Nathan Exposed » Life Guide #4: Straight Talk on Broken Condoms

Life Guide #4: Straight Talk on Broken Condoms

Before we get into this week’s article, I’d like to thank the wonderful readers of Nathan Exposed. My column on Out & About Newspaper’s website has consistently ranked highly in the “Most Read” articles section. On most days, I’m even at the #1 spot. I have no doubt that you guys have helped put me there by clicking over to my column through this blog. Your support really means the world to me, and I am so grateful for your loyalty.

This week’s article was a doozy. A straight man wrote in to tell me he was having sex with his friend’s wife, and the condom broke. He was scared he’d been exposed to HIV. This is a very real situation, and I had to think carefully about the advice I gave him. Not only did I need to address his concerns, but I also needed to get him to re-consider this awful situation of having an affair. The hard part was realizing this is not just another name in my e-mail box. He’s a real human being and there are consequences for everything.

All I can do is give it my best, and I do hope my advice is helpful.

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Question Submitted by Reader—

I had protected sex with my friend’s wife, and while we were having sex, the condom tore. She has two kids and she says she doesn’t have HIV. What should I do? Will I get HIV? I’m a little afraid.

Nathan’s Response—

Starting from the top of the list, it’s good that you were using a condom. Safe sex is very important every time. Unfortunately, condoms can break. When this happens, action needs to be taken and it needs to be taken quickly.

The first thing you should do is get to a doctor, and it’s ideal that you go within four hours of possible exposure. You’ll need to discuss this at length so you and your doctor can determine if you need to start taking medications. If you do, this is called PEP (post-exposure prevention), in which you will be given a series of anti-HIV medications. The meds are very strong and can make you sick. You will have to take it for a full month. Because of the strength of this medication, doctors only recommend it in emergency situations.

Continue reading this article on Out & About’s website.

Wed, Mar 19, 2008 @ 4:09 pm | Filed in Life Guide | Permalink

2 Comments

great article. this actually happened with grrr and i…he had to go on meds for month. it was rough but i was proud of him.

Posted by chris on Thu, Mar 20, 2008 @ 7:39 am

Nathan, that’s some great information for all walks of life. Thanks

Posted by Kory on Thu, Mar 20, 2008 @ 8:52 am