Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Why are people afraid to take an HIV/AIDs test


Why are people afraid to take an HIV/AIDs test?
I have been tested, even since I stopped having sex. But I have friends who wont even talk about AIDs and other STDs.
STDs - 12 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Because they're afraid that if they take the test and it comes back positive it will change their life. By not taking the test then they do not know which means a person can continue living the same way they have always lived.
2 :
They are probably just afraid that they might contract AIDs. Which is sad, because the more they wait to go get tested, they could be infecting others.
3 :
its scary. while i agree that sexually active people should get tested, it would be hard to kno that u have this disease that WILL kill you. its a scary thought, and if people aren't responsible enough to get tested, they shouldn't be sexually active
4 :
Most of it is pyscological, they dont want to admit that they might have hiv, and even more so that if they take the tes tthey might find out they have even if they know there is no way the could not have contracted it hypercondria over does rational thinking. People think that if they dont admit a disease that they dont have it , it only works so long. But thats usually why people are afraid.
5 :
People are generally afraid of the unknown and with HIV/AIDS there is a big unknown (life expentancy, treatment, etc.). It's been my experience people would rather just not know and "keep their heads in the sand". It's a sad excuse but it is a reality.
6 :
They are afraid because if they take the test it might come up positive. If they don't take the test they can foolishly say they don't have HIV and they really believe that.
7 :
Hello my name is amber, the reason people are afraid to take HIV/AIDS tests i have no clue but if you think that you or someone you know will or could possibly get the viruses you should tell them to go and get tested. Your friends should always talk about the HIV/AIDS virus because you all need to know about the virus, trust me my friends had HIV and they only had one partner in their life. SO BE CAREFULL!!!!
8 :
many are scared of the facts on tests. in my opion?
9 :
most people are afraid of the unknown.... and even more afraid, of BAD NEWS.... Some people feel, if they ignore the issue, it will go away.... and guess what.... it doesn't..... but it makes them feel better.... and doing nothing is an action, but it is not a healthy choice to make. all you can do is educate, and hope you friends will wake up and do the right thing someday....
10 :
I will not attempt to speak for anyone else but I'd be afraid of any test that directly states it can't do what its used for . This comes directly from an Abbott AxSYM System HIV antibody test. "At present, there is no recognized standard for establishing the presence or absence of antibodies to HIV-1 and HIV-2 in human blood." The other HIV tests have similar statements. http://www.abbottdiagnostics.com/getPDF.cfm?controlNumber=564312
11 :
Hi. I have been in the HIV field and i know what you are talking about first hand. Some people even get tested but then they dont want to know the results or they run away before the results are back. This is majorly dating back to the time when being told that you have HIV meant that you are banned from your community and every one will look at you like you have the plague. The other reason is that most people think that being HIV+ is a life sentence and a lot of people dont want to deal with the effects that it has on their families and friends. The reason why most HIV programs in Africa are successfull in testing and treating HIV positive individuals is because they give incentives to the patients. An example is that these programs appeal to the general public by promissing the people social, financial and medical support. A lot of people go to these programs because they know that they are going to be helped and offered assisstence. (Just imagine if you told people that if they came, you would help theihr children with tuition, offer them food, and treat them for free). A lot of the stigma still exists even to date. Statistics show that more than 75% of the people who are getting tested are women and this usually happens on a routine OB/GYN visit or on a pre natal visit. These are some of the programs that the project i worked with offered to their clients. 1. Medical Support Department_______Counselling, Clinic, Reception, Laboratory, the Treatment Implementation Unit (T.I.U) as well as the Medical Training and Pharmacy sections. 2. Community Support______Friends for Life is the prevention and sensitization arm of Reach Out. We have five broad objectives. To achieve these objectives, the department runs four broad programmes: The Community Programme, Youth Out of Schools, The School Programme, and Adult Literacy. 3. The food section provides food support to our clients through World Food Program (WFP). 4. The Bread of Life Micro Finance programme of Reach Out serves our clients through small loans at a low income rate. It is an important part of the holistic care for PLWHA, which seeks to directly address the needs arising from poverty. Our goal is to help clients achieve self-sustainability by giving them loans to start new or expand existing income-generating activities. We also hope these loans will help them move away from a state of dependency, thereby, giving them the opportunity to support themselves and others instead of waiting for hand outs. 5. Operation School Fees is a social support programme within Reach Out responsible for educational support of the children of our clients and children who are clients themselves. OSF is also an important preventive programme as children without education (especially girls) are at a high risk of getting HIV/AIDS when they grow up. Approximately 550 children are receiving school fees through this programme. 6. Part of Reach Out’s Social Support Network is the ‘Roses ,’ a tailoring workshop offering skills-building and employment to the clients. The goal of is to teach our clients practical skills which will lead them to generate income for their household. They make a variety of products which include clothing, wallets, bags and household accessories. These items are available for sale at the shop and will soon be for sale online. The ‘Roses’ also undertake contractual work, which is their main avenue for revenue generation.
