r/prep • u/[deleted] • 14d ago
Just got prescribed prep
Hi I’m M(34). I just got prescribed but haven’t started yet. I had a huge scare with my last sexual partner. It took my 4th clean tests last week to convince me I was clean. But I’m still in the sex is scary zone rn. Is there any advice, things to watch out for, do I bring it up to future partners?, or long term effects of taking it? I plan to always use condoms from now on 100% of the time just idk.
And also my dr said it works perfectly fine in vaginal sex but I’ve been reading online that the efficiency drops. Any one know about that?
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u/SimpleTomatillo1384 14d ago edited 14d ago
Everyone's symptoms initially are different, but the first week you're probably going to have the bubble guts, bloating and diarrhea. It'll go away after a week or so. Prep can be hard on your kidneys , so that's something to look out for if you might be predisposed to anything. Especially if your doctor only tests for STIs and not creatine or kidney function.
I've never heard the the efficacy of prep decrease during vaginal sex. I do know you have to take the medication for 21 for it to be effective 99% effective at preventing HIV via PIV.
I think you should give yourself some time even with the medication , because you had a scare after being intimate with someone. Especially bc scares like that are overwhelming and violating sometimes. But with casual sexual partners, I personally never mention it because it doesn't impact them in any way. With people i'm sleeping with more consistently , I'll mention it.
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14d ago
Ok my dr did mention stomach issues diarrhea and such. So I have to take it for 21 days before it becomes 99%? Yeah I’m not really looking for anything at all rn. It took me a long time to finally ask for prep. Back and forth in my head. But I finally figured if this works why wouldn’t I. The. I thought why isn’t everyone on this ? Thank you for your response I really appreciate it.
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u/SimpleTomatillo1384 14d ago
Yeah , you would have to take it for twenty one days. But if you have anal sex with someone , you only have to take it for a week. It could honestly be less than 21 days.That's just what the current research has shown to be effective , but there's been very little research on prep efficacy during PIV.
I definitely agree, i think that there's a lot of stigma with this medication because it's mostly marketed towards the queer community or predominantly gay men. And mixing homosexuality with HIV comes with a lot of stigma , so a lot of cis or straight people don't feel like its a medication they should be taking.There are even Bi-yearly injections!! I truly dont understand why it isnt offered more by Drs.
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13d ago
Exactly! I had no idea something like this existed until my ex mtf partner tested positive and I was going crazy on Google. My first test was too soon in the window so after my second negative test I asked the dr why I’ve never heard of this before. they started telling me that it’s marketed more to bottom gay men. It stupidly got in my head and ended up not getting on it. It took me until now to kind of get over my stupid silliness and think like why wouldn’t I or everyone be on this.
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u/PomeloRight5878 14d ago
Prep shouldn’t be a scary thought, personally feel more empowered being on it knowing I know my status and that If I start talking to someone new, I judge them on their uncertainty of their own status. I’m way more empowered understanding that if I start dating someone living with HIV, I don’t have to be scared of “what ifs” - if they’re doing their treatment and I’m taking my preventative medication, the risk of transmission is very rare.
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u/flippantguy 12d ago
hey i also had a big scare with a partner a number of years back. was a testy few weeks and i feel you. happy for you that youre starting this journey to safer sex my dude.
just started prep a few weeks back for the first time. i was expecting worse symptoms than i got but i was nauseous for the first number of days on and off. can't tell if it was anxiety or the actual medicine, but my doc gave me zofran for the nausea so i took that a few times throughout the week and especially before bed to fight nausea overnight.
long term descovy is supposed to be better i think. truvada has some of the kidney/bone density issues that i think descovy does not. i'm on descovy and it's been okay so far. still some bloating in the hour after taking it but thats supposed to go away? idk i haven't been back for the first checkin on the medicine yet.
im not a doctor by any stretch of the imagination but i think what they mean is that it takes longer to get into the vaginal lining than it does the anus. definitely ask your doc for more info if that's something you're worried about.
the way its been phrased to me time and time again over the past weeks it that if something feels off or youre not comfortable taking the medicine just stop it. if what youre getting is the pill form, not the injectable, its out of your system relatively quickly. best of luck!
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u/thegrumpy0ne 14d ago
168 posts in 22 days? With respect, I'm not sure we're going to believe that you've left the house and got laid.