The precious side of an HIV positive Precious

By Annastazia Ng’ambi

AS early as 14 years old, Precious Mwewa’s life made a complete turn-around, when she discovered that she was HIV positive in 2007.

She went into denial, dread and trauma for seven years and everyone seemed like an enemy to her.

But Precious’ life would take an even sharper turn in 2013 when she nearly lost her life, due to her deniability of her status.

So, she had to make up her mind and vowed to stand up to help those who are stigmatised because of their HIV positive status.

“I feel like a lot of people are still in denial about their HIV diagnosis. It gave me the desire to become an advocate and help individuals who find it difficult to accept their status and also help them live a positive life,” Precious says.

She agrees that even in her case, she did not easily accept to be on medication, upon learning her status.

Precious recalls that months would pass without her drinking her medicine.

In 2013, when Precious was preparing to sit for her examinations at college, she discerned that her end had dawned, as she started experiencing severe stomach pains and lost weight within a month.

That condition quickly pushed her into self-introspection.

What have I done to harm my life and myself? she would ask herself.

In no time, Precious visited a clinic, where her family suggested that she joins a support group that would, at least, be helpful.

That was the start of a new chapter in Precious’ life as she began to slowly accept her HIV status.

But how did Precious find herself in the condition that she is in, and probably who is she?

She is the third born in a family of five –two boys and three girls.

Precious initially lived in Chililabombwe, Copperbelt Province, before her family re-located to Lusaka.

It is in Lusaka that Herpes zoster, that is also known as shingles, first appeared on Precious when she was 14 years old.

This was the second time it had appeared on her, except it was severe this time.

Her mother took her to the clinic and imagined her daughter had developed an ordinary illness that would heal in no time.

A doctor sought permission to conduct an HIV test on Precious and there was no objection.

When results came out, Precious says she felt numb, hearing that she was positive.

“Death was one thought that kept coming to my mind. I didn’t think I would survive,” Precious shares.

Even when her mother and the doctor assured her that all would be okay, Precious could not buy such an assurance.

“I remember people holding my legs, hands and mouth when I first started taking the medications so that my father could force me to take the medicine,” she recalls, adding that the tablets were so big and that she resisted swallowing them.

“My father would break and dissolve them in water so that I could take them.”

Precious says after seven years of living with that condition, she decided to train herself to take care of herself and take medication.

She says she rejected to live a life filled with grief and denial.

She then began working as a volunteer at the same clinic where she used to get her medicines from.

As fate would have it, one day Precious saw a young girl coming out of the clinic, crying.

She remembered herself as a 14 year old crying at the same clinic.

“There was a 19 year old girl who came to the clinic, and she tested positive and she was crying uncontrollably,” Precious notes.

Precious gathered strength and went to talk to the crying girl.

“I knew if nobody talks to her, she will mess up like me and it hurts to turn back,” she says.

After a conversation with her, Precious says the girl accepted her HIV positive status and that she is now married to an HIV negative man and the couple has two HIV negative children.

That 19 year old girl, who is now a mother, became the first client in Precious’ advocacy career.

As a way to assist those who continue to be stimatised, on account of their HIV positive status, Precious began opening up about her situation.

“Helping people who are still in denial about their status became and remains my obsession. I constantly urge individuals to be open because no one can tell if they are suffering,” Precious explains.

“My mother has been the greatest influence in my life and I am a strong woman today because of her.”

Precious is glad that she established an association that supports those who are living with HIV.
She says she hates seeing young people who are HIV positive who are struggling to get by in life.

“I mentor them and it’s difficult for me to make them my friends because I believe that friends share everything, and I do not want to expose them to my weaker side,” Precious says.

In 2017, Precious met her true love, thanks to Facebook, and the two, who are both HIV positive, got to know each other, until they married in 2021.

They recently welcomed a baby girl who is HIV negative.
Precious describes the experience of being pregnant as emotional, since she worked at a facility that provides ARVs and that she saw children, as young as two years old, receiving them.

“I was nervous and emotional because I did not know if my unborn child would be positive or negative. But I’m thankful because, although my pregnancy wasn’t easy, I did everything I could to make sure the baby was born negative,” notes Precious.

Kalemba April 7, 2023