At the age of 24, Halima has become a mentor to young mothers at the Isiolo GK Prison Dispensary, where many of our support group members get their medications.
When Halima was just 13 years old, she married into a polygamous family, and at 16, she learned that she and the second of her four children were HIV-positive.
Halima says that when they tested positive, “I felt that was the end of the world for me.”
However, she and her daughter started on antiretrovirals (ARVs) immediately and began counseling. She learned that if she adhered to her medication well, she could live a long life and go on to have HIV-negative babies in the future.
Two years ago, when she was picking up her medication at the dispensary, she met Cathrine Gaiti, a Kiunga support group leader. Cathrine encouraged Halima to join Bethsaida support group.
“When I went to the group, the first thing I noticed was that these people didn’t look like me,” says Halima. “They looked very happy and excited with life. I didn’t believe they were living with HIV like me.”
This was the turning point for Halima. The stigma and bitterness within her ended once she joined the group and found love and compassion from others who could identify with her experience.
And, because of her experience of learning her HIV status at such a young age, Halima is now a mentor at Isiolo GK Prison Dispensary. When other young mothers test HIV-positive, they are referred to Halima for emotional support. Each week, she sits with young mothers who have just tested positive to share her story, to talk them through their options, both medical and personal, and to counsel them as they face the same tough decisions she had to make.
Halima has turned her story into one of great hope.