According to the CDC, approximately 20 percent of the people who have HIV in the U.S. aren’t aware that they’ve been infected because they either haven’t begun experiencing HIV symptoms, or haven’t been able to properly identify their HIV symptoms. One of the scariest things about HIV is that it doesn’t always produce severe symptoms from the get-go. Often, early HIV symptoms will mimic those of the flu, and some people who get infected may not experience HIV symptoms for months or longer. This is a problem for two reasons:

  1. When HIV symptoms fail to appear, those infected may not know to get an STD test; and without a positive HIV test, they won’t know to warn their partners or take precautions during sexual activity.
  2. Without HIV symptoms, those infected may not know to seek treatment for the disease, which could impact their long-term health.

If you’ve had unprotected sex, then you’re automatically at risk for contracting HIV. But by undergoing regular STD testing and getting answers about the state of your health, you can help protect yourself from the disease’s potential long-term consequences.