The next generation
Over the years, the number of pills required to treat HIV/AIDS has dwindled significantly. But, it's not the physical side effects that bother patients.
"I'm only reminded of it when I have to take medication," said a 28-year-old with HIV who asked to be identified only as "Mike." "That's what we do. That's our lives."
Mike contracted HIV after receiving a contaminated blood transfusion as a newborn.
"I wasn't promised to live on Earth long enough," he said. "At times, I'd think about suicide and think 'Why me? Why would the doctor give me dirty blood?' I come to realize that it's no one's fault."
He joined the HIV support group as a teenager. There, he met his wife, who had contracted the virus from her mother. Their primary focus now is raising their 5-year-old daughter, a petite, shy girl with wavy brown curls. This newest generation of children born to HIV-positive parents has a different fate.
"My wife took her medicine to reduce chances of our daughter being infected with the virus," Mike said. "By the grace of God and praying, my daughter is HIV-negative
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