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**This is a sponsored post by Med-IQ, all opinions are still my own**
Y’all know that I love giving you tips to help you take control of your reproductive and sexual health so when Med-IQ, an accredited continuing medical education company providing exceptional educational experiences for us nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals reached out to me, I jumped at the chance to work with them.
Med-IQ is actually doing awesome education around women and sexual health-specifically using PrEP to lower your risk of getting HIV. Even though we have made great strides in slowing the rate of HIV infection, the reality is African American women are still at higher risk of getting HIV. So it’s important that you are aware of all the prevention tools available to protect you from this infection. One way of doing that is by taking PrEP. Never heard of it? Trust me, you aren’t the only one so let me explain.
So What Is PrEP?
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a medicine you can take every day to reduce your chances of getting HIV by more than 90 percent (yes, girl you read that right). PrEP is a powerful HIV prevention tool that includes a daily pill and regular visits with your doctor.
Want to know the best part?
Using a condom and taking PrEP lowers your risk of HIV even more than PrEP alone. Obviously, this medicine is much less effective when it is not taken consistently, so for maximum protection, take it EVERY DAY!
So How Do I Know if PrEP Is Right for Me?
Honestly, this medicine isn’t right for everyone. Generally, women who are HIV-negative but are at a higher risk of getting the virus use this medicine. So if you:
- Have had a bacterial infection (gonorrhea or syphilis) in the last 6 months
- Are in a sexual relationship with a partner living with HIV
- Don’t use condoms regularly and don’t know your partners’ HIV status
- Have a high number of sexual partners, or
- Have used injection drugs in the past 6 months
You may want to consider talking to your doctor about starting this medicine.
How Does This Medicine Work and Is It Even Safe?
If you take it every day, PrEP will work for you, and women can achieve maximum protection against HIV transmitted through vaginal sex about 20 days after starting the regimen. Look, no drug is perfect so you may experience some side effects like headache, nausea, or gas while taking this medicine, but these symptoms usually go away over time.
Concerns about the long-term effects of the medicine? Maybe I can put your mind at ease by letting you know that people who took PrEP for long periods (up to 5 years) didn’t suffer any significant health effects. But if you start taking the medicine and you experience severe side effects or have symptoms that don’t go away, be sure to follow-up with your healthcare provider.
So How Much Is This Going to Cost?
The short answer- like most medicines, the cost will vary depending on your insurance (lame, I know) but don’t worry, I’ve included this handy dandy cheat sheet to help you get started in figuring out pricing.
Ok, This Sounds Like Something I Can Use, How Do I Talk to My Doctor About PrEP?
So the conversation with your doc shouldn’t be awkward or embarrassing. Here are a couple of tips to remember:
- Be sure to present all the details about your life that could be important to your health (your doctor’s office is totally a judgment-free zone)
- Ask questions – nothing is off limits
- Take some notes- writing things down can help you remember key points about the chat.
If your doctor is a little resistant to starting you on PrEP, don’t be afraid to find another provider who will. You can start by heading over to the PrEP Provider database and entering your zip code to find docs in your area who prescribe this medicine all the time.
What Else Do I Need to Know?
Committing to a daily PrEP regimen is only one tool to help you create a worry-free sex life; completing this Med IQ survey is another.
Here’s the deal,
Med-IQ is currently conducting a survey and would appreciate your input. The survey, which includes more education on this topic, will take less than 15 minutes to complete. Survey responses are anonymous and are only shared in aggregate. Your responses to these survey questions will provide us with important information about how women communicate with their physicians about their sexual health. Med-IQ wants to use the insights gained from the survey to create an educational tool to provide information that may be useful in keeping the lines of communication open with healthcare teams.
Seriously, it’s not often that African American women are asked for our opinions and don’t be selfish- share the survey with your girlfriends, sisters, aunts, cousins and work boos.
Understand Your Choices
The decision to start a PrEP regimen is ultimately a personal choice, but understanding your risk of HIV and becoming more familiar with this medicine will help you make the best decision for your sexual health needs.
*** Med-IQ compensated me to write about HIV. All opinions are my own.***
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