National HIV Testing Week takes place this month (November 21), encouraging people across the country to take an HIV test.
Organised by the UK’s leading HIV and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust, it’s backed by a social media campaign with guys of different ages, all with the same message – stop putting it off and take the test.
Finding out that you’re HIV positive enables you to get the treatment you need as soon as you need it. This will prevent HIV from damaging your body, and it will make it much less likely that you’ll pass HIV on to anyone else.
Testing is free and completely confidential – no one else will know that you have taken an HIV test, and only you will be told the result.
This year TV’s Dr Christian Jessen is the National HIV Testing Week Ambassador. Like him, you can show your support for National HIV Testing Week by putting #I’mTesting on your social media posts.
Testing for HIV, and encouraging your friends to test too, really will help save lives. You can use the National HIV Testing Week website www.tht.org.uk/itstartswithme to find a clinic near you or to order a postal testing kit.
