Positively Alive

Cyber infidelity has become very popular these days. People go online, not with the intention of cheating on their partner but because they discover a part of themselves that they never knew they had.

By chatting online, individuals rapidly get the impression that they know the person they’re talking to and trust them, and when it comes to meeting face to face, they let down their guard and it’s more likely to have unprotected sex.

On today’s episode, Marlene and I have an interesting talk about relationships, sexual health, domestic violence, cyber infidelity trends and the impact they all have on the HIV epidemic.

Marlene Wasserman, also known as Dr. Eve, is a couples and sex therapist, clinical sexologist and sexual medicine consultant in private practice, specialized in cyber infidelity and intimacy trauma. As the founder of Dr. Eve, 25 years ago, a South African household brand representing professionalism, pleasure, respect, and responsibility, she began to pioneer sexual health and the right education, information and counseling in South Africa and throughout the African continent.

Marlene is considered to be a highly influential woman in Africa, a place where women need female role models to talk about sexuality and sexual health. She represents South Africa and Africa on different international forums showing incredible devotion to ensure that sexual rights and health for all, are met.

So, don’t miss Episode 06 of Positively Alive, to listen to Marlene’s fascinating views as an outspoken activist for women’s rights in South Africa and on the African continent.

Questions I ask:

• Could you please elaborate a little bit on the nature of your profession, and how that translates into daily practice? (03:35)
• Are there any patterns that you have noticed when it comes to people's online sexual and relational behavior and their relationship to technology? (05:42)
• What does Cyber Infidelity really mean to you? (09:35)
• Is there any relationship between cyber infidelity and HIV? (11:00)
• Do you consider yourself a role model? And what are the main challenges right now, when it comes to the position of women in South Africa and in Africa in general? (25:07)
• What does the future hold for you, Marlene? What is it that you envision for yourself and perhaps for the work that you're trying to accomplish? (28:37)

In this episode, you will learn:

• The meaning of hyperpersonal communication, in relationship with the online space. (11:19)
• Marlene’s opinion on the fact that HIV and stigma is an epidemic of shame and silence. (13:27)
• One of the drivers of HIV in South Africa is sexual violence. (15:39)
• The suggestions Marlene made to the Department of Education and how were they received. (18:03)
• The meaning of Medical Legal Work and what Marlene does as an expert in this field. (29:45)

Connect with Marlene:

• Website
• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Instagram

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South Africa became the first jurisdiction in the world to protect the LGBT community.

Right now, around 50% of the population of South Africa thinks that homosexuality should be accepted and even a bigger proportion, accept and believe that it should be protected by the constitution.

On today’s episode, I have an interesting discussion with Judge Cameron, one of the few leaders that had the courage to step up and admit publicly that he is a gay man, living with HIV and who, through his efforts and dedication, helps to change the future of the LGBT community.

Edwin Cameron is a retired judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa. Edwin is openly gay and HIV positive, living with the virus since 1985, a period in which anti-retroviral medicine was not accessible to the less endowed in society. Edwin's realization that he owed his life to his relative wealth, caused him to become a prominent HIV and AIDS activist in post-apartheid South Africa. Since disclosing that he was HIV positive, in 1999, Judge Cameron remains the only senior South African official to have stated publicly that he is living with HIV.

He co-founded the AIDS Consortium, which he chaired for the first three years. He was the first director of the AIDS Law Project and co-drafted the Charter of Rights on AIDS and HIV. He also advised the National Union of Mineworkers on HIV and AIDS and was involved in drafting the first comprehensive AIDS agreement for the industry, with the Chamber of Mines.

Throughout his career, Edwin Cameron has been named a Legal Giant, recognized for his brilliance, commitment to human rights and social justice and his HIV and AIDS activism. He has received numerous awards, notably Transnet's HIV/AIDS Champions Award in 2000, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation's Excellence in Leadership Award in 2003, Prize for Civil Courage of German Gay and Lesbian Movement in 2007, winner of Brudner Prize, Yale University for Gay and Lesbians scholarship in 2009, among many others.

So, listen to Episode 5 of Positively Alive, to learn about one of the most courageous leaders in South Africa, about his experiences, his activism work, his opinions on stigma and criminalization and his future projects.

Questions I ask:

• Could you elaborate a little bit on your journey as a gay man in South Africa and also, what it has been for you to open up as a public official? (04:06)
• Why do you think it's so difficult for others to follow in your footsteps? (11:15)
• In South Africa, how would you evaluate the Government's response to this epidemic? (14:24)
• Do you believe that at some point in South Africa, HIV testing will become as natural as relicensing your car or renewing your driver's license? (19:20)
• What role can you play as judges, to make sure that injustice, irrationality, fear, and ignorance do not triumph? (24:12)
• Looking back, what would you describe as your major accomplishment? (26:54)

In this episode, you will learn:

• Judge Cameron’s opinion on complacency - the biggest threat to ending the war against HIV. (09:04)
• Who Judge Cameron considers being the demographic that HIV/AIDS campaigns should target to educate. (17:07)
• Judge Cameron’s experience and feelings when he went public about being a gay person living with HIV. (20:13)
• The statistics on criminalization based on sexual orientation. (21:34)
• The impact of U=U (Undetectable is Untransmittable) in South Africa. (26:06)
• The future projects that Judge Cameron is working on. (27:38)

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The greatest enemies to HIV campaigns are the communities. Folks like to keep people with HIV stigmatized and at risk because they think it’s the safest thing to do. They think it’s safer to put the separation between HIV positive and HIV negative people because then you won’t have any transmissions.

