By:
AMDEC - ENGLISHWhen talking about taking a positive attitude towards the discovery of the serological status, the possibility of the existence of several factors that make the daily life of the patient an authentic martyrdom has often been ignored. One of these cases is that of a young woman, who, at the same time as discovering the virus, was aware of the series of problems that placed her clinical condition in a challenging situation, requiring immense personal effort and, not least, the attention of those closest to her. .
Without taboos or reservations, Avelina Sibanda, a 34-year-old single mother, residing in the Munhava neighbourhood, in the city of Beira, agreed to break the silence and share with the public the contours of the drama she had experienced since discovering the series of problems that accompany his positive serological status to this day.
A single mother of 4 children, Avelina is diagnosed with HIV in Maputo, where she was living when her health problems started. She discovers at the same time that she was also pregnant and is diagnosed with condyloma acuminata, also known as genital wart / cockscomb, a sexually transmitted disease caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). The situation led him to take the decision to immediately return to her homeland, Beira, at a time when her health was deteriorating. At the central hospital in Beira, he is also diagnosed with kidney failure and hypertension.
The young woman was unable to prevent her fourth child from being vertically infected with the HIV, and in caring for her children she has the help of her 41-year-old older sister, who is also HIV-positive, has high blood pressure and is unemployed.
Throughout this odyssey, Avelina reveals that the poor ability to provide food not only for her children, but also to meet the needs of her highly demanding clinical condition, has been a great tormentor in the face of the intensity of the medication she takes . She says that time and time again she found herself unable to get around, even to the hospital, because she was physically weak.
The patient has been a beneficiary of AMDEC since the beginning of this year, through the Universal Access to Quality Health Services project, an initiative involving home care integrated into the community. She reveals that she has greatly appreciated the help of AMDEC activists, who have often provided her with resources to buy food, as well as transport to make regular appointments at the hospital.
She has been using a small machamba for her family's survival, which is under the care of her two younger brothers, who have not been able to continue with their studies and have formal jobs. In addition to the machamba, the two young people resort to small household jobs and civil construction.
The presence and attention of AMDEC has proved to be extremely important, and it came at a time when Avelina was starting to give in to discouragement in the face of the series of problems that made it impossible for her to dream of better days.
“I stayed inside the house, I didn't want any more contact with people outside. When the AMDEC activists arrived, I had a great moral boost, which motivated me to be more assiduous at the hospital and follow the treatment. At first I found it boring, because I thought that the conversations were not relevant and that what interested me most was that he would help me with food. But the psychological support they provided was decisive. At a time when I, faced with all the illness, hunger and inability to take better care of my son, considered dying”Avelina Sibanda
Avelina has regained the courage to live in society, assuming a positive attitude, and has been involved in activities at the church, which helps to alleviate the tension surrounding the drama she has experienced.
She hopes that her siblings have stable jobs, and that they can have food aid, largely because of the children and the nutritionally demanding treatment.
