Sunday, January 22, 2017

I May have HIV

Hello. 

Good day. 

My name is XXX. Im 29. And I could be possibly HIV positive. 

Im writing to you to get some sense of clarity and possibly some help. I've come accross your blog and found that you could help enlighten me as you have undergone your tests late as well. 

I have foregone taken an HIV test for years as I always thought I was "healthy". But just this last weekend i got my 2nd infection with shingles and then i got scared. As per my research once infected with shingles it is rare for a person to contract it not unless if that person has a compromised immune system. 

For the past 10 years i have not shown any symptoms of possibly contracting the virus as I have never been admitted to a hospital nor have I been  sickly. I have scheduled an appointment for monday to finally get myself tested as I am scared that I might follow the fates of those who have neglected themselves. 

I am very well educated about how HIV works and that its not a death sentence. I have a close friend who is a PLHIV for 7 years and has been on ARVs since then. My current partner has HIV as well but he lives in London and he just recently started his ARV medications, however im still puzzled as to why I am dreading the results. 

Im mentally preparing myself that i already am positive and I am gonna have to take medications for the rest of my life, but Im guessing that it wouldnt sink in yet until i see the results stating "Reactive". Im scared as to how i would and could react by the time i see those results. Im hoping for the best but im also expecting for the worst. Im scared that instead of HIV it may have already been fully blown to AIDS. If it has, i dont know how i can recover from that. 

I hope you can help enlighten me in this situation. 

Hoping to hear from you soon. 


Thank you. 
XXX


POZZIEPINOY'S RESPONSE

HI XXX,

First of all, thank you for sending the Foundation an email. Thanks too for searching for the Blog to raise your concerns.

Having symptoms of any other infection may not necessarily mean that you have HIV. There are other diseases that may cause weakening of the immune system, and in return the body becomes prone to infections. 

The only way to know is to take the HIV screening or HIV test. This will diagnose if you have HIV or not, not the infections that you have unless they are really AIDS defining infections which may make a doctor suspicious of you having HIV.

Like what I always say in the previous posts that I wrote, it is not enough that one knows about HIV. It is how one acts to protect ourself from the virus that makes the difference.

From your letter, you never disclosed if you had condomless sex with your partner who has HIV. You also didn't disclose if you had any sexually transmitted infections before or shared needles with anyone. Those are risks that one has to take in consideration to suspect if one has HIV or not. However, since you are worried, there is only one way to find out and that is by taking the HIV test. The HIV test will clear everything if you had your last possible contact without using condoms or the risks that I mentioned above, 6 weeks ago. That is the window period for HIV for it to be detected by the HIV test according to the Department of Health and the World Health Organization.

Now let's look at your concern.

What if you are positive?

My advice is take a deep breath, cry a little and take a day at a time. It is really hard to accept it at first but what you need to do is to take action fast. Trust me, by getting involved with yourself, by getting treatment fast, will you be able to accept it fast. Trust me, because that's what I did before. Instead of burying myself into depression, I just got consultation from an HIV doctor fast to understand everything that I needed to do. By planning everything, it didn't allow my brain to think anymore, but focus on the steps I needed to do. In other words, I got busy. Busy in studying the disease, busy in knowing the facts, busy in understanding the treatment process. I was busy for a week or two, and when I got home, I did my esearch again. My mind became so empowered that I was able to sleep at night. Of course, I have my partner with me who strengthened me. However, you have friends who have HIV who can support, to talk to and walk you through it.

The road to HIV treatment is somehow tedious, but taking steps a day at a time really helps. But you can do it, because all of us have done it. 

However, we will not know this until you get tested. Maybe you are worrying about nothing at all. 

What if you are negative?

Then congratulations. 

But it is not over yet. You have a responsibility now to stay negative.
You need to take the HIV test every year. You need to use condoms all the time. You must not share needles with other people (just in case).

To practice the knowledge that you have, invite other people to take the HIV test on a regular basis. Give away condoms and water-based lubricants to become a role model. Tell people that you know, to not to share needles with anybody. In this way, what you know will be put into action and will create a habit for you to have. 

ACTION is the best teacher. Experience is the best instructor. Sometimes we have to have concerns so as to act. The struggles that we face, make us better persons.

XXX, you are on the right track. Your decision to take the HIV test on Monday will be the greatest decision that you will make. No matter what the outcome maybe, I know, you will make it. Just be confident and believe in yourself, then nothing can go wrong.

I hope I was able to answer your concern. Email us again if you have updates or you have other concerns.

Stay healthy,
Pozziepinoy




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