PHAYRE ELVERSTONE
HIV Nurse Specialist
Using Knowledge to Help Ensure
Healthy Living with HIV
HIV Myths
Myths about HIV are very dangerous. They can
cause you to be afraid of something that is not
dangerous.
And they can make you feel like something is not
dangerous when it really is!
So be careful. Sometimes seemingly well-informed
or well-meaning people give out wrong information.
Where did HIV come from?
America
Polio vaccine
Cats
Europe
Gorillas
The FBI or CIA
The origin of HIV ?
A study in 2008 dated the origin of HIV to between 1884 and 1924,
much earlier than previous estimates.
The authors suggest a long history of the virus in Africa and call
Kinshasa the “epicentre of the HIV/AIDS pandemic” in West Africa.
They propose the early spread of HIV coincided with the
development of colonial cities, in which crowding of people
increased opportunities for HIV transmission.
Four of the earliest known instances of
HIV infection:
• A plasma sample taken in 1959 from an adult
male living in what is now the Democratic
Republic of the Congo.
• A lymph node sample taken in 1960 from an
adult female, also from the Democratic Republic
of the Congo.
• HIV found in tissue samples from an American
teenager who died in St. Louis in 1969.
• HIV found in tissue samples from a Norwegian
sailor who died around 1976.
HIV Myths
"HIV doesn't cause AIDS.“
If you don't have HIV, you don't get AIDS. If you
have AIDS, you have HIV. Over 20 years of solid
scientific proof have verified this.
AIDS is not caused by party drugs, AZT,
government conspiracies, or anything else but the
HIV virus.
HIV Myths
“Viral load tests don’t really tell anything
about a person's health.”
Viral load measures the amount of HIV in a person’s blood.
Many studies have shown that people with high viral loads
are much more likely to become ill or die than those with
low viral loads.
HIV Myths
“HIV can be spread through tears, sweat,
mosquitoes, pools, or casual contact.”
HIV can only be transmitted through infected blood, semen, vaginal
fluids, and breast milk. The most common ways for HIV to be
transmitted are through unprotected sexual contact and/or sharing
needles with an HIV+ person. HIV can also be passed from mother to
baby during pregnancy, birth, or breastfeeding.
The following “bodily fluids” are NOT infectious:
Tears
Sweat
Saliva
Urine
Faeces
Casual contact is not considered risky because it does not include
contact with blood or other infectious body fluids. Examples of casual
contact include: social kissing, public venues, sharing drinks or eating
utensils, etc. Insect bites do not transmit HIV.
HIV Myths
"Lesbians don't get HIV."
Women who only have sex with women are generally at
much lower risk for getting any sexually transmitted
disease.
But in rare cases, they can still get HIV. One report tells of
a lesbian who was infected through sharing sex toys with
an HIV+ woman.
Also, some women who identify themselves as lesbians
occasionally have sex with men, and can get infected that
way. Lesbians who use drugs and share needles can get
HIV from a needle that has been used by someone who is
HIV+.
HIV Myths
"It's not AIDS that kills people;
it's the medicines they take!"
HIV medications, known as anti-retrovirals, don't cure HIV, but they can help
keep people healthy for many years. People died from AIDS before antiretrovirals became available.
Since combination drug therapy for HIV was begun in 1996, the average life
expectancy for HIV+ people in Europe and North America has increased.
In addition, death rates for HIV+ people who receive combination
antiretroviral treatment has dropped.
Unfortunately, the HIV drugs do have side effects and toxicity (for some
people) that can be life-threatening in very rare cases.
The good news is that many of the newer HIV medications have fewer side
effects and are easier to take.
HIV Myths
Living with HIV
Everyday questions
HIV Dilemmas/questions
• Are HIV and AIDS the same?
• Is there a cure for HIV or AIDS?
• A person has a low CD4 count and high
viral load is this a desirable situation?
HIV Dilemmas/questions
• CD4 cells coordinate the immune system?
• Does sexual contact with many partners
increase the risk of HIV?
• Does having a sexually transmitted
infection affect the risk of getting HIV?
HIV Dilemmas/questions
• Can a woman who has HIV pass the virus
onto her baby?
• Do anti-retrovirals make you ill?
• What is a normal CD4 count?
HIV Dilemmas/questions
• What is a normal viral load?
• If I have a low body weight can I adjust my
antiretroviral dose (halve my medication?)
• What are common side effects to ARVs?
HIV Dilemmas/questions
• How long can you live with HIV?
• Can you have sex with someone once you
have HIV?
• Who should I tell?
HIV Dilemmas/questions
• What should I do if I miss a dose of my
medication?
• What should I do if I keep missing doses
of my medication?
• What is the best way to ‘adhere’ to my
medication?
Adherence
RULE NUMBER 1: Make It Easy on Yourself!
It can be difficult to take your medications the way you're supposed to.
Make it as easy as you can!
When being prescribed, tell your health care provider
about your daily schedule so that you can use the
medications that will be easiest for you to take.
Adherence is easier when all of your medications are on the same
schedule (twice a day, or once a day).
Make sure you understand your medications:
Which medications to take;
How many pills to take, and how many times a day;
Whether to take your pills with food, or on an empty stomach;
How to store your pills; and
Side effects you might have, and what to do about them.
Adherence
•
Plan ahead for refills or trips so you don't run out of any
medications.
•
Use a pillbox and count your pills out ahead of time.
Some boxes hold enough for a week or two.
•
Set a timer or alarm to go off when you have to take
pills.
•
Choose a regular daily activity to help you remember to
take pills:
Making your morning coffee;
Getting out of bed;
A favourite TV show; or
Coming home from work.
Adherence
If possible, make sure your family
members know how important it is
for you to take your pills.
Ask them to help you remember.
You might have problems with side effects, or it might be
difficult to take your pills as prescribed.
Don't cut back or stop taking your medications until you
have talked to your health care provider.
You might be able to change your medications and get some
that are easier for you to take.
Common side effects
Some possible side effects are:
Diarrhoea
Nausea and vomiting
Rash
There may be several options for dealing with a particular side effect:
• Wait for things to improve – especially if in the first few weeks of
treatment
• Address other possible contributing factors, such as diet, smoking or
exercise
• Change how the drug is taken (e.g. time of day, dosage, with or
without food)
• Try treating the side effect
• Change one or more antiretroviral drugs
PHAYRE ELVERSTONE
HIV Nurse Specialist
COME AND SEE ME AT LASS TO CHAT
ABOUT ANY PROBLEMS OR TO GET
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS.
I’M HERE TO HELP!
