Or a long time without the urge and desire of a woman, but after I started getting improvement [after initiating HAART] I am thinking that, if possible, this new woman, I shouldNattabi B et al. Journal of the International AIDS Society 2012, 15:17421 http://www.jiasociety.org/content/15/2/17421 | http://dx.doi.org/10.7448/IAS.15.2.not live with her without getting a child, at least a child should be there. Management of stigmatization There were a range of outcomes amongst the participants and we classified them into two broad categories, namely reactions to stigmatization and management of stigma. Reactions to stigmatization included reduced desire to have children, self-isolation, sero-sorting, internal stigma and delayed access to healthcare and services. Stigma management, defined as the actions people take in order to reduce the effects of stigmatization [40], included disclosure, resilience, adjustment and normification. Normification is a process whereby the stigmatized individual presents him/ herself as an ordinary person without necessarily making a secret of his/her undesirable attributes [8]. The outcomes of stigmatization varied according to the level of support that the participants received from their family, community and health system. Self-isolation and Chaetocin biological activity sero-sorting Stigmatized persons avoid situations where they may be forced to reveal their previously unknown stigma to others [8]. Stigmatized people are unsure of how they will be treated and they react by “defensive cowering” [8], that is, avoiding situations where they may be stigmatized. PLHIV may self-isolate, remain single and celibate, or they may sero-sort. Sero-sorting, whereby PLHIV choose their partners based on their HIV status [41], relates to a phenomenon called “in-group alignments” where individuals who experience the same stigma, and suffer the same deprivations, develop a “secessionist ideology” [8]. This was illustrated among some participants, who chose other HIV-positive persons as spouses. A male participant was approached by an HIV-positive woman who encouraged him to test for HIV and to form a relationship with her: A girlfriend who encouraged me that she was also living with HIV and that I should also come out so that we can live together. One male participant who had been deserted by his wife after his diagnosis lived for 3 years without a Chaetocin price companion, but he later found an HIV-positive partner following encouragement from his doctor. His story shows how effectively sero-sorting can overcome stigma and the limitations it places upon the options of those who suffer from it: It took such a long time, for about three years that I was single . . . I then went to my doctor and told him, now I feel healthy, and need someone to stay with. I was told if I can get someone who is also HIV-positive, I should come with her to him. Later I got a lady and went to him, as I talk now, I have a wife . . . The current one was requesting me if I could also have a child with her since she has never had a child in her life. My doctor talked to both of us and as I talk now my wife has a baby. When my wife was pregnant I was very happy because I thought I would not get any other child again.Disclosure Though disclosure can lead to further stigmatization of PLHIV, it is also a form of stigma management as it has been shown to ease further disclosure, enhance healing and feelings of accomplishment, pride and self-understanding, and empower PLHIV among other positi.Or a long time without the urge and desire of a woman, but after I started getting improvement [after initiating HAART] I am thinking that, if possible, this new woman, I shouldNattabi B et al. Journal of the International AIDS Society 2012, 15:17421 http://www.jiasociety.org/content/15/2/17421 | http://dx.doi.org/10.7448/IAS.15.2.not live with her without getting a child, at least a child should be there. Management of stigmatization There were a range of outcomes amongst the participants and we classified them into two broad categories, namely reactions to stigmatization and management of stigma. Reactions to stigmatization included reduced desire to have children, self-isolation, sero-sorting, internal stigma and delayed access to healthcare and services. Stigma management, defined as the actions people take in order to reduce the effects of stigmatization [40], included disclosure, resilience, adjustment and normification. Normification is a process whereby the stigmatized individual presents him/ herself as an ordinary person without necessarily making a secret of his/her undesirable attributes [8]. The outcomes of stigmatization varied according to the level of support that the participants received from their family, community and health system. Self-isolation and sero-sorting Stigmatized persons avoid situations where they may be forced to reveal their previously unknown stigma to others [8]. Stigmatized people are unsure of how they will be treated and they react by “defensive cowering” [8], that is, avoiding situations where they may be stigmatized. PLHIV may self-isolate, remain single and celibate, or they may sero-sort. Sero-sorting, whereby PLHIV choose their partners based on their HIV status [41], relates to a phenomenon called “in-group alignments” where individuals who experience the same stigma, and suffer the same deprivations, develop a “secessionist ideology” [8]. This was illustrated among some participants, who chose other HIV-positive persons as spouses. A male participant was approached by an HIV-positive woman who encouraged him to test for HIV and to form a relationship with her: A girlfriend who encouraged me that she was also living with HIV and that I should also come out so that we can live together. One male participant who had been deserted by his wife after his diagnosis lived for 3 years without a companion, but he later found an HIV-positive partner following encouragement from his doctor. His story shows how effectively sero-sorting can overcome stigma and the limitations it places upon the options of those who suffer from it: It took such a long time, for about three years that I was single . . . I then went to my doctor and told him, now I feel healthy, and need someone to stay with. I was told if I can get someone who is also HIV-positive, I should come with her to him. Later I got a lady and went to him, as I talk now, I have a wife . . . The current one was requesting me if I could also have a child with her since she has never had a child in her life. My doctor talked to both of us and as I talk now my wife has a baby. When my wife was pregnant I was very happy because I thought I would not get any other child again.Disclosure Though disclosure can lead to further stigmatization of PLHIV, it is also a form of stigma management as it has been shown to ease further disclosure, enhance healing and feelings of accomplishment, pride and self-understanding, and empower PLHIV among other positi.
