Myths and misconceptions

We have made it to the end of our first week in Kenya and what an amazing time it has been.

3546 children coached

12 schools visited

1 festival with 5 schools and 150 children attending.

Hundreds of HIV question cards shared with the children and many HIV quizzes completed with both children and teachers.

Soon after we arrived in Kenya we took the decision to allocate one of the team to roam around schools talking to children and teachers about HIV and gender inequality and also to get them to participate in the phone based HIV quiz. 

We knew that there were many myths and misconceptions surrounding HIV in Africa and Kenya is no different but we were keen to know if things had changed much since we were last here before COVID.

One of the enduring myths is that you can get HIV from kissing and while taking the quiz many children, some adults and even a head teacher thought this was correct, they term it as “deep kissing” which I understand means the use of the tongue and not just lips. They are all very surprised when the answer is no and some even say they are taught this in school, a case of educating the educators.

At one school I was talking to a couple of teachers about what CWB does and asked them if they would like to take the HIV quiz. They answered all of the questions correctly which was great and then the conversation evolved with the teachers asking me other HIV questions and also telling me of experiences they had come across, all of which confirm the need for greater education, and the breaking down of the stigma attached to HIV.

A person from the local village had contracted HIV and was convinced that a whole body blood transfusion would cure them of HIV and they were going to try to get this done, unaware that this is a myth about HIV.

The teacher then told me about a child who had the HIV virus and both parents had recently died of AIDS, she asked what would happen to the child. Would the village exclude the child through fear of contracting HIV, would the close family care for the child or would they refuse, also from fear of HIV or being excluded from the village if they did so, family bonds being tested to the limits. The child may be taken to an orphanage and cared for there, breaking the family bond and leading to a life of uncertainty. All questions that are far too common across sub Saharan Africa.

One story touched me deeply about a girl who had HIV from birth and was diagnosed with HIV as a teenager. She was put on a course of anti-virals which helped to reduce the HIV and all was going well. However as time passed more people came to know of her status and she started to be excluded from friendship groups and activities. This brought on anxiety, stress and depression she questioned her parents as to why this had happened to her, she had always been a good girl, had never slept with anyone or shared needles, why was she being punished. Seeing no future or way forward for herself she made the conscious decision to stop taking her anti-virals and tragically her condition worsened over a period of time and she died. This case could so easily have had a different outcome with more care, compassion, education and less stigma.

At another school we visited we talked with Secondary age children. We set up 2 specific HIV stations and we had some amazing questions and conversations. How to put on a condom, how many times can you use a condom, what do you do if a condom splits, can you get HIV from sharing underwear, if I miss my medication for one day will my HIV come back straight away. All great questions which we discussed openly helping to break down some so the stigma surrounding HIV.

The last few days have reinforced why we come to Kenya, to help young people stay safe, bust myths and misconceptions, talk or just listen confidentially to young people about their fears and prejudices and give advice if asked for. 

As we were leaving the last school a group of older, sexually active teenage boys, full of bravado, were saying that they “would rather die than pay for HIV medication”. This was the last myth we busted before we left. Anti virals are free in Kenya, readily available from government hospitals, as are condoms, so go get some and don’t be embarrassed to do so as a few minutes of embarrassment is nothing compared with a lifetime of living with HIV.

Nick