On Sunday after the Stanchat Marathon I was too tired and my body was feeling like nimekanyagwa na tractor so I headed straight to the house(Bedsitter pia inaitwa house?) to have a rest. At around 6.00 I receive a call from my local barmaid that I pass by at my local so I talk to my friend who apparently has been drinking straight from Friday.
I got a little worried coz the guy though he drinks is usually very sober. I hurriedly leave the house to check on him, kufika huko the guy is in a mess. Very drunk, hana viatu, hana shati, and he is all over the bar dancing awkwardly and being a nuisance. I took a motor bike and escorted my friend to his house and sat him down to try and understand the reason behind his actions. Guy did not even waste time, he just told me straight that on Thursday last week he had an H.I.V test and it turned out positive and he has been unable to handle the bad news. Honestly I did not know what to tell him apart from the usual stuff, “be strong bro, you have a family that still need you”, oooh “it is not that bad, you can still live a normal life”, oooh “take some time and think about it”, the truth is there was nothing new I was telling him this guy coz he is an accountant in an N.G.O dealing with H.I.V/AIDS affected persons, I guess he has seen and heard it all. I managed to calm him down, convinced him to talk to his wife about it so they live their lives on the same understanding.
This got me thinking, how would I handle the news if it was me in the same situation? And again, based on the statistics, cancer is much much more deadly that H.I.V, people should actually be more scared of cancer than H.I.V.
Agree with you bro. Its not so much the disease, its the stigma. Reminds me of a family fred who was hellbent to have their daughter abort. Not because they couldnt raise the kid but "watu watasemaje " told them to shift to new town and forget watu. The kid is now four years . But i digress. Stigma is worst for Hiv positive guys.
vau ninalea! ushawai ona these guys wako nayo wakikuja presentations in organisations and colleges. People even a simple handshake wanaogopa! i feel for those people who come out about their status, they are real heroes considering what they go through.
I have a lot of knowledge regarding AIDS and many other infectious diseases, but I’d still react in an almost similar manner as you friend. I sometimes work in hospitals and I have to admit that most times I see patients as just “specimens”, I detach myself from their suffering through intellectualization and sometimes I even find myself thinking I am better than them, that HIV is a mere machine and I am the mechanic. Hakuna vile inaweza ni gusa… I understand your friends reaction.
Cc @Kidinyi . @Mundu Mulosi tell your pal that he is not the first neither is he the last to get infected. He should learn from people who have lived postively and positively.
I had HIV. That was according to one psychotic schizoid pharmacist I was dating. She had trusted me n we kicked off dry fry. Months down the line she comes with a home testing kit. Does it to herself first…then sent me an SMS…why spoil my life?
I rushed to her crib thinking I made her paged. Hell broke loose…why did I believe you,why waste my life,oh My…get out of here.
Through her rants I gathered that she has tested herself and discovered she is +ve and I must be the cause coz the last man she slept with was after her kcse…five years prior.
I quickly looked at that Kit…she has it!!!
What happened first is that my mouth went dry. No saliva at all. Then my eyes gave way. I fell down on my knees n let out a wail on a Sunday afternoon.
I will never forget that afternoon. I learnt alot…even about a test called something like Elisa that is 99.9%. Upto date I don’t date medics and when I do Ni CD all the way. Naonaga home testing kits natoka mbio wasee.
@mabenda4 reminds me of current trend ati ni kama maralia tu huko ocha…2007, i saw few guys fuck a certain infected girl ati siku hizi haiui. few months later after they realised they were infected, stress/depression took charge.