EU NASCI COM HIV | Histórias de ter.a.pia #163

Jennifer was born with HIV, but her family only found out when her mother died of AIDS in 1995, at the age of 32. From that moment on, the normal life of a child in the early 1990s changed completely. When Jenni's family found out why her mother had died, everyone turned to the little girl, who was also diagnosed with the virus due to vertical transmission that occurred during her birth. Vertical transmission of HIV occurs from mother to fetus during pregnancy, during childbirth or when breastfeeding the baby. This type of transmission used to be quite common, but currently the number is very low, around 1.2 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in 2020. Due to lack of information, Jenni's family believed that her fate would be the same as her mother's. But that's not quite the case; if she follows the correct treatment, an HIV-positive person can live their life peacefully. And that's what happened to Jenni, since during her childhood, her father followed the treatment exactly. The problem at that time was prejudice, also the result of a lack of information. Jenni was deprived of many things in her childhood, such as wearing her cousins' clothes or jewelry. She was always excluded in some way because she was a child living with HIV. Even as a child, Jenni didn't understand why all this was happening. Her father only explained her condition to her when she was a teenager. And from that moment on, things went a little wrong. In a rebellious way, Jenni stopped taking her medication properly. Over time, this negligence was charged. The incorrect use and even the lack of use of the medication caused her to develop AIDS, which is the disease triggered by the HIV virus, when the person is not undergoing treatment. Because of this, she was very weak and suffered from frequent pneumonia. Fearing death, she returned to treatment thanks to a drug currently under study, which was essential for her to reduce her viral load, that is, the number of viruses in her body. It took a few years for the disease to reverse, and today Jenni has become undetectable again, when her viral load is so low that she is not even contagious. All this with the support of her father, boyfriend, friends and her infectious disease doctor. Life is Jenni's focus today, as she is 32 years old, the same age her mother passed away. Tell us your stories: https://bit.ly/MemberTerapia - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 💙 Did you like this story? ✍️ Leave your comment 📢 Share with your friends 🕵 Follow us on social media ➡ https://linktr.ee/historiasdeterapia