[ggman]

Hey everyone--

I posted this earler today on the international adoption board, but it was suggested that I post over here too...

I am curious if anyone has adopted a child with HIV or if they are open to that.

Any feedback is welcomed... Thanks.

[kalz0202]

Here is an informative link:

How to Adopt an HIV+ Child | eHow.com

[JenC]

We are open to it if a situation where a baby born to an HIV+ mother would come open, although it's rare domestically. I'll PM you a blog of a mom with HIV+ kids. I've learned everything I know from her!

Also, if anyone here has HIV+ kiddos, they may not wish to say so here on the boards. There's still a HUGE stigma about HIV. Legally, you don't have to reveal status to anyone - daycare, school, etc. People have asked me if Josh is HIV+ since he was born in Africa - I do not reveal medical info to nosy people!

This is from the blog I mentioned:

What you should know about HIV

*
- HIV can NOT be spread through casual/household contact. HIV is not spread through hugging, kissing, shaking hands, sharing toys, sneezing, coughing, sharing food, sharing drinks, bathing, swimming or any other casual way. It has been proven that HIV and AIDS can only be spread through sexual contact, birth, breastfeeding and blood to blood contact (such as sharing needles).
*
- HIV is now considered a chronic but manageable disease. With treatment, people who are HIV+ can live indefinitely without developing AIDS and can live long and full lives.
*
- People who are HIV+ deserve to be treated with love, respect, support and acceptance as all people do. If anyone wants more info on transmission, there is great info on the Center for Disease Control website at HIV and Its Transmission | Factsheets | CDC HIV/AIDS

[SupaModel]

I worked as an outreach worker, education and case manager at the AIDS project in my hometown. I also was a test site (HIV) counselor for UCSF.

This is somthing that hits very close to home for me because a family member is HIV+. I personally would not be open to it BUT I also wasn't open to any medical issues. After years of working in that enviorment it's just too emotional for me.

Good luck! I hope you find the info your looking for.

[gwenrenee007]

If we could do an Ethiopian adoption we would be open to it. I have read a few blogs of parent's who have adopted from Haiti or Ethiopia and have HIV+ children and their lives are pretty "normal". I read somewhere that HIV+ children usually only go to the doctor a few more times a year than a child who is hiv-. Mostly it is about managing their medication.

I saw on an agency website a 5 yr old girl (both parent's passed away from HIV) from Ethiopia who is HIV+ and the village she lives in won't allow her to go to school, breaks my heart, I really wish we could adopt her! I also believe the agency waives most of the fees.

I think I have info on an agency who will waive A LOT of the adoption fees for a child over 2, who is HIV+ and adopted from Ethiopia. You only have to pay for travel a homestudy, USCIS fees, and I think that is about it. Email me if you want the info.

Good luck!

[Kat-L]

I was offered a foster/adopt child with HIV. Mom didn't have any prenatal care and hadn't been taking her own medication. They were sure the baby would remain HIV positive. I turned down the situation. I couldn't live with the reality of burying my child. I know medical advances are occuring in leaps & bounds but there is no cure for AIDS.

[mommamarci]

My dh and I are not on the same page on this one. I am open to it, he is unsure. He feels as Kat-L does. I think if we got offered a foster placement, he would be okay with it. And by the time the child possibly became adoptable, I am sure he would be okay with that as well because by then he would be in love!

Unfortunately I have learned from issues faced with my son that we just never know what life will throw at us. His life expectancy is uncertain. And while that scared the pants off me at first and I wanted to run away, I realized even if we only have him for a few years, he has enriched our lives so much. We did not know at his birth that he had these issues. So, 2 years later when we found out, did we stop loving him? No.

There are no guarantees in life. I could walk outside and get run over my a car today. I would not be open to a condition that guarantees a VERY short life expectancy, but people can live with HIV for many, many years.

[JenC]

No, there isn't a cure for HIV yet (and there's a difference between HIV and AIDS), but when HIV+ people take their ARV's as they should, their viral load goes way down (nearly undectable or undectable) and they are able to live normal lives with a normal life expectancy.

[sugarandspice697]

With my daughter I didn't have to option of being open to HIV+ children. In domestic adoption, these situations are extremely rare and most of the HIV+ mothers do not pass it on to their children because of the advanced medical system we have. If I were to adopt internationally I would consider and HIV+ positive (and even HEP. A, B or C) because these special needs are not a death sentence.

Besides Africa, you can also adopt HIV positive children from southeast Asian and Eastern European countries. I have been to these countries many times and in Cambodia the AIDS crisis is almost a huge as the one in Africa. But its ashame the media doesn't talk about it that often though... There are also children with Hepatitis in Asian countries too. There needs are very similar to HIV+ children.

[sbaglio]

No, there isn't a cure for HIV yet (and there's a difference between HIV and AIDS), but when HIV+ people take their ARV's as they should, their viral load goes way down (nearly undectable or undectable) and they are able to live normal lives with a normal life expectancy.

I think you're absolutely correct, with one caveat. HIV has only been around now (in the present form that affects humans) for nearly 30 years. Effective antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has been available for almost 2 decades. We don't yet know if people with HIV will have a normal life expectancy, as we haven't dealt effectively with properly managed HIV for long enough.

It's a perfectly acceptable assumption that we all make, but who knows what the effects of the treatment are after 30 or 40 years? How the virus will evolve in the longterm, if there will be an effective vaccine...In addition, the effects of HAART on children, in the longterm, are still largely unknown. Much of the data regarding HIV drugs comes from adult studies, and is extrapolated to children, which is never optimal.

Based on what we know now, however, I agree that one can expect that a child who has HIV and is on effective HAART, will live a fairly normal life.