COVID-19 guidance encourages us all to stay away from close contact with others as much as possible and to limit social interaction.This may impact your sexual health, as it discourages hooking up in person with someone you don’t live with and to limit our contacts to a small “bubble” of people.
Despite this, the appearance of COVID-19 is not going to make your sexual desire disappear, and in a world where we are usually easily able to connect and meet other sexual partners, it can be difficult to adjust sexual practices. For some people who have been very sexually active before lockdown, it is difficult to adjust to an imposed period of abstinence.
Increasing numbers of people are looking towards other types of sex, such as phone sex or exchanging pictures.
Some advice and considerations for this can be found here
COVID-19 is not believed to be a sexually transmitted disease but it is passed on through close contact, kissing, rimming and other acts which are common in sexual contact. Some ways that you can reduce the risk from sexual contact include:
- Reducing sexual contact with people you live with or who are in your “bubble”.
- Washing your hands and face with soap and warm water thoroughly before and after sexual contact.
- Showering after sexual contact using a clean towel to dry yourself.
- Using condoms and dental dams during sex.
- Avoiding kissing and rimming during sexual contact.
- Washing sex toys with soap and warm water after use and not sharing them.
The British Association of Sexual Health and HIV have released guidance on sex during coronavirus which can be found here
At 56 Dean Street, we are running a limited capacity but we are still open as usual. However, we have more provisions for phone enquiries during this time and encourage people to call in the first instance if they have any concerns.
As lockdown begins to ease and guidance changes, some people may be considering starting sexual activity again. If you are a PrEP user and have stopped, make sure you know how to restart PrEP before you start having sex.
A guide to restarting PrEP safely can be found here
If you use contraception, make sure you have what you need. Our contraception services are still running as normal and can be found here
COVID-19 presents us with a unique opportunity to break the chain of HIV transmission in London. We are encouraging everyone to order a home test here
Up-to-date guidance on COVID-19 can be found here
