HIV is a virus which affects how your immune system functions. It is most commonly spread through sex, but can also be spread through sharing needles and through breastfeeding. The spread of HIV can easily be reduced by wearing a condom.

It can take a long time for the symptoms of HIV, which include a flu-like illness, to first start appearing and so many people often live with the virus for years without knowing that they have it, and during this time they can infect many others with it, and this is what makes getting tested so important.

There are two main ways to get tested:

Going to a sexual health clinicIf you think that you might have HIV, you can walk in to your local sexual health clinic and ask to get tested there. This service is free on the NHS.

Ordering a test kitSometimes going in person to a sexual health clinic can be quite intimidating and so there are other options to get tested, which include ordering a home test kit. It is important to make sure that you get an online test from a reliable source, such as the Terrance Higgins Trust to make sure that the test is trustworthy.