Dear Counsellor:

I read your column in the Star every week. It is a column I really look forward to reading. Now it is my time to write. A few months ago I went to give blood for a relative who is pregnant. Last week I was asked to report to the Blood Bank, when I reported there I was told that HIV was found in my blood. This is the worst news I could ever receive. Counsellor, I'm a married man and there is no way I could face my wife with such a horrible news, because I know she is not the one who infected me. Counsellor, let me tell you the truth. I have a little woman on the side, but we all attend the same church and she is a holy ghost person, a Christian woman and moreover she told me she was not having sex with anyone else but me, and I know my wife is a faithful woman also. How could this be? Is it possible for me to be infected and my wife is not?

Worried Elder

Dear Worried Elder:

Yes, it is possible for you to test positive for HIV the virus that causes AIDS and your partner test HIV negative even though you both have been having unprotected sex, but this does not happen very often. You should stop having unprotected sex right away because if your partners are not yet infected they could become infected or if they are infected then you could re-infect each other.

Remember that it is not the number of sex partners that you have that will cause you to become infected with HIV, but it is whether or not you or one of your sex partners has sex with someone who is infected. You must know that HIV can infect anyone who has unprotected sex with someone who is infected, it does not matter whether you are a Christian or not. You must also take the personal responsibility of protecting yourself, only you can protect you. I suggest you speak with a HIV knowledgeable counsellor while you await the result of your second HIV test.

For more information on condom use, HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections call the AIDS/STD Helpline at 967-3830, 967-3764 or toll free at 1888-991-4444 or write to AIDS Affairs c/o the Star, 7 North Street, Kingston.