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| September 21, 2004 |
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| • MIXED-STATUS
RELATIONSHIPS Why Am I Negative, When All His Other Partners Are Pos? My son's father passed away from AIDS last month; he never even told me he was HIV positive. He had infected many women and never took any of his meds. His previous partners have come forward stating that they are now HIV positive, but I have been testing negative. My question is: Why do all of his other partners have HIV, but I don't? Afraid to Commit to a Partner With HIV My partner found out he had HIV a month into our relationship. We have now been together eight months and I am still negative. I have no concerns about myself anymore, but I'm afraid that he won't take care of himself and I'll lose him. I really do love him and could see myself staying with him, but I'm afraid to commit to someone I may lose. If he takes care of himself, how much longer can he live and thrive? Sex, Risk and a Devastating Brain Disorder For the past seven years, I've been in a wonderful relationship with an HIV-negative woman, but in 2000 she was diagnosed with Huntington's disease, a devastating degenerative brain disorder. We love each other very much, but she's grown afraid that she'll contract HIV from me, and our sex life has come to a complete stop. What can I do to make her feel comfortable with us having sex? |
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• WORKPLACE
& INSURANCE ISSUES |
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| • MENTAL
HEALTH Concerns About Lithium and ECT for Depression I have been on HIV meds for four years with very good results, but I have a significant problem with depression. I saw a psychiatrist this week who suggested a change from my current antidepressant (an SSRI) to venlafaxine (Effexor) boosted by lithium. He also suggested electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) as an option if things got worse. I'm worried by the thought of lithium and ECT -- particularly the risk of memory loss from the latter. Should I be concerned? What Does Mild Diffused Atrophy Mean? I was diagnosed in 1996 with mild diffused atrophy of the frontal lobe. How common is this in people with AIDS? Does it mean that my brain is impaired and that I will never be able to function normally? Six Antidepressants, No Luck. What Next? I've had no luck with six different antidepressants, from sertraline (Zoloft) to citalopram (Celexa) to venlafaxine (Effexor). I am a type-A personality who's been pos for more than 20 years without any illness, but for the last three years I've had no motivation to do much of anything. It is ruining my life. What direction should I take next? |
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| • HIV
TREATMENT If HAART Works Like a Charm, Should It Be Put on Hold? A 21-year-old friend of mine was treated for HIV using the "hit hard, hit early" theory. He's doing extremely well: undetectable viral load, CD4 count of 1,000, with no side effects. My question is: Does it make any sense for him to stop treatment, or should he continue as long as the meds are working? One Diagnosis, Two Doctors, Three Initial HAART Combos I have two doctors, both of whom think I should start treatment -- but they have different opinions on what regimen I should start with. I was infected last November; my CD4 count has slowly dipped to 357 and my viral load is now at 468,000. One doc says I should take either Kaletra (lopinavir/ritonavir) with two NRTIs or efavirenz (Sustiva, Stocrin) with Trizivir (AZT/3TC/abacavir). The other says I should take efavirenz and Truvada (tenofovir/FTC). Who's right? |
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• HIV/HAART-RELATED
HEALTH PROBLEMS |
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| • LIFE
WITH HIV Sex-Change Operations for People With HIV? Is it safe for a healthy HIV-positive person to get a sex-change operation (male to female)? |
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| • SAFE
SEX & HIV TRANSMISSION How Do They Test the U.S. Blood Supply? If it takes up to six months to detect HIV and hepatitis C in your blood, how is the U.S. blood supply kept safe from both viruses? Do they have a particular test that detects the viruses earlier than standard tests do? How Safe Is Oral Sex? My wife, who is HIV positive (I'm negative), loves oral sex, but we're both worried about whether it's safe for me. I know studies say the risk of transmission through oral sex is virtually zero, but should we be concerned about the "theoretical" risk even if there are no documented cases of clear-cut infection through a man performing oral sex on a woman? Gonorrhea and Increased Risk of HIV Infection I'm a gay man in my 20s. Though I'm HIV negative and always use a condom for anal sex, I was diagnosed with quinolone-resistant gonorrhea after a recent hookup. My doc says that, if the guy was also HIV positive, I'm five times more likely to get HIV because of the gonorrhea infection. Is there anything I can still do to prevent myself from becoming HIV positive? And what about the future -- what else can I do to avoid infection. Abstinence? Oral sex with a condom? Priesthood? |
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| • STRANGE
BUT TRUE How Do I Know I Have HIV? It's a Long Story I'm absolutely convinced I'm HIV positive, and I know I got it through a handjob. Let me tell you why ... Groin Shaving and HIV Risk I'm a guy, and before sex I always shave my nether region. The last girl I had sex with died a few weeks later of a drug overdose -- and one of her friends told me she'd previously slept with a person who had HIV. Do you think she may have had HIV too, and I got it from her because I used a razor on my pubic area before sex? |
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NOMINATE SOMEONE FOR AN |
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Ask Lynne Gabriel About: |
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Not sure what your rights are regarding HIV disclosure in the workplace? Does figuring out your health insurance options have you tied up in knots? Lynne Gabriel, co-founder of WorkPositive, Inc., and a provider of workplace education for 11 years, is one of three skilled experts available to answer your questions in The Body's "Ask the Experts" Forum on workplace and insurance issues! |
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| ART FROM HIV-POSITIVE ARTISTS |
 Untitled, 1988-89; David Wojnarowicz |
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Visit the September
2004 Visual AIDS Web Gallery to view this month's new collection
of art by HIV-positive artists.
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