[mcmama]

Has anyone had experience with caring for a relative or loved one who had AIDS? What have you found to be helpful? What is needed?

[NewYorkMom]

A family friend tested positive for HIV in 2003. Since then, he has remained healthy (thanks to strong support from family and friends, a healthy lifetstyle, and of course, God). The first thing you can do is listen. Whether they want to talk about the future, the past, their fears, it is good just to be there to share and show your support. I really want to recommend this Web site to you. It is one of the most positive, informative sources for information on living, treating, and understanding HIV/AIDS. This particular link takes you directly to stories from family and friends of those who are positive. http://thebody.com/whatis/family_first.html

[mcmama]

Thank you. This is an excellent resource, and one I will recommend to some straight spouses or ex spouses of gay people who are now living with this challenge through no fault of their own. Getting tested is a huge hurdle for these people - confronting the reality of what their spouse has done and the lies and infidelity. I guess that happens when the infidelity is heterosexual too, but most people I know who have had to do this were married to gay men who had anonymous sexual encounters as a way of proving that they are "not really gay".
It is nice to have a non judgemental resource for these folks, one that shows all the circumstances of the pandemic.

[astrowatcher]

My boyfriend has HIV, but he doesn't really need anyone to take care of him. I hope he stays healthy a long time. His meds cost about $2,000 per month, but he has a good job with insurance that helps a lot. I have been trying to find out a lot more about HIV/AIDS since we have been dating, but there is too much information and it is hard to digest.

I went with him to his last doctor's visit. His doctor said he was responding very well to the meds and he should live a long time. I hope he is right.