Every Monday morning in class we get given a scenario with several personal and public health focuses, on which we are expected to research and collaborate, and then present a two-hour discussion of our findings amongst ourselves. Provisioned under the banner of Problem Based Learning, these situation-based discussions usually carry through the theme of the week's lectures and learning outcomes, this week we had the contentious* story of 'Alan and Bill'. 

You might have seen a reference to this earlier in the week as I tweeted in dismay at being given what is seen to be the most-hated task relating to our weekly scenarios, the 'psychosocial effects of disease on the individual'. Without boring you with the details, I pretty much attempted to summate the past 3 decades worth of research into the emotional toll of HIV and AIDS on the LGBT community in a two-page report, with an obvious skew toward safe-sex practices and limiting the spread of infection.

Ironically then, should I literally be handed the knowledge that my ex-boyfriend would be perpetuating the promotion and idealisation of so-termed 'bareback sex' through a newly created twitter account under the pseudonym of @stkildaboy. Maybe Probably I'm just overreacting (and I should declare hypocrisy in that I have not advocated safe-sex measures in my own personal life 100% of the time), but if there's one thing that really just seems so fucking stupid, is the active pursuit against the simple ways to avoid infection from a variety of sexual transmitted infections.

Weirdly enough, even while we were together, his indiscretions, while contrary to the terms of our relationship were not even the principle cause of concern for me, more specifically was the way in which he used to portray sex with other guys, always needing to specifically refer to the sharing of bodily fluids or the fact it was protection-less intercourse. Maybe I'm just hypersensitive.

Obviously coming from a medical background I have a completely biased point of view. But when you go back to a time during the late 1980's where in some 'epicentres' HIV was prevalent in over half the homosexual population, I figure that times like those are best left unrepeated. Basic epidemiology will tell you that if HIV can't be eliminated from the body once infected, and HIV positive individuals are living longer than ever before (thanks to HAART developments) and therefore are generally having more sex, you would assumed incidence to be increasing. With the exception of some south-american and sub-Saharan african contries, this is not the case, largely due to an increasing awareness of condom use and a safe-sex approach.

Which I guess is ultimately why I have so much loathing towards what I feel is the needless promotion of negative health practices. I don't want to live in a time of fear any more.

*the the fellow gays in my course at least. Apparently it was 'homophobic and derogatory'. I shared no such views.





H.