Sexual Health

This article by Hadley originally appeared in FS Magazine, a publication of GMFA, here.  HIV seems to be at the front of our minds at the moment, given the storm caused by NHS England’s decision not to fund PrEP on the NHS. Many HIV campaigners, gay men, healthcare professionals and even politicians were all eager to join a movement that will hopefully see PrEP becoming widely accessible. Perhaps it was only a timely coincidence that I finished reading The Normal Heart, just as the mod

Pssst – I’ve got a secret but you’ve got to pinky-swear not to tell anyone, please. It’s embarrassing! I don’t talk about it. I’ve started the article like this because the topic is hard (no pun intended) to write and yet in hindsight it's somewhat childish, the way we refuse to speak about it. We don't admit that it’s an issue for men in general, earth-shattering for gay men, confusing and depressing for all men and especially for those living with HIV. If we do talk about it,

Une version francaise est disponible ici. Many of you may have noticed the ebb and flow of the community-based HIV movement, influenced by medical and scientific breakthroughs, funder priorities, community activism and larger political, social and economic forces.  Throughout my 20-plus years in HIV community-based work and volunteering, I have tried to ground myself in a few bedrocks as a way of anchoring my work. The essential connection between health and human rights. The need for polic

This article by Mark Reed originally appeared in FS Magazine, a publication of GMFA, here.  “As a devout Roman Catholic I know I’m committing a mortal sin which must be confessed. It's difficult to square that with the concept that God made me who I am, what I am, have a divine purpose, and more importantly, isn’t answering my prayers to be free from this sexual self or give this former husband and father a more acceptable outlet.” - Randy, USA via FS porn survey 2016 Last year, th

A significant proportion of people living with HIV would be willing to take part in a study towards a cure for HIV, research presented at the 21st International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2016) in Durban, South Africa last month shows. However, some potential participants may not fully understand that taking part in an early-phase study is highly unlikely to afford any personal clinical benefit, but might have the potential to cause harm. There is “an ethical imperative to understand the motiv

This article by Megan Devin previously appeared at CBC.ca. You can read the complete story here. A new study has found that gay and bisexual men with more sexual partners are better at practicing safe sex. The research out of the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS debunks a common myth that being more promiscuous puts you more at risk for the virus. "I think we hear that time and time again... 'If people just reduce how many sex partners they have,'" said Nathan Lachowsky, one of t

The reporting regulation under the Health Protection and Promotion Act (HPPA) has changed: the names and contact information of people who test positive for HIV at anonymous testing clinics may not have to be reported to Public Health in Ontario. If you have your initial HIV test at an anonymous testing clinic you may be able to use your positive anonymous HIV test code to have anonymous HIV viral load testing. For more information please visit our website. Anonymous HIV tests are free in O

When getting sexy with our partner(s), we all have an opportunity to talk about sexual health. Yet in practice, many of us are reluctant to start a conversation, bring up condoms, or ask about HIV and STIs. For those of us who are HIV-positive, not having one of these conversations means we may face charges of aggravated sexual assault. In fact, last month, we have seen two Toronto-area people living with HIV charged with aggravated sexual assault, and a call for their sexual partners to come

The truth is my family doctor and I have a good relationship. She’s known me since I was at least nine-years-old and is privy to some of the most intimate and personal details of my life. She’s been given a front row seat to my sexual escapades and is somehow always surprised when I don’t gag when I get my throat swabbed. Still it’s strange, not to mention awkward, to have this conversation because of the unspoken implication that once I’m on PrEP I’ll be the courtesy bottom at ev

This article by Stewart Haggas originally appeared in FS Magazine, a publication of GMFA, here.  It’s perhaps to be expected that previous generations of gay men, when homosexuality was legislated against, had to look beyond obvious channels for information about gay sex and relationships – but what about the gay youth of today? Recently, the Government announced that it wouldn’t be requiring schools to provide Sex and Relationships Education (SRE), despite widespread support for the

As much as it’s touted as an effective prevention strategy, actually getting your hands on that expensive, blue pill is a giant pain. I first heard about PrEP years ago while the first trials of it’s use as a preventative measure were underway. I had always considered taking it, but it seemed prohibitively expensive and was I even ready to divulge the most intimate details of my sex life in order to get it? In 2016 it’s no longer relegated to the pages of obscure medical journals. PrEP

This article previously appeared at NakedTruth.ca here. There's been a lot of hype lately about a new drug that you can take every day which prevents you catching HIV. The antiretroviral medication – Truvada - had been used for a while now as an effective treatment for people who have HIV. Recently, large demonstration research trials have proven that Truvada also works as effective prevention: Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis for HIV, or “PrEP.” Sexual Health & Safety: WTF is PrEP? A s

Travelling down my own road When Madonna’s Ray of Light came out, I immediately identified with “Sky Fit’s Heaven” particularly “traveling down my own road Watching the signs as I go.” If there has been one thing, it has been my ability to make my life a constant adventure. I often feel like I am on the passenger side while traveling down the journey of life. It has often have left me doing things where I wonder, “How the hell did I get here?”  I went from being 17 years o

Bridging the gap with your health care team can seem like a daunting task. After all, they are the experts who spent years of life in school and have all the answers. Right?  It’s natural to sense an us vs them mentality however this is not how the relationship should function. As the old saying goes there is no “I” in team and this is especially true in the world of health care. Each individual member of your health care team has a unique role. From you the patient to the doctor, nur

People living with HIV are living longer – but are also disproportionately affected by diabetes, heart disease and smoking-related illness. These ailments are not only a result of HIV, but rather are usually the result of lifestyle choices and risks factors such as tobacco use, low physical activity and poor diet. “One of the real challenges today for people living with HIV is to grow old in an healthy way,” said Dr. Jose Côté, principal investigator of the LHIVE Healthy study. It is i