Module 5: HIV Transmission and Prevention
Completion requirements
Module 5: HIV Transmission and Prevention
Module 5: HIV Transmission and Prevention, Screen 9 of 17
Comfort Asking About Sex
Some of us come from families and environments in which sex is discussed openly and neutrally. But many of us—and many of our clients—come from backgrounds in which these conversations are taboo.
Silence surrounding sex often hides what people are actually doing and, consequently, it hides whether we understand their HIV risk from sex. Whether it’s our own discomfort with the topic or a client’s discomfort, silence can lead to assumptions about what people do and how they can prevent HIV while doing it.
Comfort Asking About Sex
Some of us come from families and environments in which sex is discussed openly and neutrally. But many of us—and many of our clients—come from backgrounds in which these conversations are taboo.
Silence surrounding sex often hides what people are actually doing and, consequently, it hides whether we understand their HIV risk from sex. Whether it’s our own discomfort with the topic or a client’s discomfort, silence can lead to assumptions about what people do and how they can prevent HIV while doing it.
People might think Terri is bisexual. But it would be a mistake to jump to that conclusion, just as it would be a mistake to assume we already know what her HIV risk is. There are a lot of possibilities here:
- Maybe Terri identifies as a lesbian, and only has sex with men to pay her bills. She always uses condoms for oral, vaginal, and anal sex with men because she doesn’t want to bring anything home to her partner. Her partner accepts Terri’s HIV risk from sex work as minimal, so they don’t use protection with one another.
- Maybe Terri limits her sex with men to being a professional dominatrix, occasionally masturbating men but never coming in direct contact with precum or semen. She doesn’t like labels, so she doesn’t identify as lesbian, bisexual, or heterosexual. She and her partner inject heroin together, which helps her cope with her work.
- Maybe Terri identifies as bisexual. She always uses condoms for vaginal and anal sex with her male clients. Terri’s partner is HIV-positive, but they don’t use protection for oral sex and use separate sex toys for each another. Terri had a condom break recently with one of her male clients.