Monday, January 5, 2015

Growing up with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa: One Girl’s Story


By Jennifer Abrahamson
Senior Director, Strategic Communications, ICRW

This post originally appeared on ICRW's blog.

Growing up in this day and age can be difficult for anyone. Entering adolescence in particular can be extremely complicated, as boys and girls wrestle with new responsibilities, their futures and their sexuality. In many parts of sub-Saharan Africa, the risk of HIV infection adds another layer of complexity. For girls like Joyce*, who was born HIV positive, adolescence and early adulthood can prove especially challenging.
I met Joyce in a small courtyard tucked deep within a web of unpaved roads in a slum area of a sub-Saharan capital. Shy and unassuming, she looked much younger than her 17 years. She told me that she had dreams of becoming a lawyer someday, but it soon became clear that attaining that goal would almost certainly remain out of reach.
UGA081009161

Her story is heartbreaking. And because she fears being stigmatized, she hasn’t shared the depth of her plight with her neighborhood peers. Shortly after Joyce was born, her mother succumbed to AIDS. As she got older, her father grew increasingly ill and was largely unable to work. As a result, Joyce dropped out of school because she couldn’t afford the associated fees, and at the time we met, she had stopped taking her anti-retroviral (ARVs) medication in part due to the prohibitive cost of transport required to retrieve them from the hospital. I later learned that her father passed away a few hours after our meeting.
There are legions of girls like Joyce in sub-Saharan Africa who were born HIV positive and who are now coming of age while living with the virus, and facing enormous health challenges, as well as stigma and discrimination. And adolescent girls in many countries around the world are also at high risk for acquiring HIV because of social and institutional factors, including child marriage and gender-based violence.
ETH011512420Zambia is one such country. UNICEF estimated there were at least 80,000 adolescents living with HIV in Zambia in 2009. In order to better understand the challenges adolescent girls living with HIV face as they transition into adulthood, ICRW, in partnership with public health research organization, Zambart, is conducting a first-of-its kind qualitative study in the country with support from the MAC AIDS Fund.

The encouraging growth of home-based and provider-initiated HIV testing and counselling in Zambia will likely increase the number of adolescent girls who learn they are living with HIV in upcoming years. As a result, there will likely be an increased demand for treatment, care and support services in Zambia. Despite this burgeoning demographic of young Zambians living with HIV, psychosocial support and health care services for adolescent girls is limited. This deficit is worsened by the prevalence of HIV-related stigma and discrimination, as well as gender-based prejudice that affects the daily lives of girls living with HIV.
In an effort to address this gap in services, the ICRW-Zambart study is examining the unique stigma- and gender-related obstacles girls endure while facing some of the challenges of living with HIV such as adhering to medication regimens and clinical appointments, navigating safe sexual relationships, and handling the psychosocial challenges of learning of and disclosing their status. Through participatory workshops and interviews, ICRW will identify key challenges and stigma-related concerns surrounding HIV and pinpoint areas for intervention development to support healthy transitions to adulthood for these girls.
With this information, ICRW hopes to inform national programming and policies for adolescent girls living with HIV in Zambia. Beyond that, ICRW hopes this study will garner increased attention and action to address the needs and concerns of adolescents like Joyce living with HIV around the world, with a particular focus on addressing HIV-related stigma and discrimination.
As for Joyce, today she is doing much better, although she still faces many struggles. She recently celebrated her 18th birthday, she’s back on her ARVs and her health is improving every day, and she has joined a drama-troupe with other HIV-positive youth. Although finances are tight, she also has aspirations to enrol in a hotel management training course that will give her the tools needed to support herself, stay healthy and if not reach her ultimate dream of becoming a lawyer, to blossom into adulthood.
*Joyce is not her real name. To help support her education and daily needs, please write to Erin Kelly at ekelly@icrw.org

10 comments:

  1. Welcome to osumaspelltemple@gmail.com.temple of solution of different kinds of spell such as LOVE , MONEY, PROTECTION, GOOD JOB,PROMOTION, EX BACK, H I V CURE, WIN LOTTERY and so many more.
    i don't charge for my spell you are only required to get the items needed to cast the spell then after the spell have worked according to plan you can voluntary to contribute to my orphanage home is not a task that you must contribute to the orphanage. but for the item which is going to be used for the casting of this spell must be bought by you.
    My spell last for a permanent nature, and this spell we are talking about must work for what is behind it is powerful.During the casting of this spell i will tell you what to do and after casting the spell you will also be told what to do cause all this i will consult from my gods.The following are the items needed for this spell.
    The following information will be require in my alter for proper consultation of my gods for me to be able to cast your spell.

