WHEN MY HUSBAND AND I MARried in September 2020, the biggest obstacle in our minds was COVID.
We never anticipated that an entirely different virus was about to have such a profound impact on our lives.
We bought a house together and one year after we were married, I was nine weeks pregnant and attending a prenatal visit.
During what I thought would be my first ultrasound appointment, one of by the doctors pulled me aside and gave me the news that shook my world: I had tested positive for HIV.
When they brought my husband in and shared the news with him, he took my hand and assured me that we were in this together.
All I could think at the time was that I was going to die, and possibly my baby, too.
Fortunately, the news from the doctors was not as grim as my initial fears led me to believe. They said that my viral load the amount of HIV in my blood was low, meaning it could be well managed with the use of antiretroviral drugs.
These medications would not only keep me healthy but also prevent HIV from transmitting to my unborn baby.
I started on the medications three weeks after I was diagnosed. Only three weeks after that-a mere six weeks after receiving my diagnosis the doctors tested my blood again.
I was thrilled to hear my viral load was undetectable, meaning I was very unlikely to pass HIV on to my husband or child.
The advancement of treatment gave me hope, but next step was overcoming the stereotypes associated with my HIV status.
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