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Finding out you have human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) can be overwhelming, and it may be hard to take in new information or make decisions right away. One of the most important things to know is that HIV is treatable. With antiretroviral therapy (ART) and ongoing care, people with HIV can live long, healthy lives.
You don’t have to figure everything out at once. Start with a few key steps: connect with an HIV care provider, get baseline tests, and make a plan to start treatment.
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Soon after getting a new HIV diagnosis, you should schedule a first visit with an HIV care provider. It’s important to schedule this appointment right away, even if you don’t feel sick or have any noticeable symptoms.
How you get into HIV care may depend on where you were diagnosed, what providers are available in your area, and your insurance or financial situation. You may receive a referral right away, or you may need help finding a provider and figuring out how to pay for care.
Once you’re connected, your care team can answer questions, explain treatment, and help you understand the next steps.
If you were tested and diagnosed by your primary care provider, they may be able to treat you themself. If your primary care provider isn’t equipped to manage HIV, they may refer you to an HIV specialist in your network.
If you don’t have a primary care provider or can’t get a referral for any reason, there are online locators to help connect you with an HIV specialist who can manage your care. For example, the HIV locator from HIV.gov lets you search for HIV care services in your city, state, or zip code.
You may have dozens of questions running through your mind about what having HIV means and how to manage your health while living with it. During your first visit with an HIV care provider, you can get answers to questions like these:
It may be helpful to write your questions down ahead of time and bring them with you to your appointment. That way, you won’t forget to cover any pressing topics during your visit.
Bringing a few key items to your first appointment can help your doctor give you the guidance you need during this initial visit. As your appointment date approaches, prepare and gather the following:
At your first HIV care visit, your provider will review your medical history, perform a physical exam, and order lab tests. These may include routine blood tests, such as a complete blood count (CBC), blood glucose, and tests of kidney and liver function.
Other tests help your care team understand how HIV is affecting your body and choose the right treatment. These baseline results also give your provider something to compare with future tests.
CD4 CountCD4 T lymphocyte (CD4) cells are cells in your immune system that help fight viruses and other germs when they enter your body. A CD4 count measures how many of these cells are in your blood and helps show how well your immune system is working. HIV treatment can help protect or increase your CD4 count.
Viral LoadA viral load test, or plasma HIV RNA test, measures how much virus is in your blood. Without treatment, HIV can stay active in your body and damage your immune system over time. Viral load can rise and fall, especially early in infection.
Treatments for HIV prevent the virus from multiplying, which keeps the viral load as low as possible. You can also get to the point of having an undetectable viral load, which means you have so little of the virus in your blood that this test can’t pick up on it.
Your care team will monitor your viral load to see how well treatment is working.
Drug-Resistance TestingDrug-resistance testing checks whether your HIV has changes that make certain HIV medicines less effective. The results help your care team choose treatments that are more likely to work.
Starting treatment should be on your list of immediate priorities after being diagnosed with HIV, even if you don’t have any symptoms or are still emotionally processing your new diagnosis. Your doctor will tell you about medication options and how you can follow your treatment plan as closely as possible.
Medications for HIV, or ART, are recommended for everyone with HIV no matter how far their HIV has progressed or how long they’ve had it.
ART stops HIV from making more copies of itself. This helps protect your immune system and can help keep your CD4 count at a healthy level. That way, your body can fight infections better.
Ultimately, ART can help you live longer — even as long as people who don’t have HIV at all. Starting this treatment as soon as possible is important because research shows ART is most effective when started early on in the disease.
ART may lower your viral load to an undetectable level. When you keep your viral load suppressed, you will not pass HIV to another person through sex. This is called undetectable = untransmittable, or U=U.
You no longer need to worry about passing HIV to your partner through sexual contact if you’ve had an undetectable viral load for at least six months and continue to control your HIV with ART. It’s then up to you and your partner to decide if you want to use condoms to protect against other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).
Your partner can also choose to use preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to help prevent HIV. PrEP can be especially helpful before your viral load is undetectable, and your partner may choose to continue using it after that for extra protection.
Once you’ve completed the three steps covered in this article, you can take more time to emotionally process your diagnosis. Go at your own pace to build a support system, find mental healthcare to manage any strong emotions or anxiety around HIV, and tell your loved ones about your diagnosis when you feel ready.
If you’ve recently been diagnosed with HIV, talk to your doctor about next steps. They can guide you through the process of baseline testing as well as starting treatment as you process your diagnosis.
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One last thing. You are never alone! If you need someone to talk to please contact me. I am a good listener and I don't judge. We are fortunate to know that being HIV positive is not a death sentence… read more
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