12 :
As someone who lives with the stigma of having tested positive for HIV nearly 17 years ago, I would strongly encourage everyone to find out what they're *really* getting tested for before they get tested because of pressure from others, including socalled health or medical 'authorities.' There plain and perhaps surprising fact is there currently no test that actually detects HIV infection. The diagnostic tests in use today all detect *antibodies*, not the virus itself. We are told that these antibodies are antibodies specific to HIV, but not one of the antibodies detected by HIV tests is actually specific to HIV. All of these antibodies can be found in some people who do not have HIV. In fact, some of the antibodies detected by an HIV test are actually related to other illnesses altogether, such as lupus, leprosy, rheumatoid arthritis, malaria, tb and even the common flu. Then there is the "viral load" PCR tests, which are supposed to count the viral particles in an HIV diagnosed persons' blood. In reality, they do no such thing. In fact, it has been demonstrated that the "viral load" PCR tests are so sensitive that they are often interpreted as 'detecting' HIV in people who don't actually have HIV. This is why viral load PCR tests are never used to diagnose HIV infection. The inventor of the PCR technology used in the "viral load" test, Dr. Kary Mullis, who won the Nobel Prize in 1993 for his invention, strongly disapproves of the use of PCR in HIV "viral load" tests, because he maintains that the PCR technique as it is being used is not specific to HIV. As for the treatments that are currently available, none have actually been shown to reduce the incidence of AIDS-defined diseases or to help HIV-diagnosed persons to live longer. In fact, a study published in Lancet last August showed that while AIDS drug cocktail do reduce viral load and increase CD4 counts, they do not improve clinical outcomes [actual illness or symtpoms] and they actually *increase* mortality [death]. In fact, according to the CDC, the #1 killer of AIDS patients since 1999 has been liver failure. Liver failure is not considered to be an AIDS-defining illness, but is a *known* side effect of AIDS drug cocktails. In fact, there are those (and I'm one of them) who believe that AIDS drugs can cause "AIDS" even in the absence of an HIV positive diagnosis. And then there remains the question of whether HIV actually is the cause of AIDS. You may be surprised to learn (I know I was) that there are thousands of scientists who claim that it is not. In fact, Dr. Kary Mullis, the inventor of the PCR technique that I mentioned earlier, is one of those who claim that HIV is not the cause of AIDS. I myself am convinced that HIV is not the cause of AIDS. What's more, HIV hasn't even been proven to exist. Now, I would not force my views on you, because it is your life that you'd take in your hands if it turned out that I am wrong. However, I would strongly encourage you to learn more about HIV, about HIV tests, and about HIV treatments, before making the decision to get tested and/or treated for a virus that may or may not exist. I think that you'll find the following websites to be extremely helpful sources of alternative or dissenting information about HIV and AIDS:



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Posted by HIV/AIDS at 3:07 PM