HIV/AIDS
What Is It & How Do You Get It?
The human immunodeficiency virus, also known as HIV, is a virus that attacks and destroys white blood cells, which help the body fight off infection. In other words, HIV puts the body at a greater risk of contracting infection and disease by compromising the immune system, which also makes it harder for the body to get rid of these sicknesses. If HIV goes untreated, it develops into the disease most of us know as AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome). AIDS is untreatable and is the result of HIV causing a significant amount of damage to the cells in the body. When the infection progresses this far, it leaves the body more open to getting opportunistic infections. Opportunistic infections are illnesses that people with HIV/AIDs get more frequently and severely than people with healthy immune systems.
How do you get it? HIV is contracted by certain bodily fluids of an HIV-positive person coming into contact with a mucus membrane of an HIV-negative person. These bodily fluids include blood, semen, breast milk, and rectal/vaginal fluids To get HIV, you must have these fluids come in contact with open sores/cuts, have condomless sex with a person with HIV/AIDS (including oral), share needles with an HIV-positive person, or be born from an untreated person.
What Are the Signs & Symptoms?
As with many of these STIs, HIV can show little to no symptoms when it is first caught. It is estimated that about 2/3rds of people will feel moderate flu-like symptoms 2-4 weeks after getting the virus because this is around the time the immune system will begin fighting back; this is considered the 1st stage of HIV and is called acute retroviral syndrome (ARS). The symptoms of ARS are as follows; fever, chills, headaches, rashes, sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, mouth ulcers, and general fatigue.
If these signs go ignored, or worse, no signs are shown, the infection will move to its next stage, stage 2, which is referred to as clinical latency. The body can stay in stage 2 for 10-15 years if treatment isn’t implemented. During clinical latency, any symptoms that the body has from stage 1 go away. This doesn’t mean the HIV has gone away though what happens is it continues to destroy immune system cells under the radar until it progresses into stage 3.
Stage 3 is AIDS. AIDS is the last stage of HIV infection, and during this stage, the body can no longer effectively fight off opportunistic infections. Some of the symptoms of AIDS include rapid weight loss, extreme fatigue, long-term swelling of lymph nodes, and long-term diarrhea.
How to Protect Yourself from HIV/AIDS
Prevention
HIV transmits through certain bodily fluids, meaning to protect yourself, try to avoid any mucus membranes (like the mouth) coming into contact with blood, semen, breast milk, and rectal/vaginal fluids of an HIV-positive person. To prevent HIV use a condom/dental dam during sex, avoid sharing needles, and/or consider taking PrEP medications if you are at high risk for getting HIV.
PrEP stands for-exposure prophylaxis, and it’s a medication that can be taken to prevent HIV from being contracted and wreaking havoc on the body. It’s usually given to people that are considered high risk, such as those who inject drugs, have unprotected sex, or have a partner with HIV.
Treatment
There is no cure for HIV; however, antiretroviral therapy (ART) exists, and if done during the early stages of the virus, an HIV-positive person can live an almost completely normal life. ART requires the patient to take antiretroviral medications every day to prevent the virus from multiplying as well as reduce its viral load (quantity of the virus present) in the body. ART allows those living with HIV to live long lives as well as reduces their chances of spreading the virus to others.
