David Ngele-‘How I survived HIV for 23 years without ARVs’
Source : Kutlwano
Author : Itumeleng Semele
Location : Gaborone
Event : Interview
For 23 years, David Ngele lived with HIV. Throughout this period, the 66-year-old Ngele never for once opened his mouth to stuff his body with Anti- retroviral drugs (ARV`s).
Unlike many who depend on ARVs, Ngele‘s immune system had throughout this period remained strong as he managed to fight off opportunistic infections without any medication.
Ngele admits his case is unique and rare and baffles many how his immune system continued to stop the HI virus from replicating for so long.
“I started my anti-retroviral medication in March last year with a CD4 count of 250 and since then, I have responded well to treatment,” says Ngele.
He is among the first batch of Batswana to come out of the closet to declare their HIV status. Since then, Ngele devoted much of his life to campaigning and advocating for the welfare of people living with HIV. He is former Botswana Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS (BONEPWA) director and an HIV/AIDS activist who has throughout his life fought for the rights of those living with HIV.
When in January 2000 Botswana became the first African country to distribute free anti-retroviral drugs, Ngele was not enrolled given his CD4 cell count was still high.
He says between 2000 and 2008, his CD4 cell count was above 1000 and he was happy that it remained stable and under control for quite some time until 2009 when it fell below 400 due to work related stress.
“HIV is manageable but it depends on how you deal with it which can affect your long term mental approach to the disease,” explains Ngele.
Ngele says instead of treating it as a death sentence, he chose to use his status as a tool to educate Batswana to improve his own life and those of others.
Once diagnosed with HIV, the first and most important thing you need is counselling, reckons Ngele, which he says provides one with emotional support and a lifeline to come to terms with one`s anger, fears besides empowering one to cope.
Sharing ideas and talking to someone who will give you emotional support is the most crucial step to coming to terms with and accepting your status, he adds.
Ngele admits that dealing with stress and reactions that come with knowing one is HIV positive is not easy but more manageable when one has someone trustworthy to share their problems with.
“Since discovering that I was HIV positive, I started eating a well-balanced diet everyday. I eat fruits both indigenous and wild (maungo a naga), green boiled vegetables as well as traditional food such as porridge and beans,” says Ngele.
WHAT PROMPTED HIM TO TEST?
Ngele who is from Borolong village in the Central District, found out he was HIV positive in 1993 while working for the Ministry of Agriculture at Ramatlabama village.
“It started with a feeling of discomfort and later I developed tumour-like skin warts or growths on the skin which were very painful and disturbing at the same time. The pain was so severe that it forced me to seek medical attention. I made several visits to the local clinic, received treatment but the growths kept on recurring until I decided to test for HIV,” recalls Ngele.
“It was at Ramatlabama Clinic where I took the first test and where I was given the news that changed my life forever - you have tested positive to HIV,” he remembers.
“Upon hearing the shocking news, my emotions boiled up. I got angry with myself and had some sleepless nights but deep down inside me there was a feeling of relief that at least now I knew the truth,” reckons Ngele.
At the time, recalls Ngele, Botswana despite being one of the countries hardest hit by the AIDS scourge, had not yet come up with a system of medical care that made it possible for patients living with HIV to know their viral loads or CD4 counts.
“You can imagine having been diagnosed with HIV and having to live without any medication and with the fear of not knowing what will happen next,” opines Ngele.
Then there was the burden of having to deal with social stigma. He was also subjected to discrimination by some who did not understand while others took him for granted. Others thought he was just trying to fool Batswana about his status.
“I needed immediate help which I got from the Ministry of Health`s AIDS/STD Unit where I received emotional support, guidance and continuous counseling,” he says.
It took him time to accept his status. The AIDS/STD Unit would later refer him to Botswana Red Cross Society where he met counsellors such as Cookie Seretse and Monki Morake who changed his life altogether.
“At the Red Cross Society, we formed support groups to enable people affected and infected with HIV share their feelings, emotional support and guidance,” recalls Ngele.
After meeting other HIV/AIDS activists from Zambia, Malawi and Zimbabwe during a conference in Mexico in 1993, Ngele decided to speak openly about his HIV status and gave support to those who found themselves in the same situation.
Between 1993 and 1998 Ngele would tour the whole country educating Batswana through kgotla meetings on the reality of HIV/AIDS in the country.
“As more people continued to get infected and died from the disease, I quit my job in 1999 and concentrated on HIV/AIDS issues, forming support groups throughout the country,” he recalls.
Meanwhile, his advice is that once diagnosed with HIV, “accept your status and stop blaming yourself and others as you will never know where you got the infection from”.
Notwithstanding, Ngele regrets that nowadays people seem not to care about HIV/AIDS. He says because of the availability of ARVs, some people have become more willing to take risks to engage in unprotected sex.
Nevertheless, Ngele wants to set up an organisation for HIV/AIDS survivors where they can share experiences, spread more information about HIV/ AIDS as well as give support to the families of those who died of the scourge. ENDS
Teaser:
"HIV is manageable but it depends on how you deal with it which can affect your long term mental approach to the disease," explains Ngele.
