Being HIV Positive Is Not a Death Sentence!

An HIV diagnosis is NOT a death sentence. When a person is diagnosed with HIV, it's impossible to predict precisely what the course of that individual's infection will be. Some people diagnosed early in the epidemic did not progress to clinical AIDS and are still alive today. In the developed world, the median time between initial infection with HIV and the development of clinical AIDS symptoms may be as long as ten years. But averages say little about what a particular individual's experience will be. People can also make wise choices that will improve their chances of living a long, healthy life. If an HIV positive person follows their doctor's instructions, including the use of antiretroviral medications where appropriate, they may be able to prevent HIV from progressing to clinical AIDS for years, decades, or possibly for the rest of their life. If you don't know your status, get tested. Early diagnosis and treatment can save your life. Want to learn more? Visit http://AIDSvideos.org. This video is freely downloadable from http://www.archive.org/details/IsHivADeathSentence . Disabled accessibility: The transcript for this and many other AIDSvideos.org videos can be downloaded from http://aidsvideos.org/translate.shtml . [Do you want to help prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS? Are you fluent in a language other than English? Then volunteer to translate our videos into other languages! Click http://AIDSvideos.org/translate.shtml to to learn how you can help!!! © Copyright 2008-2011 Global Lifeworks. All rights reserved. This work is licensed to be used for non-commercial purposes under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/.]

Category:

Education

Tags:

• HIV
• AIDS
• testing
• fear
• death
• sentence
• STD
• positive
• prevention
• education
• lifespan
• median
• diagnosis
• health
• immune
• system

[wilyoustay]

they can live long health lifes blablabla. LONG how long is it? i want time pls if it's possible and when is the pain going to start i got hiv 1 month ago

[AIDSvideos]

@wilyoustay: This is Eric; I'm not a doctor. It's impossible for even a doctor to make specific predictions for individual people; doctors can only speak in terms of averages. I don't recall exact numbers, but I recall a study showing that in the U.S., with modern ARV treatment, the projected lifespan for HIV+ people was beginning to approach that of HIV- people. Follow your doctor's instructions. If they prescribe ARVs, take every dose on schedule. Take care of your general health. Good luck!

[TheATLSurvivor]

Why does it take so long to start on HIV meds? I was diagnosed w/AIDS after being admitted to the hospital. I had no idea what was going on, only that I could barely breath, stayed 6 days (doctors wanted me to stay longer), in 6 days I lost about 20 lbs. I'm seeing an infectious diease doctor who wants me in the Gilead Quad pill clinical trial. My concern, left the hospital October 24, 2011, but I'm still not taking meds. CD-4 count of 60, viral load of 127,000. scared!

[AIDSvideos]

@TheATLSurvivor: This is Eric; I'm not a doctor. Speaking as a layperson: (1) IIRC in the U.S. any HIV+ person with a CD-4 count less than 550 (or certainly 350) should be immediately put on ARVs. (2) Is the issue that you have no health insurance, are relying on the Ryan White Care Act to obtain health care, and are stuck on a waiting list? Due to lack of funding, people sometimes have to wait on a list in their state before obtaining care under Ryan White. Talk to your doctor. Good luck!

[AIDSvideos]

@AIDSvideos: If you are HIV+, have a CD-4 count of 60, and your doctor isn't prescribing ARVs, get a second opinion from another doctor. Presumably one or the other will prescribe ARVs. At that point, you need to find a way to obtain them. If you have health insurance, great. Otherwise, Ryan White Care Act. Also note that pharmaceutical companies will sometimes reduce or waive charges for medication for people who can't afford the medication they need.

[cormacgj]

Hi Can you help please. If a 80 year old man get HIV positive can this have implications with kids and family contracting the virus. Also will his age be a factor as

well. It has been a shock to my wife family

[AIDSvideos]

@cormacgj: This is Eric; I'm not a doctor. Watch our video "HIV in the Household." An 80 year old man, like anyone else, might transmit HIV to sexual partners or needle sharing partners, but living in the same household shouldn't put the others in the household at any risk of HIV. (He should not share shaving razors with anyone else--but you wouldn't want to do that anyway for other reasons.)

[peerpressurefacts]

Prevention is the key. I have a website dedicated to education and prevention of this disease.

[1977wBen]

Thank you for the reassurance. I found out that I was HIV positive after being diagnosed with full blown AIDS. I have since recovered and am on medication (AARV's). What I want to know is the average lifespan for an individual on meds.

[NickJayKay]

Bless your heart