Back in the day, HIV testing required a lot.

It required a needle and blood to be drawn. It also usually required a two or three week waiting period for the results. That waiting period was the worst... especially when you're a young college student, away from home for the first time, and when getting tested was a social stigma -- you didn't tell or talk about getting an HIV test. You also had to fill out a mountain of paper work. That's what it was like when I went for my first HIV tests, back in the early and mid 1990s.

Today, HIV testing can be done with a quick swab on your gums. Results can be ready in less than 30 minutes at some testing sites. Paper work is minimal, can be anonymous, and someone talks with you about your choices and actions. And there isn't as much stigma around getting tested for HIV. Or is there? In L.A. and other big cities, friends step into the mobile testing units together before or after going to dinner or the club. But I know many others are afraid of knowing their health status... or may not have access to a free or safe testing site.

Knowledge is power... and when you know your status, you can move forth with the decisions and actions that work best for you and your health.

For HIV testing info, check out this site... or just Google "HIV test" and your city/town.

Today, I remember special friends who have died to HIV and AIDS, but especially Mike Crafton... a special friend who died in 1994.
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