That'd be the best COVID harm reduction advice for hooking up.
I think we’d have to agree that’s pretty hard work, and pretty impossible.
Hence the instructions we all have to stay indoors unless it’s essential not to.
Further to that; COVID harm reduction advice if we are hooking up, is exactly the same as COVID harm reduction for the general community.
1. Check that both you and your potential sex partner have no current symptoms (cough, fever, shortness of breath)
2. Check that both you and your potential sex partner have had no close proximity to others in 5 days - and especially that both you and your partner have had no close proximity to people with symptoms of a cough, fever or shortness of breath.
3. Check that both you and your potential sex partner have no
underlying health conditions that make either of you more susceptible to the more complicated (or fatal) symptoms of coronavirus. (Things like a heart condition, chronic respiratory problems, or being aged over 60 years old.
4. Reduce, as much as you possibly can, the surfaces you touch & people you see on the journey toward the others house. Take disinfectant wipes or gel, and use it every time you touch a surface during that journey. Be mindful of lift buttons, door handles, uber seats, handrails on public transport… everything.
5. Avoid choosing to have sex in public venues like public toilets or places that have hosted others who might have been infectious. Restricting it to people’s bedrooms is so much safer, you can control and disinfect that environment easier.
6. Choosing to hook up with a person who lives alone, is better than hooking up with a person who has a number of flatmates. No matter how vigilant we are about COVID harm reduction, there are no guarantees, so reducing the number of people who will possibly become infected because of our hook up, is better. At very least, make sure that no one in the house has symptoms, or is particularly vulnerable to dangerous COVID symptoms (like an older person, or someone with a heart condition or respiratory problems etc). If there is a choice as to whose house to meet at, choose the person who lives alone, or with as few flatmates as possible. Check too, that there are no essential workers/key workers in the household, who are continuing to work with vulnerable people & communities.
7. As the host, greet your partner at the door with hand gel if you have it; otherwise straight to the bathroom to wash hands or shower. Disinfect bathroom door handle, water tap handles etc. This would reduce the risk of any virus that might have been brought into the house, from passing on.
8. Once you get to your lovers bed (or vice versa)… actually in the bed (or bedroom) …just get on with it :) There is nothing you can do, once you are in this close proximity to the person, to reduce the risk of transmission. Nothing. So just get on with it, and have a good time. Have a really really good time; because if it is really satisfying, perhaps the satisfaction can help you abstain from hooking up again for a while, which again… reduces the chance of the virus spreading in our communities, and actually does save lives.
9. If you do have to hook up again; hooking up with the same person who is respecting the harm reduction measures is much better. But having a small hub or network of chosen people or fuck buddies isn’t helpful in itself, because coronavirus transmission is not so much about the people, but about all the things we touch, all the people we see between each sexual encounter. But if you have a network of trusted fuck buddies who all agree to honour these harm reduction measures, and if you can trust them all to be vigilant and honest, that reduces the risk to a degree.
THIS ISN'T PERMISSION TO GO AHEAD.
It's a plea, to think twice.
When considering these harm reduction tips, please don’t misinterpret them to be a kind of “green light” or blessing to go ahead. It’s really bad public health to hook up in COVID lockdown times, it’s really unkind to people in our communities who are more vulnerable. And yeah, people do die every time another person leaves their house. Every time we leave the house. Fact. So take this harm reduction advice in the spirit that it’s meant; it isn’t permission, it’s a plea to help save lives and help our communities to get through this lockdown period with as few deaths on our hands as possible. By being brilliant and kind community members, who consider the consequences to all, of our choices and our actions.