What HIV means

SM: What kind of medical changes have you experienced with HIV?
Marvelyn: HIV lives in your body. It weakens the immune system. The only thing different now is that I take medicine. But some people with HIV don’t have to take it.

People always ask me, ‘what is the worst thing dealing with HIV?’ Well, I take eight pills everyday and I’ve always been anti-pill! But the worst thing is uneducated people—the stigma.

SM: You mentioned on your website that you hope to have children someday. Can you have a child without passing on the virus?
Marvelyn: Yeah, nowadays, there’s about a 98% chance that the mother who knows she’s HIV positive can deliver an HIV negative baby.* [But] I don’t know if I would have my child naturally or if I’ll use artificial insemination. I guess I’ll know when the time comes.

SM: Do you ever fear your HIV will develop into AIDS?
Marvelyn: I do fear it but feel like whatever’s meant to be, will be. One time my T-cells had gotten down to 216, which was 16 away from AIDS and I freaked out. I cried because you think of that as the final stage. So it was a realization that I was probably going to die in a few months. But now I have 917 so I don’t even think about that.*

SM: It’s been four years since you were diagnosed. Do you feel like a different person?
Marvelyn: I don’t feel like I’m the average 23-year-old. HIV has taught me to grow up. It’s taught me responsibility. It taught me to accept life and take it for what it is.