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Published on December 1, 2007

"I wanted to die rather than tell him the truth," she said, recalling her feelings of a year ago.

"To tell him the truth might make me lose him; not to tell him might infect him," she said.

Yo had been trapped in a dilemma since the day she was informed by a doctor that she was living with HIV. The virus was transmitted to her by her mother when she was pregnant. Her mother died when Yo was 13 years old.

Because of the love Yo had for her boyfriend, she decided to go to the Aids Access Foundation in her hometown of Chiang Rai, hoping that the foundation could provide information about how to live with HIV.

Aids Access suggested she join a course, which encouraged her to continue living.

Yo learnt how to inform other people about HIV and show them that having HIV did not make her so different from others. Also that HIV is preventable and not easily passed on to others if the right precautions are taken.

Yo eventually was courageous enough to tell her boyfriend and it did not take her long to make him understand the disease. The two teenagers are still dating.

Unfortunately there are not many teenagers living with HIV who have a positive attitude like Yo. The transmission of the virus among teens has become a great concern for the Public Health Ministry, as the infection rate in this group is rising.

A recent report by the ministry on the Aids situation this year shows that Thai youths are more at risk of catching HIV, as many have their first sexual encounter at 15 years old and the rate of condom use during casual sex is less than 50 per cent.

Dr Somchai Pinyopornpanich, deputy head of the Disease Control Department, said that 4.3 million new infections were expected this year, with about 40 per cent of them among people aged between 15 and 24.

Dr Rangsima Lolekha, Chief of Paediatric and Family Section, Global AIDS program, is concerned about teenagers living with HIV/Aids who might be trapped in a dilemma - as Yo once was.

She said there was little information about effective prevention with HIV positives youth model or studies about the

behaviour of teens infected with the virus in Thailand. However, from her experience, there are some teenagers living with HIV/Aids who do not know what to do about their situation and need counseling supports from health care providers and support from their families.

She suggested that families and communities should provide more support, because it is hard for people with HIV/Aids to accept the truth and tell others they are infected.

According to Rangsima, there were about 16,000 children living with HIV/AIDS in Thailand in 2006. Most of them had contracted the virus from their mother during pregnancy. About 30 per cent of these are older than 10 years old. 

To commemorate International Aids Day today, Yo wants teenagers living with HIV/Aids to accept the truth and be courageous. She also asks the friends and families of infected teenagers to understand and care for them, as infected people not only live for themselves but for the ones they love.

Now, Yo's boyfriend has to call her every day at 7am to wake her up and tell her to not forget to take her anti-retroviral medication.

"Because I worry about you, don't forget to take your medicine on time. Those are the words he tells me every morning," she said. "My heart would suffer if my boyfriend were to become infected from me."

Pongphon Sarnsamak

 The Nation