Week 7

“Down Low”
I actually did get to catch a glimpse of the Oprah Show this week, and I just wanted to point out that I am very proud of the lady who was pregnant for getting the proper treatment for her pregnancy. She was a very inspiring person. Before I Google the correct term for Down Low, by watching this show, I am going to say that someone on the Down Low is hiding the fact that they are homosexual, like the man who took his wife to see his boyfriend, and she had no idea that he was gay. It seems like these men and women are scared to come out and admit their sexual preferences or tendencies to the world. Therefore, they prefer to keep it to themselves. I know Wikipedia is not the best source, but it was the only website where I could find an actual definition. Therefore, according to Wikipedia, Down Low refers to “Men who identify as straight, but have sex with men (often a friend) on the side without disclosing this to their female partner.” (Wikipedia, 2010)

Source:
Down Low.


Week 7 Blog
This Monday, I was in the waiting room at a doctor’s office, and the Tyra Banks Show was on. The show had about 7 teenagers under the age of 15, five of which were sexually active and have had more than 5 partners. While these numbers were shocking for me to hear for such young people, it shocked me even more that not one of them knew about HIV or AIDS. They knew about sexually transmitted diseases, but they just thought they would have to get medicine for them and then they would be ok. In my mind, I just kept thinking that one of them had to have HIV because they were having sex unprotected.

It is amazing to me how teenagers in the United States do not know about HIV. They had all taken the Sex-Ed classes, but stated that they wished their parents would have talked to them, instead of feeling uncomfortable in a classroom. Honestly, as a Christian it is hard for me to say this, but the Abstinence Only classes have to be amended. I know this raises big controversy, but obviously they aren’t working in preventing the spread of sexual diseases. If Christians are scared of having their children learn about such things, they can simply take their children out for the day or they can teach their child abstinence themselves. I don’t think this issue should be the responsibility of schools, but some children aren’t blessed with parents who want to spend the time to inform them about HIV. Yes, I am a Christian, and I waited until I was married to have sex, but it isn’t because my sex-education class told me.

As I stated in my QOTW answer, I don’t want to censor my children to the point where they just want to rebel and do exactly what I kept them from. I feel that as a parent, it is my job to educate them about HIV and how it comes about. I know sex isn’t the only way to get HIV, but I know it is a big reason for its growing numbers. I would hate to one day be on a show, or even in my own living room, having to hear my child has had unprotected sex with a handful of people and has no idea what HIV is. I would feel like a failure.

Did You Know?

It is just as important for HIV children to get their vaccines just as it is for non-HIV children. “Encapsulated bacteria cause considerable illness for HIV-infected children, so Haemophilus influenzae, and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines are important. Varicella vaccine is a live virus vaccine but it can be considered safe for HIV-infected children without immuno-suppression. Measles, mumps and rubella vaccine can be safely given to HIV-infected children who do not have severe immunosuppressant.” (Children and HIV, 2009)

Children and HIV

. (2009) HIVInfoSource. Retrieved on October 13, 2010 from (2010). Wikipedia. Retrieved on October 13, 2010 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Down-lowhttp://www.hivinfosource.org/hivis/hivbasics/children/#Clinical_trials.