Assignment Task:
Annika is a 26-year-old single woman whose mother, Jane, recently died of complications from HIV/AIDS. Jane became infected with the HIV virus as a drug user in her 20s. When she became pregnant with Annika, she quit using drugs and discovered she was HIV positive. Annika was not infected with the virus, but feels that her whole life has been defined by her mother's health and sobriety struggles. Jane was a single mother with few resources, and Annika feels that she was often more caretaker than child. As an adult, she cared for her mother during health relapses. Expensive combination therapy using antiretroviral drugs kept Jane in remission for nearly 10 years, after which AIDS became a chronic illness. Annika misses her mother and is also extremely angry with her. Jane, hoping for a cure, tried treatment after treatment, but made no end-of-life plans. Adding to Annika's stress levels, though a number of Annika's friends are aware of the cause of her mother's death, most of her coworkers and Jane's believe that Jane died of pneumonia. Annika feels guilty about the lie but fears the stigma of the disease. She and her mother encountered prejudice numerous times over the years from people who feared catching HIV from them. Want Online Help?