    DETAILS NEEDED
    YOUR FULL NAME:
    YOUR AGE:
    YOUR COUNTRY:
    YOUR MOBILE NUMBER:
    :For how long you have hill of the virus:
    OCCUPATION:
    PHOTO OF YOU BOTH:
    All this i seek for the casting of your spell for your cure promise never retune again.
    You can speak to Dr osuma direst via mobile number,,+2348148240738

    ReplyDelete
  2. How to Get Your Ex Back After a Divorce or Breakup.! Am giving this testimony cos am so happy, I want to thank Dr Frank Ojo for the great thing he has done in my life , he brought happiness to my life .! A very big problem occurred in my Marriage seven months ago,between me and my husband .so terrible that he took the case to court for a divorce. he said that he never wanted to stay with me again,and that he didn't love me anymore.So he packed out of the house and made me and my children passed through severe pain. I tried all my possible means to get him back,after much begging,but all to no avail.and he confirmed it that he has made his decision,and he never wanted to see me again. So on one evening,as i was coming back from work,i met an old friend of mine who asked of my husband .So i explained every thing to him,so he told me that the only way i can get my husband back,is to visit a spell caster,because it has really worked for him too.So i never believed in spell,but i had no other choice,than to follow his advice. Then he gave me the email address of the spell caster whom he visited. TEMPLEOFLOVEANDPROSPERITY@GMAIL.COM. So the next morning,i sent a mail to the address he gave to me,and the spell caster assured me that i will get my husband back the next day. What an amazing statement!! I never believed,so he spoke with me, and told me everything that i need to do. Then the next morning, So surprisingly, my husband who didn't call me for the past 7 months, gave me a call to inform me that he was coming back. So Amazing!! So that was how he came back that same day,with lots of love and joy,and he apologized for his mistake,and for the pain he caused me and my children. Then from that day,our relationship was now stronger than how it were before,by the help of a spell caster. So, i will advice you out there if you have any problem contact Dr Frank Ojo, i give you 100% guarantee that he will help you.. Email him at: Templeofloveandprosperity@gmail.com . My name is Amanda Bryan, me & my family live in Toronto, Canada. Thanks for reading, and best of luck!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi everyone! So excited my husband is back after a break up !
    My husband broke up with me last week, i was so frustrated and i could not know what next to do again, i love my husband so much but he was cheating on me with another woman and this makes him broke up with me so that he can be able to get marry to the other lady and this lady i think use witchcraft on my husband to make him hate me and my kids and this was so critical and uncalled-for,I cry all day and night for God to send me a helper to get back my man until i went to NY to see a friend and who was having the same problem with me but she latter got her Husband back and i asked her how she was able to get her husband back and she told me that their was a powerful spell caster in Africa name Dr.Unity that he help with love spell in getting back lost lover back, and i decided to contacted the same Dr.Unity and he told me what is needed to be done for me to have my man back and i did it although i doubted it but i did it and the Dr told me that i will get the result after 48hours, and he told me that my husband was going to call me by 9pm in my time and i still doubted his word, to my surprise my husband really called me and told me that he miss me so much, Oh My God! i was so happy, and today i am happy with my man again and we are joyfully living together as one good family and i thank the powerful spell caster Dr.Unity of Unityspelltemple@gmail.com , he is so powerful and i decided to share my story on the internet that good spell casters still exist and Dr.Unity is one of the good spell caster who i will always pray to live long to help his children in the time of trouble, if you are there and your lover is turning you down, or you have your husband moved to another woman, do not cry anymore contact the powerful spell caster Dr.Unity on his email: Unityspelltemple@gmail.com .if you have any problem contact Dr.Unity, I guarantee you that he will help you. Thank you sooooo much Dr Unity.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hello Everybody,
    My name is Mrs Sharon Sim. I live in Singapore and i am a happy woman today? and i told my self that any lender that rescue my family from our poor situation, i will refer any person that is looking for loan to him, he gave me happiness to me and my family, i was in need of a loan of S$250,000.00 to start my life all over as i am a single mother with 3 kids I met this honest and GOD fearing man loan lender that help me with a loan of S$250,000.00 SG. Dollar, he is a GOD fearing man, if you are in need of loan and you will pay back the loan please contact him tell him that is Mrs Sharon, that refer you to him. contact Dr Purva Pius,via email:(urgentloan22@gmail.com) Thank you.

