The Reality of HIV/AIDS - Diary of an HIV-positive pregnant girl (Pt 4)
published:
Monday | August 18, 2008
Keisha Shakespeare-Blackmore, Staff Reporter
Recap: Gabrielle is planning on tying her tubes after this baby because she does not want to run the risk of her child being born with the HIV virus.
Gabrielle* has had one misfortune after another. From discovering she was HIV positive and pregnant at 17 years old, to currently being five months pregnant at 19 years old with her second child. She could also have suffered a miscarriage when she was four months pregnant because of the reckless practice of a doctor.
After Gabrielle found out she was pregnant again, she was immediately placed on the medication Kaletra. However, the medication made her very ill and she lost 30 pounds moving from 172 to 142lb in the space of one month. She went to the health centre seeking a solution but the nurse on duty did not have one to offer.
Bad diagnosis
"She told me that it was because my pregnancy was young and I did not want to stick to the medication.
Plus, she said, I had turned my mind against it that is why the medication was not working," said Gabrielle.
However, that was far from the truth. Gabrielle said she took the medication religiously every day as directed, because she wanted her baby to have a chance of being born without the virus. With the added stress of being pregnant again, Gabrielle procrastinated about visiting the doctor. It was not until she was four months pregnant and had what she thought was a yeast infection that she was forced to go for a check-up.
When she went to the doctor, she told him that she thought she had a yeast infection.
"To my surprise, the doctor just looked at my docket and wrote me a prescription for yeast infection without even examining me. I went home and decided that I was not going to take the medication because he did not examine me."
Another doctor
One week later, Gabrielle went to another doctor because her problem was still not solved. She told this doctor what had happened with the other doctor and showed him the prescription. After the examination, he told her she had vaginitis.
"The doctor told me if I had taken the medication, there was a possibility I could have had a premature birth and if I had left the problem untreated, there could have been serious complications."
She said she wanted to report the doctor who had given her a wrong prescription but the new doctor said to let sleeping dogs lie. Currently, she is faced with a new challenge, a nurse who is being a nuisance to her.
Name changed.
Please send comments to: keisha.shakespeare@gleanerjm.com.
