Many people feel worried after they have a slip up in bed, have sex they didn’t plan, or experience sexual assault.

If you’re HIV-negative, think about getting PEP right away if the sexual health strategies you planned to use didn’t happen (ex. a condom broke). This is especially important if you don’t know your partner’s HIV status, you didn’t talk about it, or you think it’s possible that you’ve been exposed to detectable HIV.

If you’re HIV-negative , and you find that you’re having sex without barrier protection and feel worried, make sure you are getting tested regularly and consider starting PrEP. If you’re someone who doesn’t deal with enough possible HIV exposure to justify going on PrEP, but you can anticipate that you might be exposed to HIV from someone who isn’t on treatment in the future, PIP (PEP-In-Pocket) may be useful for you. PIP is PEP you get in advance, and keep on-hand in-case you need it, without having to visit an emergency room. This can be a great strategy as it can make it easier to start PEP immediately after the potential exposure.

If you’re HIV-positive, knowing about PEP and how folks can access it can help you talk through situations with your partners if they arise. Learn more about where to access PEP and PIP.

Morning After Moments
Sometimes we feel bad or confused about the sex we’ve had in the moment or morning after it has happened. Conversations that happen after you’ve had sex can be scary, especially if you didn’t talk about sexual health beforehand. You or your sex partners might be worried that somebody’s been exposed to HIV, or another STI.

There are a lot of things to consider when determining if PEP is right for you. What kind of sex did you have? Did you just make out? Did you only have oral sex? Some acts have a very low chance of HIV transmission, or none at all. Read up on HIV transmission & Sex to learn more.

Finding out you had sex with someone living with HIV can feel scary if you don’t know a lot about the reality of HIV today. If your partner has an undetectable HIV viral load, you don’t need to take PEP after having sex with them, because they can’t pass on HIV.

When you talk to a past, or current, partner about HIV, your feelings are important, and so are theirs. Make sure you read up on how to have those tough conversations respectfully, and come to your partner with all the facts you can. Ultimately, your health decisions are yours to make with the guidance of a doctor, but do your best to make those decisions with the most up-to-date information, and without stigma.

This section was adapted, with permission, from The Sex You Want Website.
*disclaimer: we do not necessarily endorse all of the information, content, or language used in these references