Take your medication on time every day, urges Alex Aids survivor
I spent several months in hospital under drips and taking 49 tablets a day and people had written me off, says Feziwe Masabane, who described herself as a great Aids survivor.
The 4th Avenue Clinic in Alexandra marked World Aids Day on December 1 with a passionate plea from a miracle survivor for people to ‘religiously continue taking your medication’.
The plea came from Alex resident Feziwe Masabane who was diagnosed as HIV positive in 1999 and in 2010 the disease took a turn for the worse when her CD count dropped to three and she had to be hospitalised.
“I then knew I had turned from being HIV positive to being Aids ridden and on the brink of death as I started having hair and memory loss and my sight was also failing.
“I spent several months in hospital under drips and taking 49 tablets daily and my friends and people back on my street had already started writing my obituary while others claimed I was already dead and accused the family of trying to conceal my death,” she told the attendees gathered to mark the day.
Masabane urged people to continue using condoms to avoid spreading or contracting the disease, saying a defensive practice was the best form of safety from the disease.
“I know now people don’t have to die from the disease anymore if they religiously continue to take their medication on time every day. If, for instance, you take your medication at 09:00, it must be that time every day. I was a great survivor and don’t stop taking your pills thinking you too will be a great survivor.”
City of Johannesburg Region E Primary Health Care manager Kgapotso Phaladi said, “I urge the community to continue to frequently test for HIV so they can know their status and take positive steps towards treatment.”
A nurse at the clinic Johannes Sephomolo Moratlatli urged people that share needles to desist from the practice as this put them at great risk of contracting HIV.
“Sharing of needles is no different from a person who sets out to commit suicide. This act is a no-no as an HIV-positive person has not got ‘positive’ written on his or her forehead. Let’s all strive to prevent the spread of HIV at all times,” he said.
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