Living with HIV: treatment, medical follow-up and sex life

Can you live a normal life with HIV?

Yes. WHO puts it simply: there is no cure yet, but antiretroviral treatment stops the virus from multiplying, restores the immune system and lets people live long, healthy lives. AIDES points out that an HIV-positive person with access to treatment now has the same life expectancy as an HIV-negative person. Working, travelling, falling in love, having children, growing old: HIV doesn’t prevent any of it.

WHO’s global figures show how well treatment works: at the end of 2025, 95% of people on treatment had a suppressed viral load.

How does treatment work?

• Treatment combines several antiretrovirals, most often in one pill a day.
• It is taken for life, every day, at roughly the same time. Repeatedly missed doses can lead to resistance.
• In France, HIV is a long-term condition: treatment and follow-up are 100% covered by health insurance.
• The earlier it starts, the better: that is why it begins as soon as you are diagnosed, whatever your CD4 count.

What is follow-up for?

Check-ups (usually every 3 to 6 months, more often at the start) monitor:

1. viral load (the amount of virus in the blood), which should become undetectable;
2. CD4 cells, which reflect your immune defences;
3. how well you tolerate treatment (kidneys, liver, bones, cholesterol);
4. other STIs and hepatitis, tested regularly;
5. vaccines (hepatitis A and B, HPV, mpox, flu, pneumococcus…).

It is also the time to talk about what weighs on you: tiredness, mood, drug use, sex life.

Undetectable viral load = no transmission

This is the most important message. According to Sexosafe, when viral load has been undetectable for more than 6 months and treatment is taken properly, the person does not transmit HIV to sexual partners, even without a condom. This is TasP and the “Undetectable = Untransmittable” (U=U) principle (see undetectable viral load).

A limit to bear in mind: treatment does not protect against other STIs (syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia, hepatitis C…). Hence regular testing and condoms depending on the situation.

HIV treatment and drugs: watch out for interactions

Some antiretrovirals, especially boosted protease inhibitors (ritonavir, cobicistat), raise the blood levels of other substances:

• AIDES warns that these inhibitors increase GHB/GBL levels, with a risk of overdose: doses must be reduced;
• Drogues Info Service states that combining cathinones (3-MMC…) with protease inhibitors carries a risk of fatal overdose.

If you do chemsex, tell your doctor or a charity, without fear of judgement: there are often treatments without these interactions. See also dangerous combinations.

What about sex?

With an undetectable viral load, your sex life is yours. You don’t owe every partner a justification; many people choose to talk about it when they feel safe. Rejection still exists: HIV stigma is discrimination, not fate.

Where to find support?

• AIDES (drop-ins, peer groups, support);
• Sida Info Service (France): 0 800 840 800;
• your hospital infectious diseases unit and your GP.

For the first weeks after diagnosis, read our guide after an HIV diagnosis.