    BORROWERS APPLICATION DETAILS


    1. Name Of Applicant in Full:……..
    2. Telephone Numbers:……….
    3. Address and Location:…….
    4. Amount in request………..
    5. Repayment Period:………..
    6. Purpose Of Loan………….
    7. country…………………
    8. phone…………………..
    9. occupation………………
    10.age/sex…………………
    11.Monthly Income…………..
    12.Email……………..

    Regards.
    Managements
    Email Kindly Contact: urgentloan22@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am Tanya and i will would love to use this medium to thank and to let the world know there solution home in tense of relationship problems. At first when i read some comment about Dr.Ekpiku on the internet i never believed that this was real but at the same time i decided to give him a trial. I must say that i was surprise that through the help of Dr.Ekpiku that my lover came back to me begging me to accept him back. With this i was convenience that Dr.Ekpiku powers are genie and helpful to humanity. That is the more reason i am going to drop Dr.Ekpiku contact information which are Ekpikuspelltemple@live.com Once again i am very much grateful to Dr.Ekpiku.

    ReplyDelete
  6. My boyfriend of a 4yr just broke up with me and am 30 weeks pregnant.I have cried my self to sleep most of the nights and don’t seem to concentrate during lectures sometimes I stay awake almost all night thinking about him and start to cry all over again.Because of this I end up not having energy for my next day’s classes ,my attendance has dropped and am always in uni and on time.Generally he is a very nice guy ,he ended it because he said we were arguing a lot and not getting along.He is right we’ve been arguing during the pregnancy a lot .After the break up I kept ringing him and telling him I will change.I am in love with this guy and he is the best guy I have ever been with.I’m still hurt and in disbelief when he said he didn’t have any romantic feelings towards me anymore that hurt me faster than a lethal syringe.He texts me now and then mainly to check up on how am doing with the pregnancy,he is supportive with it but it’s not fair on me, him texting me as I just want to grieve the pain and not have any stress due to the pregnancy.i was really upset and i needed help, so i searched for help online and I came across a website that suggested that Dr Unity can help solve marital problems, restore broken relationships and so on. So, I felt I should give him a try. I contacted him and he told me what to do and i did it then he did a spell for me. 28 hours later, my bf came to me and apologized for the wrongs he did and promise never to do it again. Ever since then, everything has returned back to normal. I and my bf are living together happily again.. All thanks to Dr Unity. If you have any problem contact Dr.Unity now and i guarantee you that he will help you.Email him at: Unityspelltemple@gmail.com ,you can also call him or add him on whats-app: +2348071622464.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Save Your Relationship and Get Your Ex Boyfriend/Girlfriend Back! contact: MiracleSpellHome@yahoo.com is certainly the best spell caster online and his result is 100% guarantee

    It's a privilege to share this miraculous testimony to the world. I'm Cory Crow from Australia. My husband divorced me 4 months back and i have been filled with remorse for i didn't know what to do to amend issues with my husband. I searched for help on the internet on how i could get help in my marriage and i discovered great testifiers about Dr miracle who has been progressive with his spells. I got in touch with him and behold, Dr Miracle told me that he will prepare a spell for me that will bring back my husband. I was skeptical but i had no other option but to work with him. 2 days after, my husband called me that he's coming back home and from that day till this moment, we have been living peacefully. He is back now with so much love and caring. today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the powers of bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my husband,and the most surprise,is that our love is very strong,every day is happiness and joy. and there is nothing like been with the man you love. I will highly recommend Dr Miracle to anyone one out there who needs help whatsoever.if you have any problem contact Dr Miracle, i give you 100% guarantee that he will help you!!.

