teen Damien Programming SAMHSA Outreach HIV FAQ


Should I Get Tested?

Our staff recommends that a person who has multiple casual sex partners in the course of a few months should get tested every 3 months. Most sexually active people should get tested every 6 months. People in monogamous relationships may use their own discretion, but we recommend testing once per year. For questions about an HIV testing schedule, please contact Rhonda Bayless at rbayless@damien.org or call at 317-632-0123 x275, or talk to a health care provider.

The CDC lists the following behaviors as behaviors that increase your chances of getting HIV. If you answer yes to any of them, you should definitely get an HIV test.

  • Have you injected drugs or steroids or shared equipment (such as needles, syringes, works) with others?
  • Have you had unprotected vaginal, anal, or oral sex with men who have sex with men, multiple partners, or anonymous partners?
  • Have you exchanged sex for drugs or money?
  • Have you been diagnosed with or treated for hepatitis, tuberculosis (TB), or a sexually transmitted disease (STD), like syphilis?
  • Have you had unprotected sex with someone who could answer yes to any of the above questions?
  • If you have had sex with someone whose history of sex partners and/or drug use is unknown to you or if you or your partner has had many sex partners, then you have more of a chance of being infected with HIV. Both you and your new partner should get tested for HIV, and learn the results, before having sex for the first time.
For women who plan to become pregnant, testing is even more important. If a woman is infected with HIV, medical care and certain drugs given during pregnancy can lower the chance of passing HIV to her baby. All women who are pregnant should be tested during each pregnancy.