Charlie Sheen, and some HIV info.

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I've already touched base on the Paris attacks, now I thought I'd say this about the whole Charlie Sheen thing: I'm not remotely surprised he's HIV positive. You can't live the lifestyle he's lived and be surprised when something like this happens. Being rich and famous doesn't make you exempt. I'm not saying that everyone who has HIV has lived the kind of lifestyle that Charlie did, because that's not true. Different people contract it differently. Some are born with it, some may have had an unfaithful partner, some may have received it from a blood transfusion at one time, I mean look at China, there's a part of China that has a very high HIV rate due to blood transfusions and giving plasma. Regardless here's the thing about HIV it's scary, but it's not necessarily a death sentence. HIV is not curable, but it's treatable. People who are on the several medications (often referred to as a cocktail) can live a semi normal life, but the thing is HIV has a stigma attached to it. When these people are on medication their viral load can be almost non existent. You aren't going to get HIV simply by being in their presence. Unless you're using drugs or having unprotected sex with someone who has HIV you have a very remote chance of getting it from them, because the HIV virus dies almost as soon as it touches the air. You aren't going to get HIV by simply touching someone with it or kissing them. It's not that easy to get, but no matter how remote you should still take precautions, because HIV positive people don't have to tell you they're HIV positive unless they plan on sleeping with you. When I was in ECE our teachers drilled it into us to always wear gloves when changing diapers or cleaning up blood. If you have open wounds and you're changing a diaper or cleaning up blood even if it's a remote chance there's still a chance that you could get HIV. I mean yes it's a small chance, but you should always be safe and take precautions. If you are having sex with someone you're not in a committed relationship with always use a condom, because you're not just guarding against pregnancy. You need to be careful and protect yourself. People fear that in which they don't understand. I remember writing a paper on HIV when I was still in school, I found all of this information and I remember watching videos on it. I learned so much about it, and I now have all of this knowledge that has helped me understand it. My boyfriend used to work with someone who was HIV positive, and I remember how scared he was at first, because while he knew that he couldn't get it by simply being by him, he knew that it could be spread by blood and they were cooks who worked with knives, and the guy's diagnosis was recent so he knew he wasn't on medication yet. It's something that's difficult to wrap your brain around. This guy wasn't a drug user, but his girlfriend was with someone else that did use drugs, and in turn they both got it. That's why it's so important to be safe. This guy was also our neighbor. I remember how he and his girlfriend came to terms with it. They are now both doing relatively well I believe, they are no longer with each other though. Anyway I just thought I'd shed some light on HIV, from the knowledge I have on it. Use caution but also realize that you're probably not going to get it as long as you are safe and not doing drugs (I mean sometimes it does happen other ways, but usually as long as you know who you're sleeping with and you aren't using drugs you're more likely to be safe), don't be afraid to talk about past partners with your significant others, and don't be afraid to have tests to make sure you and your partner are both clean. There are so many people who are afraid to get tested due to the stigma attached to it, it's time to erase that stigma and save some lives. With treatment most HIV people will be able to live long lives. This isn't the 80's and this is no longer something that's new, and it can be treated, and who knows maybe one day it can be cured. Please get educated and stay safe, and please stop making HIV people feel like they are somehow less human because of their diagnosis. They are still human. My only thing with Charlie is that he didn't tell some of the women he slept with that he was HIV positive, that's something he should have done. It was his right to keep it a secret in every other aspect though.