Positive Bolton People

Dealing With Your Diagnosis

If you have just found out you're HIV positive, you're probably experiencing a range of different emotions and our experience tells us that they're not likely to be positive: at least in the first instance.

However, thanks to new treatments, many people living with HIV lead a relatively normal life.

Don't Go It Alone

Don't try to deal with things on your own. Finding the right support is essential. Professional and confidential advice is always available from your clinic or doctor and they are there to help you.

Do think carefully about how, when or if to tell your friends, family and colleagues. Their reactions can be unpredictable. See telling others for more advice.

It will take time for you to learn to cope, but the difficult times you experience now are just one part of what will be a lifelong journey. And it will get better. HIV will not always be the first thing on your mind.

Things To Consider

Get clued-up with the latest information from a reliable source; especially if you’re using the internet. Your Doctor, or the Sexual Health Clinic is an excellent source of up to date and accurate information.

For treatments information try www.aidsmap.com
For HIV facts and people’s stories try www.namlife.org
To get in touch with the online community try www.myhiv.org.uk

Don't go it alone. A trusted friend, family member or partner can provide you with the support you need.

Keep records of the information that your doctor gives you, whether it's practical information, or just the date of your next appointment. Change causes anxiety, not the best circumstances for taking in important information. Being organised will help you to cope better with all the information that's being thrown at you. Remember that you can always contact your doctor and ask for further details if you need to.

Remember that you’re not a different person just because you have found out that you have HIV, respect yourself and respect others.

Bad Ideas...

Immediately telling everyone. Not everyone needs to know. There is a time and a place which will be best for you and, most importantly, them.
Becoming a recluse. Maintain your usual social and work contacts is an important way of keeping your life as normal as possible. Cutting yourself off from the people who are best placed to help isn't recommended.
Taking sole responsibility for someone else's care. Ask for help. Share the responsibility and enjoy maintaining your relationships. Maintain your day-to-day routine.
Hiding behind alcohol and drugs. These are very temporary helps at best. If you come to depend upon them, it could make coping more difficult in the longer term.
Panic. Many other people are HIV positive. You're not alone and you aren't the first person to receive a diagnosis. There's plenty of help available.

HIV news from aidsmap.com

How Europe's busiest PrEP clinics are simplifying care and reaching new populations
Leading community-led PrEP services are rethinking how they deliver services while reaching beyond their traditional user base. Facing waiting lists of thousands, the clinics are streamlining care and developing new strategies to engage trans people and migrant men who have sex with men. These were among the approaches shared at the 2nd European Workshop on Breaking PrEP Barriers, held in Barcelona last week.
>> Read more

Huge disparities in PrEP uptake across Europe – injectable PrEP largely inaccessible
While 41% of HIV-negative people from sexual and gender minorities in the UK are taking PrEP, figures drop to below 15% in most of the Balkans and eastern Europe, according to results from the European MSM Internet Survey (EMIS) 2024. Too many people stop taking PrEP when they still need it, and this is often due to access difficulties, Professor Kai Jonas of the University of Maastricht told the 2nd European Workshop on Breaking PrEP Barriers, organised by BCN Checkpoint in Barcelona last week.
>> Read more

Antibody from Tanzanian woman suppresses almost all tested HIV variants including resistant viruses in pre-clinical study
An antibody from a Tanzanian woman discovered during screening for anti-HIV antibodies shows a strong therapeutic potential in a preclinical study. Named 04_A06, it neutralised (blocked) 97.3% of over 300 HIV strains tested, and blocked 77% of viruses resistant to other antibodies. In humanised mice – designed to have an immune system like ours – the antibody completely suppressed viral load after stopping treatment for more than a month.
>> Read more

Contact emma@positiveboltonpeople.org.uk for further information.

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