    (MiracleSpellHome@yahoo.com)
    Call Or Write Him On WhatsApp;+39(349)549- 4143

    ReplyDelete
  8. I am here to give my testimony about Dr Ebhota who helped me.. i want to inform the public how i was cured from (HERPES SIMPLEX VIRUS) by salami, i visited different hospital but they gave me list of drugs like Famvir, Zovirax, and Valtrex which is very expensive to treat the symptoms and never cured me. I was browsing through the Internet searching for remedy on HERPES and i saw comment of people talking about how Dr Ehbota cured them. when i contacted him he gave me hope and send a Herbal medicine to me that i took for just 2 weeks and it seriously worked for me, my HERPES result came out negative. I am so happy as i am sharing this testimony. My advice to you all who thinks that there is no cure for herpes that is Not true just contact him and get cure from Dr Ebhota healing herbal cure of all kinds of sickness you may have like
    (1) CANCER,
    (2) DIABETES,
    (3) HIV&AIDS,
    (4) URINARY TRACT INFECTION,
    (5) CANCER,
    (6) IMPOTENCE,
    (7) BARENESS/INFERTILITY
    (8) DIARRHEA
    (9) ASTHMA
    (10)SIMPLEX HERPES AND GENITAL
    (11)COLD SORE
    HERPES. he also cure my friend from cervical cancer Email: drebhotasoultion@gmail.com or whatsapp him on +2348089535482

    ReplyDelete
  9. I am here to give my testimony about Dr Ebhota who helped me.. i want to inform the public how i was cured from (HERPES SIMPLEX VIRUS) by salami, i visited different hospital but they gave me list of drugs like Famvir, Zovirax, and Valtrex which is very expensive to treat the symptoms and never cured me. I was browsing through the Internet searching for remedy on HERPES and i saw comment of people talking about how Dr Ehbota cured them. when i contacted him he gave me hope and send a Herbal medicine to me that i took for just 2 weeks and it seriously worked for me, my HERPES result came out negative. I am so happy as i am sharing this testimony. My advice to you all who thinks that there is no cure for herpes that is Not true just contact him and get cure from Dr Ebhota healing herbal cure of all kinds of sickness you may have like
    (1) CANCER,
    (2) DIABETES,
    (3) HIV&AIDS,
    (4) URINARY TRACT INFECTION,
    (5) CANCER,
    (6) IMPOTENCE,
    (7) BARENESS/INFERTILITY
    (8) DIARRHEA
    (9) ASTHMA
    (10)SIMPLEX HERPES AND GENITAL
    (11)COLD SORE
    HERPES. he also cure my friend from cervical cancer Email: drebhotasoultion@gmail.com or whatsapp him on +2348089535482

    ReplyDelete
  10. I was diagnosed with HIV virus 4years ago,and I almost gave up on ever been cured because I have tried different medications of drugs and injections from different hospital to another, they always tell me the same thing, there is no cure for HIV/Aids all my effects to get cured was in vain. But i never give up and I started making my research on herbal remedy on HIV/Aids because I believed nature has the power to cure all diseases.on my research I came across a testimony on the internet from a lady called Michelle from USA, who testified on how she was cured of HIV virus from DR JAMES HERBAL MIXED MEDICINE. I doubted at first time because i have been to different hospitals and lot of reputable doctors told me there is no cure for HIV virus but I picked up interest and gave it a try to contacted Dr James on his email drjamesherbalmix@gmail.com I told him my problems and he asked how long I have been HIV positive and how old I am, and I told him, he said I should not be worried that he will prepare me with his powerful herbal mixed medicine that will cure me from HIV, so I decided to listen to him and he commenced his treatment. 2 days later he told me that his powerful herbal cure for HIV Virus has been sent to me through DHL which got to me in 4days time. I used the medicine morning and evening as he prescribed for me for 21 days. I was totally cured and free from HIV/AIDS exactly as Dr James told me. I'm now free from HIV virus thank you so much Dr JAMES HERBAL MIX Medicine.DR James herbal medicine is made of natural herbs, with no side effects, and easy to drink. If you have the same HIV VIRUS or any type of human illness,, Herpes,cancer, Ovarian Cancer, Pancreatic cancers, bladder cancer, bladder cancer, prostate cancer, Glaucoma., Cataracts, Muscular degeneration, Cardiovascular disease, Autism, Lung disease. Enlarged prostate, Osteoporosis. Alzheimer's disease, psoriasis, Lupus,Dementia.kidney cancer, lung cancer, skin cancer, skin cancer and skin cancer.testicular Cancer,Hepatitis B,infertility
    Dr.James will help you,so contact him directly on his Email..drjamesherbalmix@gmail.com.

    ReplyDelete