HIV: The Facts LESSON 4-4

Bell Ringer  Get out Student Journal  Lesson 6 Journal Entry  Write 3 things you have heard or read about HIV or AIDS.  Ask & Discuss  What is a situation in which a person might do something risky because he or she didn’t know all the facts?  What could happen?  What might some of the negative consequences be?

Examples  Taking a dare and getting injured because the person didn’t know or didn’t think about what might happen.  Getting pregnant or getting someone pregnant because the person didn’t understand how a pregnancy happens.

What is HIV?  HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus  It’s the virus that causes AIDS – Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.  HIV lives in the semen, vaginal fluids, blood, and breast milk of a person with HIV.  It can be passed from one person to another through these infected fluids.  HIV damages the body’s immune system. Over time, the body can no longer fight off other diseases and infections.

HIV continued  Some people with HIV stay healthy a long time.  Medicines can help people stay healthy longer.  As HIV progresses, the person may get sick more often.  A person with HIV is diagnosed with AIDS when his or her immune system can no longer fight off certain kinds of diseases.  There is no cure for HIV, but there are ways to keep from getting it.

Activity- Workbook  Complete page 18 in Workbook – HIV Quiz: Fact or Myth  Let’s see how much you already know about HIV – not a grade…  Turn to page 19 in Workbook – read aloud as a class, individually, or with a partner  Work with a partner to go over the answers to Fact or Myth?  Change any answers based on what we just read  Review Quiz as a class (TE pg )

Transmitting HIV  HIV is passed through infected blood, semen, and vaginal fluids:  Sexual activity  Share needles to inject drugs or for other reasons  Can’t get HIV unless one of these infected fluids from someone who has HIV gets into your body.  Can be passed from a mother during pregnancy or after birth through breast milk.  Can take medicines to reduce the chances of it being passed to the baby.

It Is Safe To Be Friends!!!  People don’t get HIV from day-to-day contact  Touching  Hugging  Kissing  Drinking from the same glass  Can’t get it from toilet seats or mosquito bites.  Safe to be friends with someone who has HIV.

You can’t tell if someone has HIV  People with HIV may look and feel well for a long time.  They may not even know they have HIV.  Only way to know for sure is to get tested.  People with HIV may have flu-like symptoms when they’re first infected  Then they may not notice symptoms for years  As HIV slowly starts to damage more of the immune system, people may have fever, chills, a rash, sweating at night, achy muscles, a sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, and sores in the mouth.

Protecting Yourself  The best way to avoid sexual transmission of HIV is to be abstinent.  If a person chooses to have sex, they can stay safer if they have sex only with on lifetime partner who doesn’t have HIV or share needles and who has sex only with them.  Use latex or plastic condoms every time.  Never share needles with anyone for any reason.

Risk Cards  With your partner, look at your card:  Think about whether doing this behavior would put a person at risk of getting HIV.  Decide how much risk the behavior carries  TAPE your card where you think it belongs on the risk continuum on the board  NO RISK, LOW RISK, SOME RISK, or HIGH RISK  We will review as a class.  Key TE pg. 93

Activity Distribute a Risk Card and a piece of tape to each student or to pairs. NO RISK LOW RISKSOME RISKHIGH RISK

Summarize  The main thing to remember is that nay behavior that puts you in contract with another person’s blood, semen, or vaginal fluids carries a risk for HIV.  Abstinence – choosing not to have sex – and never sharing needles for any reason are the surest ways to avoid HIV.  Ask & Discuss:  Drinking alcohol or using other drugs isn’t a sexual activity. Why does drinking alcohol or using other drugs carry some risk for HIV?

Explain  Alcohol and other drug use lowers a person’s inhibitions and ability to make decisions.  People who are drunk or high are more likely to do things that could put them at risk for HIV, as well as other STD and unintended pregnancy.

Close  With a partner, list 3 things you learned in this lesson.  WB Pg