When I was a kid, I formed a lot of myths about Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). I based them on what I heard on TV or saw online. Take note that internet plans and connection during my elementary days were expensive. These thoughts started when I was in Grade 4 when Manny Pacquiao had a controversial sentiment on same-sex marriage. I also watched a few dramas about people who struggled to live normally after learning they had the virus. Anyway, here are the myths I believed as a kid and the facts behind them.
This was me when I was 10 years old (2015).
It was taboo in our country to be in a same-sex relationship. Probably, we have this mindset because we live in a religious nation. I connected it to that myth since most individuals who caught the virus were gay. It was similar to my belief that after a couple kissed, the girl would get pregnant. So I concluded that if both men did that thing, they automatically had HIV.
But as I grew older, I realized this is just a myth. Kissing alone doesn’t transmit the virus unless they do the thing. Even if you kiss intimately, you won’t catch it. It’s ironic that countries like Thailand and Taiwan, which accept LGBTQ+ people, help reduce the spread of the virus by educating the public. However, in a religious and judgmental country like ours, we have a huge number diagnosed with the virus.
When I was a kid, I remember news about a child who tested positive for HIV. Due to lack of awareness, many parents didn’t want their kids to go to school because they thought their children could get infected. I also believed this since my first thought was that HIV is a virus, and viruses are contagious. If your sibling has a cough, you can catch it through close contact. I thought HIV worked the same way as sore eyes.
However, HIV is not contagious. It’s not airborne like coughs or colds. Sharing a cup with someone who is HIV-positive won’t infect you. Maybe you can, unless you had unprotected sex with each other😂. It doesn’t spread when you have direct contact like sore eyes. HIV can only be transmitted through unprotected sex or sharing needles with someone who has the virus.
Linking to my first myth, I thought HIV was only for men. During 2014 to 2015, I read an article about Hollywood celebrities who died from AIDS. Most of them were men. The most known example is Freddie Mercury. But in reality, women can carry the virus too.
If you look at the stats, most HIV cases are from men. Maybe because they are more likely exposed in bars or through sharing needles. Despite the stats, the important thing to know is that HIV is not only for men. Women can also carry it if their spouse or partner carry that virus.
When I was in elementary, chain mails were very popular. I believed in them from Grade 5 to Grade 7 and realized how stupid I was. I remember one chain mail about blood spilled in Pepsi manufactures when I was in Grade 6. There was also another chain mail about giving an awareness about not buying fish in a certain bay because of hospital waste.
But HIV can’t be passed through food or drinks. HIV can’t live in the air because it survives only in warm or moist environments like our body. As I said earlier, you can only get it if you have unprotected sex, you’re the child of an infected mother, or you share needles. Transmission through food or fish is impossible.
This belief grew stronger when I was a teenager. I thought both men would automatically get HIV when they made love. Many elders also spread this myth not because they are homophobic. I partly understood it because our country has many cases of rape. They even involved innocent babies or animals for their pleasure. If you watch news, you would learn further about it.
But relying on facts, gay couple who practice unprotected or protected sex won’t automatically get HIV. Many of them use condoms or PreP as a safety measure. Based on my research, HIV can transmit more easily through anal sex. It can be possible, but you will only get HIV if your partner has the virus. So if you’re unsure, make sure to get tested before doing anything. Better safe than sorry.
HIV is not a virus we need to panic about. We just need proper awareness to combat it. This is my response to the community founder’s challenge. It inspired me to create this blog since I rewatched Pia’s Miss Universe 2015 answer. Ten years after she won the pageant, now I know the reason why she wanted to raise awareness about issues like HIV. Thank you for reading!
