Family Planning Decisions

If you are thinking about becoming pregnant or avoiding pregnancy, you should talk with your health care provider about the issues that are important to you, such as:

• If I choose not to get pregnant, what birth control methods would be best for me?
  
• Will pregnancy make my HIV infection worse? How?
  
• Will HIV infection mean other problems for me during pregnancy or delivery?
  
• Will my HIV infection and the treatments I may need cause problems for my baby?
  
• If I am pregnant and choose not to continue the pregnancy, where can I go to terminate the pregnancy?
  
• What if I am refused help because I have HIV?
  
• If I choose to get pregnant, what community programs and support groups can help me and my baby?
  
• Once I become pregnant, should I use condoms anyway? If my partner also has HIV, do we still need condoms?

Remember, although HIV-related illnesses can be treated, as yet there is no cure for HIV. This means the infection, and likely AIDS as well, will be a part of your family's future.

If you are weakened by HIV, both you and your unborn baby will be at greater risk for other serious infections. Because you have HIV, both you and your baby will need care. You will need to plan for the care of your child if you get sick.

Some Helpful Resources

There are many sources of information about living with HIV. Look in the telephone book for:

• Your local health department. They can tell you where to get tested for HIV and what services are available from public sources.
  
• Your local or state medical society to help you find a doctor.
  
• Your library. They may have many materials to help you learn about HIV and AIDS.

Some hospitals, churches, and the American Red Cross, as well as HIV and AIDS organizations, offer programs and sponsor support groups that may be listed in a special directory or your newspaper. Ask your librarian about newsletters and other printed materials.

Toll-free national hotlines and information clearinghouses can send you free publications and give you the latest news about drug-testing and clinical trials.

Here are some telephone numbers to help you get the information you need:

General Information

National AIDS Hotline

• English . . . . . . . . .(800) 342-AIDS (2437)
  
• Spanish . . . . . . . . .(800) 344-SIDA (7432)

TDD Service for the Deaf (800) 243-7889

National AIDS Clearinghouse (800) 458-5231

HIV/AIDS Treatment Information

American Foundation for AIDS Research (800) 39AMFAR (392-6327)

AIDS Treatment Data Network (212) 268-4196

Project Inform (800) 822-7422

Clinical Trials Conducted by the National Institutes of Health or Food and Drug Administration-Approved Trials:

AIDS Clinical Trials Information Service 800-TRIALS-A (874-2572)