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Who should I tell?

From Next steps • 1 December 2008
Next Steps - image from page 11

You do not need to rush out and tell people you are positive. Sometimes it might be helpful to take some time to adjust to the news yourself before you decide to tell your friends or family.

It can help you decide who you might like to tell if you take some time to think about how people might react to your news. You might find it useful to ask
yourself:

  • Who can I trust with the information that I am HIV positive?
  • Will they offer me support?
  • Will they judge me?
  • Will they respect my confidentiality?

Once you have decided who to tell, you might find it useful to let them know who else you have told so that they can support each other.

You do not have to disclose your HIV status to:

  • Your friends
  • Your employer
  • Your work colleagues
  • Every doctor, dentist or other health care professional

It is wise, however, to tell health professionals you are seeing for other conditions that you are positive so that they have a clear picture of your health and can help you to make decisions about your health. Your health care provider cannot reveal your HIV status to anyone, except in extreme and unusual circumstances.

Next steps

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This Resource was first published on 1 December 2008 — more than one year ago.

While the content of this resource was checked for accuracy at the time of publication, NAPWA recommends checking to determine whether the information is the most up-to-date available, especially when making decisions which may affect your health.

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