Another week has gone by! I finished my book and I was really surprised to find how much I enjoyed it. I read the book called "At Risk" by Alice Hoffman and I could not put it down! I finished it in about a day and a half. The story revolves around an 11 year old girl in a small town that contracts HIV from an untested blood transfusion during a routine appendicitis. I really enjoyed how the book was written. The story was told through the eyes of everyone involved with the little girl's life. The perspective would switch from the girl, mother, father, brother, doctor, friend, school principal, gymnastics coach and so on.
I am a cryer - just ask my sister. We always go to movies together and somehow I always find something to cry about. This book made me emotional several times throughout the story from several different character's perspectives. When you think of the emotional factors related to the transmission of HIV, often times you only consider the person who contracted the disease. This book helped to paint a picture of everyones emotions - guilt, fear, depression, discrimination and so much more. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading. My sister lives in Tallahassee and she bought the book after I finished it. She is a film major at FSU and she is trying to perfect her writing skills for screenplays. The book had such an impact on her that she is trying to adapt it to a screenplay version. Its been really fun talking to her and bouncing ideas around for dialogue during the introspective moments of the book.
I had my HIV test done at Planned Parenthood this past weekend. I am a baby when it comes to needles so I received the OraSure test. I didn't think I would be that nervous about the results but it is a little scary to think about. I have never been tested for HIV before. I have been tested for every other STD but not specifically HIV. For some reason, I did not think HIV was a problem in the Tampa Bay area. I never hear any discussion about HIV statistics for the area. I was so surprised to see Florida's statistics in Teach's first slide show. I remember hearing alot about HIV and AIDS when I was a bit younger but I hardly ever hear anything anymore. I work for a non-profit hospital within the foundation. The foundation raises money to fund various programs, equipment and buildings within the hospital system. Our grant system is divided into different categories such as cancer services, diabetes services and so on. I have never once seen a grant for HIV. It seems to me that HIV positive patients are just as important as cancer patients.
The book I read, "At Risk", really showed the injustices an HIV positive person must suffer. This little girl lost most of her friends, parents and teachers petitioned against her coming back to school and she couldn't even find an orthodontist that would take off her braces. People are so uneducated about the transmission of HIV and rumors become truth. I wonder if that fear has anything to do with the difference between how a cancer patient is treated and how an HIV positive person is treated in society.
***Did You Know***
If an HIV positive mother wants to breastfeed, it is best that the baby is on a diet consisting of breast milk ONLY for the first few months. If the mother adds any other foods or liquid to the diet, the baby can develop a gut infection and has a much higher chance of becoming infected with HIV. A study in South Africa showed that mothers who exclusively breastfed their children for atleast three months were less likely to transmit HIV than mothers who incorporated other items in the baby's diet. This study showed that the risk of transmitting the virus among mothers who exclusively breastfed was no higher than those who did not breastfeed at all.
Didn't know that fact about exclusively breast feeding. Thanks for the information.
ReplyDeleteDid you check to see if this book has been made into a movie? Perhaps the author would be willing to see an updated version made that would address the fact that HIV is still a stigma. Perhaps is could bounce between early disease in the 80s and disease in 2010, showing the parallels.
If you go back to when cancer was discovered there was a stigma associated with it as well until people understood you coudn't get it from being in the same room. Even though people understand that about HIV, it still isn't the same. There seems to be a what if mentality about this disease.
Courtney,
ReplyDeleteI am glad you and your sister read the book together. I have tried to slowly tell my sister about the facts I have learned this semester about HIV, but she is seventeen and doesn't think anything like that could happen to her. It is a struggle just to have her go get tested with me. I think, because she has never been tested, she is scared of the unknown and would rather not know at all. This is the same mentality that my dad and his entire family have.
Great did you know! I would have never thought that only giving your baby breast milk would decrease the baby's chances of having a gut infection or contracting HIV from the mother.
-Courtney D
I was torn between this book and the one I chose. I decided on “Surviving the Fall” because it was written by a doctor and I felt as though I could relate. After your post I want to read “At Risk” too! I just hope I can get through it without crying too much; I was having trouble holding back the tears when I was reading my book when the doctor would tell about his patient histories. I also agree with Teach about the stigma. For some reason, even though most people understand you can't get HIV from standing in the same room, shaking hands, etc people still have a phobia....do you think it will end?
ReplyDeleteAt Risk sounds like an amazing book. I'll have to add it to the list of dozens of books I need from the library! Planned Parenthood is an awesome place to get tested. They are very open minded there. Since you enjoy reading and you trust Planned Parenthood, you should pick up a copy of The War on Choice by Gloria Feldt.
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