How to Know if You Have AIDS

AIDS is a serious illness, and if you have HIV, you need to be treated immediately to increase your chances of living a longer life and not developing AIDS. Becoming infected with a sexually transmitted illness can be embarrassing, but there are some symptoms that you can be aware of and precautions you can take to prevent yourself from being exposed or being unaware of your condition. Below are some ways you can determine if you have AIDS, but getting tested is the most reliable way to tell.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• HIV Self-Test Kit

How to Know if You Have AIDS

1. Think about your habits over the last ten years. Have you had unprotected sex? Have you shared a needle with someone? It takes an average of ten years for HIV to turn into AIDS, but if you don't take care of yourself and are poorly nourished, you can develop AIDS faster.

2. Determine if you experienced a flu-like illness after unprotected sex, because this could be your body's reaction to the HIV infection.

3. Monitor your illnesses. Usually when HIV-positive individuals develop AIDS, they start to experience more severe illnesses such as PCP (Pneumocystis pneumonia), a lung infection; KS (Kaposi's sarcoma), a skin cancer; CMV (Cytomegalovirus), an infection that usually affects the eyes; or Candida, a fungal infection that can cause thrush (a white film in your mouth) or infections in your throat or vagina.

4. Monitor your senses. Are you experiencing headaches, night sweats, fatigue, chills, blurred vision? These are some of the later symptoms that occur when AIDS is destroying your immune system.

5. Test yourself for HIV so you can be absolutely sure whether you have contracted the disease. If you're too afraid to go to a doctor, purchase a self-test kit that you can do at home. This can give you the results in a more private manner.

Tips & Warnings

• Antiretroviral medication can prolong the time it takes for HIV to turn into AIDS, so even if you're scared you should see a doctor immediately.
• AIDS is not curable and many people have died from it, which is why taking preventative measures is important.

Resources

• HIV Self-Test Kit

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[glorybug]

on 8/26/2009 This is one of the most irresponsible articles I've ever read. Anyone with the flu will think they have AIDS. No scientific medical info? No recommendation of using condoms? I like how in the "who can help", the links are for weight loss, spine surgery and back pain. Articles like this should be yanked. Sorry- this just irks me.