What Is Your Safer Sex Strategy?

Page last reviewed 9.6.2026

Three ways to take care of your sexual health without compromising on pleasure: prevent, test, treat – and enjoy! 

There are many ways to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and take care of your sexual health. This page introduces the key approaches to preventing, testing for, and treating STIs. Sex is often more enjoyable when you have taken steps to protect both yourself and your partners.

Some STIs, such as chlamydia, gonorrhoea, HIV, and syphilis, can be detected through regular testing. Others, including herpes and genital warts (HPV), are usually diagnosed when symptoms occur rather than through routine testing.

Looking after your sexual health doesn’t mean you have to give up pleasure! There are many different safer sex strategies, and the type of sex you have can influence which approach works best for you. 

Have you thought about what your strategy for safer sex looks like?

Preventing

Of all sexually transmitted infections (STIs), HIV is the only one for which an effective preventive medication is available. PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) is a medication taken before potential exposure to HIV. It can be taken daily or as needed (on-demand). When taken correctly, PrEP is highly effective at preventing HIV during condomless sex.

People using PrEP should attend regular medical follow-up appointments, including HIV and STI testing every three months. It is important to remember that PrEP protects against HIV only and does not prevent other STIs.

Condoms, on the other hand, provide effective protection against HIV as well as many other STIs. There are many different types of condoms available, and trying a variety of options can help you find the one that works best for you.

Condoms and lube are a perfect match. Lubricant reduces friction during intercourse and helps prevent condom breakage. In addition, it can increase pleasure! Both water-based and silicone-based lubricants are safe to use with condoms. Apply lubricant on the condom and always also inside the anus or vagina as well. 

Testing

Preventing STIs is not always possible, which is why regular testing is important. Many STIs can be asymptomatic, meaning they do not cause any symptoms. As a result, the only way to know whether you have an STI is to get tested. If an infection is detected, it can be treated appropriately, helping to protect both your health and your sex partners. It is a good idea to talk openly with your sex partners about STI testing and to let them know if they may have been exposed to an infection.

When getting tested for STIs, it is important to tell the healthcare provider what kind of sex you have had. This helps ensure that the right tests are performed and that you receive appropriate treatment if needed. For example, if you have given oral sex or rimming, a throat swab is needed to detect infections in the throat. If you have had anal sex without a condom as a bottom or received rimming, it is important to mention this as a rectal swab is required. 

Chlamydia and gonorrhea can be tested using a urine sample and, when necessary, swabs from the throat and rectum. HIV and syphilis are always tested using a blood sample.

Treating

Treating HIV and other STIs is important for both your own health and for preventing passing further transmission. Chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis are bacterial STIs and can be cured with antibiotics.  It is important to complete the treatment as prescribed to ensure the infection is fully cleared and does not cause complications. When treated correctly, these infections can be cured and will not be passed on to sex partners. 

HIV is a chronic infection caused by a virus, and people living with HIV require lifelong treatment. Effective HIV medication allows people with HIV to live long, healthy lives. When taken as prescribed, HIV treatment reduces the amount of virus in the body to undetectable levels. As a result, HIV cannot be transmitted through sex, even without a condom.

In Finland, HIV treatment is started as soon as possible after the diagnosis. When HIV medication is taken as prescribed, it suppresses the virus to very low levels. This allows the immune system to function normally and prevents the infection from progressing.

Effective HIV treatment can reduce the amount of virus in the body to a level that cannot be detected by standard tests. This is known as an undetectable viral load. When a person’s viral load is undetectable, HIV cannot be transmitted through sex without a condom. Having a sexual partner who is on effective HIV treatment and has an undetectable viral load is therefore one of the most effective ways to prevent HIV transmission.

However, there is still no cure for HIV, which means that the virus remains in the body even with effective treatment. HIV treatment is lifelong. As a result, HIV infection can always be detected through antibody testing.

Diagnosing HIV as early as possible and starting treatment right away are highly effective ways to prevent new HIV infections. In fact, Treatment as Prevention (TasP) has been a key slogan in English-speaking HIV prevention for many years.

It is also important to treat other STIs according to medical advice. For example, if you are prescribed antibiotics, you should complete the full course of treatment and take the medication exactly as directed. Stopping treatment early or taking medication irregularly may prevent the infection from being fully cured. In the case of gonorrhoea, for example, incomplete treatment can also contribute to the development of antibiotic-resistant strains.

For these reasons, if you think you may have an STI, it is important to get tested and receive an accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment from a healthcare professional. Do not rely on medications obtained from friends or other non-medical sources.

Read more about STI treatment here>>

What’s Your Safer Sex Strategy? 

There are many ways to protect yourself from HIV. It’s a good idea to think about which option works best for you and your current life situation. Condoms offer strong protection not only against HIV but also against many other STIs. PrEP is a highly effective medication that protects against HIV. A person living with HIV who is on treatment is also a safe sex partner in terms of HIV, because medication prevents HIV from being passed on. 

Sex can be more enjoyable and stress-free when you’ve thought about your own safer sex strategy in advance. This means considering your choices and habits related to sex before you’re in the moment. Below are three examples of different safer sex strategies. 

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