STORY ANGLE
Tiara Sutari | Indonesian CNN
Friday, 21 Jul 2023 20:00 WIB
1. ‘Son, We Must Fight Together Against HIV’ 2. Nadia was depressed and low self-esteem
Illustration. Not a few children who have to be exposed to HIV from their parents. (Vania Raposo/Pixabay)
Jakarta, CNNIndonesia —
“Mom, why should I drink drug lazy? Why don’t you take medicine? Ade too, right, girl. Surely Ade also wants beautiful skin, so she should take medicine.”
The sentence above came from the mouth of little Nadia (not her real name), when she was 7 years old. He complained that he had to take medicine Antiretroviral (ARV) as part of treatment HIV that he suffered.
Shinta (not her real name), the mother who is also infected with HIV, can only smile. He had been lying to Nadia for a long time about the medicine he had to take twice a day.
So that her child would not refuse, Shinta repeatedly said that ARVs were medicine so that Nadia could become a beautiful woman when she grew up.
Antiretrovirals, also known as ARVs, are part of the treatment for HIV/AIDS. This drug is useful for reducing the risk of HIV transmission, preventing the worsening of opportunistic infections, improving the quality of life for people with HIV, and reducing the number of viruses (viral load) in the blood.
ARVs cannot eliminate the HIV virus in the body. ARVs can only suppress viral load and reduce the risk of transmission. This medicine must be taken every day at the same time as antibiotics.
The false statement made by Shinta about the ARV medicine that Nadia had to take, of course, cannot be continued. Because, getting older, Nadia will continue to ask questions about medicine and the many restrictions for her.
Nadia at her age can’t overachieve, can’t be too active, can’t catch the flu, can’t overheat, can’t join weight training classes, and a myriad of other can’ts.
As a child who is active and likes to play, Nadia repeatedly fights. Ask about her different bodies. In fact, even with a sister who has one milk and one uterus, she feels discriminated against.
When Nadia was 10 years old, Shinta decided to tell the truth, that she was exposed to HIV from her parents and had to take medication for the rest of her life.
“He has to take medicine for the rest of his life, he has to keep secrets about the condition of his illness,” said Shinta when talking with CNNIndonesia.com in the Cempaka Putih area, Central Jakarta, Thursday (20/7).
Husband’s inheritance
Illustration. Not a few children who have to be exposed to HIV from their parents. (iStockphoto/Gam1983)
Back in 2008, Shinta still remembers when her late husband fought hard in a hospital room against various diseases he suffered after being exposed to HIV. Her husband had complications because HIV weakened the immune system in his body.
At that time, Shinta, who had just given birth to Nadia about 8 months earlier and became pregnant again, also found out that her husband had HIV/AIDS.
Shock immediately enveloped Shinta. Moreover, at that time the doctor said that he and Nadia had to undergo an HIV test.
“And sure enough, the test results came out, I was positive, Nadia was positive,” said Shinta.
Shinta did not immediately accept this fact. He was angry, annoyed, against the harsh reality he had to endure. Moreover, this disease also raises many questions in Shinta’s mind about her husband’s behavior outside the home.
“At that time I hated my late husband. I wanted to run away. Why did he have to pass this disease on to me and his children,” Shinta said in a low voice.
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Nadia was moody and low self-esteem
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2023-07-21 13:00:00
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