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• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 36-40 >> Interview 03 >> Talks about what it is like to get your life back on the new HIV treatments after facing death.

Has slowly built up his strength since his illness, becoming highly expert in HIV. He did extensive self-development work on himself. He has 870 CD4 cells and currently takes nevirapine, abacavir, and lamivudine with minimal side effects.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 46-55 >> Interview 24 >> He felt depressed and useless after his HIV diagnosis.

At one stage, he was very unwell and his CD4 cells were as low as 200. Since drug rehabilitation in the Russian Exodus Christian charity, he has been able to get his life back on track and his CD4 cells are now 900.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 41-45 >> Interview 02 >> How he thought about his future when first diagnosed.

Now on efavirenz and Combivir, his viral load is undetectable. He has suffered few side-effects. He had counseling to help him cope, and looks forward to getting back to work.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 46-55 >> Interview 16 >> Believes that being optimistic can help people to cope with health problems if they arise.

He was taking a combination of anti-virals (zidovudine, nevirapine and abacavir) with no side effects. He has less energy than he once did, but is not sure if this is due to HIV or getting older.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 41-45 >> Interview 02 >> Because the medication works he can get on with life and not think so much about HIV.

Now on efavirenz and Combivir, his viral load is undetectable. He has suffered few side-effects. He had counseling to help him cope, and looks forward to getting back to work.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 46-55 >> Interview 38 >> People need to live life in the present, but responsibly.

Although he has developed a lot of resistance to anti-HIV drugs, he is currently doing well on T20, TMC114 (as part of a trial), FTC, tenofovir and abacavir, and has an undetectable viral load.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 46-55 >> Interview 16 >> If you are optimistic yet anticipate side effects and illnesses you can cope with them better.

He was taking a combination of anti-virals (zidovudine, nevirapine and abacavir) with no side effects. He has less energy than he once did, but is not sure if this is due to HIV or getting older.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 20-30 >> Interview 47 >> She faced multiple life problems including asylum seeking, lack of work and separation from her children. (Read by an actor.)

H47 is currently on nevirapine and Combivir with few side-effects. Attending a number of support groups is a good way for her to gain information, network and get training. (Video and audio clips read by an actor.)

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 46-55 >> Interview 43 >> Was delighted to find that other women with HIV she met in a support group were healthy and not dying. (Read by an actor.)

She has teenage children, and although she found it difficult to tell them about her HIV, they were very supportive. She believes that for women it is vital to seek out others with HIV to share their experiences of HIV. (Video and audio clips read by an actor.)

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 46-55 >> Interview 38 >> Gives advice on caring for the self and balancing HIV with the rest of your life.

Although he has developed a lot of resistance to anti-HIV drugs, he is currently doing well on T20, TMC114 (as part of a trial), FTC, tenofovir and abacavir, and has an undetectable viral load.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 20-30 >> Interview 47 >> She was dealing with many problems on top of being in a foreign country. (Read by an actor.)

H47 is currently on nevirapine and Combivir with few side-effects. Attending a number of support groups is a good way for her to gain information, network and get training. (Video and audio clips read by an actor.)

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 36-40 >> Interview 03 >> Work stress coincided with his illnesses and he decided to retrain for work that interested him.

Has slowly built up his strength since his illness, becoming highly expert in HIV. He did extensive self-development work on himself. He has 870 CD4 cells and currently takes nevirapine, abacavir, and lamivudine with minimal side effects.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 36-40 >> Interview 12 >> When he was diagnosed with HIV early on in the epidemic he had good sickness benefits from work and initially enjoyed having time off.

He suffered from severe diarrhoea and peripheral neuropathy while taking an earlier combination of anti-HIV drugs, but he currently takes nelfinavir, 3TC and abacavir with few side effects. He has had to cope with HIV-related illness, depression and mania at various times in his life.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 36-40 >> Interview 21 >> He would only tell his parents about his HIV only if he was ill, but did tell his sister. (Read by an actor.)

Although he was very ill with HIV, he was determined not to become a victim and 'end up on the scrap heap.' He lives a healthy and physically active life on combination therapies (nevirapine and Combivir). (Video and audio clips read by an actor.)

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 46-55 >> Interview 04 >> He wants quality of life, not illness and dependency.

He was taking saquinavir, ritonavir, tenofovir, and ddI with few side effects. He was also taking Prozac for depression. He had an undetectable viral load. Counselling has helped him to cope.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 46-55 >> Interview 38 >> Talks about how people need to live life in the present, but responsibly.

Although he has developed a lot of resistance to anti-HIV drugs, he is currently doing well on T20, TMC114 (as part of a trial), FTC, tenofovir and abacavir, and has an undetectable viral load.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 20-30 >> Interview 49 >> Facing illness and death helped to motivate him to do what he wanted to do in life.

Clint progressed to Aids defining illnesses relatively quickly. Fortunately, combination therapy had come in by then, and his original combination (Combivir, efavirenz and nelfinavir) is still effective today.

• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Aged 36-40 >> Interview 50 >> A husband and wife who both had HIV tried to find the humour in nursing their child who was ill with HIV. (Read by an actor.)

His new born child was diagnosed with HIV, and he and his wife were both subsequently diagnosed with HIV too. His family is in good health and his child is prospering with support from the NHS. (Video and audio clips read by an actor.)

• Topic
• Chronic health issues >> HIV >> Illness and death >> Illness and death

Illness and death