Sexual Health for LGBTQ+ People: Finding Affirming Care

Finding healthcare should not feel like preparing for battle. You should not have to brace yourself before saying who you are, who you love, what body parts you have, what kind of sex you have, or what kind of care you need.

And yet, many LGBTQ+ people know the feeling: the awkward intake form, the wrong assumptions, the provider who skips important questions, the staff member who misgenders someone, or the exam room conversation that suddenly feels less like healthcare and more like a pop quiz in self-defense.

Affirming care matters because your health matters. All of it. Your body, your identity, your relationships, your pleasure, your safety, and your dignity.

What Is Affirming Care?

Affirming care means healthcare that respects who you are and provides care based on your actual life, not stereotypes.

An affirming provider should:

• Use your name and pronouns
• Ask respectful questions
• Avoid assumptions about your body, partners, or sex life
• Understand that LGBTQ+ people are not all the same
• Recommend testing and prevention based on anatomy and sexual practices
• Respect your privacy
• Explain options clearly
• Make room for your questions
• Treat pleasure, consent, and sexual health as normal parts of life

Affirming care does not mean the provider has to be perfect. It means they are willing to listen, learn, respect you, and provide competent care.

Why It Matters

When people feel judged, dismissed, or unsafe, they may avoid healthcare. That can mean delayed STI testing, missed cancer screenings, untreated symptoms, unmanaged HIV, lack of PrEP access, untreated pain, or not asking questions that matter.

A provider who makes assumptions can also miss important care. For example, someone might need throat or rectal STI testing based on the sex they have. Someone with a cervix may still need cervical cancer screening, regardless of gender identity. Someone who is on gender-affirming hormones may still need sexual health conversations based on anatomy, partners, and practices.

CDC screening recommendations specifically note that screening for transgender and gender-diverse people should be adapted based on anatomy and sexual behavior, and that HIV screening should be discussed and offered to all transgender people, with repeat screening based on level of risk.

That is the medical way of saying: your care should match your real life.

Questions to Ask a Provider

You are allowed to interview your healthcare provider a little. This is your body. You may ask:

• Do you have experience caring for LGBTQ+ patients?
• Do your forms allow chosen name, pronouns, and gender identity?
• How do you decide which STI tests I need?
• Can you test throat, rectal, urine, blood, or genital sites based on my sexual practices?
• Do you offer PrEP, PEP, or referrals for them?
• Do you offer gender-affirming care or referrals?
• What vaccines should I consider for sexual health?
• How do you protect patient privacy?
• What should I do if I have a possible HIV exposure after hours?

If a provider gets offended by respectful questions, that may tell you something.

How to Advocate for Yourself

Try these phrases if you need them:

“I use this name and these pronouns.”

“I need testing based on the body parts I use for sex.”

“I have oral and anal sex, so I’d like throat and rectal testing if appropriate.”

“I’m interested in PrEP.”

“I’m not sure whether I’ve had the HPV or hepatitis vaccines. Can we check?”

“I need a provider who is comfortable discussing LGBTQ+ sexual health.”

“I want this documented accurately in my chart.”

You do not have to apologize for asking for appropriate care.

Red Flags

Consider finding another provider if you experience:

• Repeated misgendering after correction
• Refusal to discuss LGBTQ+ sexual health
• Shame-based comments about sex, partners, or identity
• Assumptions that LGBTQ+ people do not need certain screenings
• Refusal to test relevant body sites
• Dismissal of pain, symptoms, or concerns
• Outing you to others without consent
• Treating your identity as the problem instead of your health concern

Healthcare should not leave you feeling smaller.

Orlando Sacred Spaces and Local Resources

If you are in Central Florida, the Orlando Sisters’ Sacred Spaces may be helpful starting points for affirming care, testing, treatment, referrals, or support.

26Health offers LGBTQIA+ affirming healthcare, HIV/STI testing, PrEP, PEP, behavioral health, and related services.

Hope & Help offers HIV/STI testing, treatment, prevention services, support programs, Ryan White case management, and community services.

The Center Orlando offers LGBTQ+ community services, HIV/Hep C/STI testing, outreach, and support resources.

Orlando Immunology Center, also known as OIC, offers infectious disease and sexual health care, including HIV, hepatitis, STI care, PrEP, PEP, and DoxyPEP.

Services, costs, hours, eligibility, and availability can change, so check directly with each organization before visiting.

A Sisterly Blessing

You deserve healthcare that sees you clearly.

Not as a problem. Not as a risk category. Not as a checkbox with glitter on it.

As a whole person.

Ask the questions. Bring a friend if you need support. Leave providers who do not respect you when you are able. Seek care that honors your body, your identity, and your future.

Your health is sacred. So are you.