HIV/Aids and disclosure

Disclosing to someone that you’re HIV positive can be a daunting prospect, and is a challenge that won’t ever go away. However, with practice you will get better at sharing this highly personal bit of information with sexual partners, family members and colleagues.

If you’ve been diagnosed with HIV, it’s a matter of priority to inform your current sexual partner. The onus is also on you to reach out to partners with whom you’ve been sexually intimate in the past to inform them of your positive test results. It may be unnerving to disclose your HIV status, but if you don’t tell your sexual partners, and you have unsafe sex and infect someone, that person could seek prosecution for reckless endangerment.

Feelings of anger, shame or embarrassment are part and parcel of the disclosure of one’s HIV status. Share these fears and concerns with your doctor or a trained counsellor who is equipped to guide you through the process.

Remember that disclosure of your status is a highly personal decision and nobody can force you to tell anyone about your condition. It is, however, strongly recommended that you do so to avoid a potentially complicated and messy situation.

Disclosure to loved ones
If you choose to share your diagnosis with family members, your decision will depend on your existing relationship with them. If you have a close emotional connection to a relative who has been supportive in the past, they could be supportive now.

Family members often have incorrect information about HIV. For this reason, it’s important to arm yourself with facts if you suspect that you may receive a negative or unkind reaction.

HIV organisations or peer support groups are invaluable resources when it comes to dealing with disclosure to loved ones. Often people don’t understand the ways HIV can be passed on, or they may feel worried and upset about your health. They’ll be reassured to know that you’re being well cared for by your HIV clinic, and that you know where to get support and how to take care of yourself.

Disclosure to employers
Another great risk people living with HIV/Aids face is disclosure to employers or prospective employers. There’s no legal obligation to tell your employer that you have HIV, unless you have a frontline job in the armed forces or you work in a healthcare role where you perform invasive procedures. If this is the case, you’ll need to be monitored by your occupational health team and HIV doctor to ensure your patients don’t risk infection.

If you’re an employee with HIV, you may worry that if you do tell your employer, your HIV status will become public knowledge or that you may be discriminated against. On the other hand, if your boss is supportive, telling them may make it easier for adjustments to be made to your workload or for you to have time off from work.

Given the ongoing stigma associated with HIV/Aids, disclosure can be a tough decision – and the fact that you can’t control how others deal with the news makes it even more daunting.