'Born again' HIV patients look to brighter future

As a result of the taboo surrounding AIDS, people with HIV are likely to face discrimination in education, employment and when seeking healthcare, which deters them from taking tests and leads to an increased risk of the virus spreading and causing more deaths.

Last month, the United States CDC said people with HIV whose viral load was undetectable and continued to receive antiretroviral therapy cannot transmit the illness. It was a landmark moment because it confirmed that once HIV levels become undetectable the disease becomes untransmittable. That means it is safe to have sex with or perform surgery on such patients.

Physicians say that effective antiretroviral therapy means almost every person with HIV/AIDS can have their viral load reduced to an undetectable level within three to six months and be "born again".

Diagnosis and despair

A'le remembers how despondent he was when he was diagnosed. He lost his job, and thought he would never be able to study overseas.

However, he met someone with a similar experience, who told him that his HIV status would not stand in the way of applications for a visa or for college in the US. "You can still do whatever you planned to do in your life," his friend wrote in an e-mail.

Before beginning the application process, A'le studied English and threw himself into physical exercise. The regular workouts have made him much fitter, and his most-recent checkup showed that he is perfectly healthy.

He contacted an HIV organization in the city in which his university is located. They said a volunteer would guide him through the insurance procedures, health checkups and treatment when he arrives in the US.

When Xiaojuan offered her arm for a blood test for pre-antiretroviral therapy checkup, she whispered to the nurse, "Please be careful, I have AIDS."

The nurse remained perfectly calm: "Thank you. But first, you must remember you are just a carrier and have a great chance of continuing to be so for the rest of your life with the help of the treatment. Second, I have been working here for more than a decade and nothing has happened. Don't worry about me."

Xiaojuan was overcome. "My eyes filled with tears upon hearing those words," she said.

She has become a volunteer at the local center for disease control and prevention to provide comfort and help to young people who have recently been diagnosed with HIV.

Much to her surprise, she has recently been asked out on a date. "He is a good man in every way, but I guess I will say no. Maybe in a few years, I will feel like getting married again," she said. "I'm very satisfied with my life now. I am happy, truly."

Since he quit recreational drugs, Mingzai visits his parents every weekend and helps with the housework.

His wife, who does not have HIV, supported him when he was in rehab. A few years ago, the "positive-negative" couple had a healthy baby daughter.

"Now I have a firm life goal; to make more money and create a better life for my family," Mingzai said.

On the day he started antiretroviral therapy, A'le opened a Weibo account to post his "rebirth diaries".

One day, he reposted a message from a friend who is HIV-positive: "AIDS is like a mirror, reflecting who you are. When you did not know or want to know about it, you turned away - this reflected your blindness; when you knew perfectly well it was a chronic disease you ignored it, burying your head in sorrow - this reflected your cowardice; when you knew the disease was transmitted by accident, not a moral failing, you were still full of discrimination - this reflected how judgmental you were."