Do you know that you have a 72 hour period to potentially prevent becoming infected with HIV? Not everybody knows that. But everybody should. Speaker, trainer, counsellor, and author Cindy Pivacic tells us what we should know.
As an HIV positive individual, I believe not enough is being said and done to prevent new infections (amongst other issues). And I experience first-hand how too many people know too little about HIV and AIDS.
Apart from knowing how HIV is transmitted and what you can do to protect yourself and those around you, at the very least also know this …
You have a 72-hour period in which to get medical treatment
There are 280,000 new infections and 140,000 HIV related deaths every year in South Africa. We still have a pandemic. So know this: if you think you might have been exposed to HIV, you have a 72 hour period in which to get medical treatment and onto PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis), which means taking antiretroviral medicines (ART) to potentially prevent becoming infected. It’s the HIV version of a morning-after pill. Remember that.
Now do this, at least once a year
You have an annual mammogram and Pap smear; why not check for other potential issues as well? Go for an HIV test at least once a year. It doesn’t matter whether you’re single or married or dating, you can’t ever really, truly know for sure what your partner’s up to. Besides, HIV is not only transmitted sexually.
And yes it matters if you catch it early. It matters very much. Not just to the other people you could be infecting, but to you too. The sooner you know, the sooner you can take the right steps to live a healthy life before HIV becomes AIDS.
Know your status.
And know the basics
HIV and AIDS are not the same thing.
HIV is a virus that attacks the immune system. It’s called the human immunodeficiency virus.
If someone is HIV-negative, they do not have the virus; they are HIV-free. If someone is HIV positive, the human immunodeficiency virus is in their system; they have HIV.
If someone is HIV positive with an undetectable viral load, it means that no HIV is detectable in the system. They are still HIV positive, but they cannot transmit the virus to their sexual partners. Reaching an undetectable viral load is a key goal of ART.
If someone is HIV positive and their viral load rises and their CD4 count drops, they have AIDS. Generally, that would be a CD4 count of 200 or below, including 2 or more major infections such as TB and cancer.
The CD4 count is like a snapshot of how well your immune system is functioning. CD4 cells are white blood cells that fight infection. The more you have the better. These are the cells that the HIV virus kills, and as HIV infection progresses, the number of these cells declines.
When I was diagnosed
I was diagnosed with HIV at the age of 46, after my then partner knowingly infected me, and was diagnosed with AIDS just 4 years later.
I wasn’t on medication as soon as I should have been and I acquired numerous dis-eases, (I choose to not say ‘disease’ as it sounds deadly, which I suppose at the time, it was, but hey, my choice) namely, pneumonia, 4 bouts of shingles in a single year, TB Meningitis, 2 strokes, and Stage 3 Cancer, (Angioimmunoblastic lymphadenopathy) all within a 4 year period.
… but the fact of the matter is that I am still here to tell the tale, and that’s enough for me.
I am HIV positive but much more than my status. I live a full, healthy, vibrant life … and I’ll just keep saying it … Know. Your. Status.
No one is untouchable. #TakeCareBeAware
Further reading …
In her story, “Newly Diagnosed: HIV Positive – Whaaat?”, resilience wellness coach and motivational health speaker Cindy Pivacic opens up about what it was like when she was first diagnosed HIV positive, why we should talk about it, what we need to know, and how she continues “onwards and upwards”!
Read more in “Newly Diagnosed: HIV Positive – Whaaat?”
