Programs & Services > David Kelley Services > HIV/AIDS Community Counselling > How to maintain a sexual relationship when one of you is HIV positive
Issues you may be facing
How to maintain a sexual relationship when one of you is HIV positive
This is a very common issue that both gay and straight couples deal with when one partner is HIV positive and the other isn't.
Safer sex is important for everyone to practice, regardless of HIV status. If you are working to deal with this issue, you have already taken the first step to maintaining sexual relationships.
It is appropriate to acknowledge that sexual feelings, desires, and the need for sexual, emotional and physical intimacy changes over the course of our lifetime, but that they are basic human needs that are always with us, in one shape or another, regardless of a diagnosis of HIV.
Our basic human need to be sexual and intimate with others, regardless of HIV, may be impacted by how we feel physically and emotionally. Our sexuality can also be affected by our own attitude, as well as by messages society gives us about the diversity of sexual practices. If your partner is HIV positive, she or he may have fears about the risk of infecting you through sex and you may also wonder about your level of risk of infection. Accurate information is essential to you both - including information about the level of risk associated with specific sexual practices.
The challenge of being sexually active is that we all need to practice safer sex regardless of our current health status being negative or positive. Being HIV positive does not mean that you are not at risk of re-infecting yourself, therefore, you need to inform yourself about what's safe and how to protect yourself and your partners. Talk to your doctor, or a safer sex counsellor. One way to lower the risk is to learn as much about HIV and AIDS as possible
If you have more questions, get in touch with a safer sex counsellor, your doctor, an anonymous HIV/AIDS hotline or an HIV counsellor. It is important you choose someone you feel you can be frank with about sexual matters.
Regardless of where you go for information, remember that living with HIV does not have to mean that you are any less entitled to enjoy sex and intimacy than anyone else.
Issues you may be facing:
- How to cope with finding out you're HIV positive
- How to maintain a sexual relationship when one of you is HIV positive
- Living life to the fullest after being diagnosed with HIV