 We know that the sense of community and the sense of connectedness is essential to address mental health issues, to help people get engaged in care, to find the services that they need, because so many people at a local level, don't have that kind of support.

And that’s what Bruce is trying to change through Undetectable is Untransmittable (U=U) campaign - he is trying to help people living with HIV and people at risk of contracting HIV understand that there is zero risk of contracting HIV when someone has an undetectable viral load.

On today’s episode, I have an amazing interaction with the person who has been the driving force behind getting the message of probably one of the most significant medical breakthroughs in recent history known to as many people as possible, around the world.

Bruce Richman is the Founding Executive Director of PAC and the "Undetectable = Untransmittable  (U=U)" campaign (#UequalsU). He has worked in global philanthropy for over two decades developing foundations, cause-marketing and grantmaking programs, social marketing campaigns, and interventions on a range of issues including HIV stigma and prevention, sustainable development, childhood obesity, violence prevention, and gang intervention.

Diagnosed with HIV in 2003, Bruce learned in 2012 that his undetectable viral load meant he could not transmit HIV. He committed to sharing this life-changing information in the hope that people with HIV and their partners will live healthy sexual and reproductive lives free of fear and stigma.  He received his Ed.M. in Administration, Planning & Social Policy from Harvard Graduate School of Education and his J.D. from Harvard Law School.

So, listen to Episode 4 of Positively Alive to learn how the U=U campaign started, how it can help people and what are the next steps in eliminating stigma.

Questions I ask:

• Could you walk us a little bit through the beginning days, when you got infected and how you eventually became the activist you are today? (03:54)
• Where do you think that reluctance of adopting the U=U message comes from, especially in the US? (10:15)
• You have high hopes for the US but U=U also means a turning point for countries for HIV prevalence is very high. What challenges do you see in this regard? (21:41)
• Considering the profound advances in the HIV treatment and medicine, many of us are wondering why so many members of our community still struggle with viral suppression. What is your take on this? (22:51)
• Do you think that is a looming danger, in the U=U message that is going to stigmatize the people that have not yet reached the viral suppression? (29:30)

In this episode, you will learn:

• About the Swiss study. (06:18)
• Why the community is the biggest enemy of HIV positive people. (13:53)
• Examples of leaders that had the courage to step up. (20:45)
• The reasons why AIDS Incorporated has to be dismantled in the US. (28:17)
• How Bruce describes stigma in the US. (34:28)

Connect with Bruce:

• LinkedIn
• Prevention Access Campaign (PAC)
• Instagram
• Twitter
• Facebook

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Disclosing your status is something very personal but the best way of controlling HIV is to be open about it and to encourage people to take effective treatment. By sharing your story you give hope to others in your situation and at the same time, it’s such a liberation to be able to free yourself of that burden.

A lot of progress has been made with HIV and AIDS over the past 30-40 years but we still have to deal with discrimination and stigma and we are still years away from eradicating this virus. How much time it will take, depends on all of us, both the people with HIV and also those without it. By joining forces we will be able to see it gone.

On today’s episode, Lloyd and I are discussing the benefits of sharing your health status with the people around you and also how HIV is now viewed in the UK.

Lloyd Russell-Moyle is a young, dynamic and passionate politician from the UK, who was elected to Parliament in 2017. On November 2018, with the occasion of the 30th World AIDS Day, he has revealed, in Parliament, that he had been diagnosed as HIV Positive a decade earlier. He said he wanted to tackle the stigma still associated with the condition, and stated, “I have not only survived, but I have prospered and any partner that I had is safe and protected”.

He says that it is important just to be who you are, so don’t miss Episode 03 of Positively Alive, to learn about the LGBT community in the UK and also about how we can live a healthy and happy life as a person living with HIV.

Questions I ask:

• As a gay man growing up in the UK, could you please elaborate a little bit on your journey and what that's been for you? (03:32)
• What do you consider to be the main pain points and impediments in the UK when it comes to HIV and AIDS and what are your suggestions to best tackle them? (12:17)
• What has led to your decision to disclose your status and why now, after 10 years since you've been diagnosed? (20:13)
• Working within the UK Parliament, would you say HIV is still a taboo topic or would you say people openly discuss it? (23:51)
• Do you expect, with the fact that you've stepped forward, that other people are going to follow in your footsteps? (25:52)
• What is your view on self-stigma? Have you had to deal with it? (30:05)

In this episode, you will learn:

• About the damages done by the HIV awareness campaigns in the 1980s, although at that time, they were the right choice. (14:07)
• The reasons why there’s a pullback on money allocated for researching and curing HIV. (17:24)
• The directions in which the money should go in the fight against HIV in this day and age. (18:30)
• How Lloyd reacted when he was told he was HIV positive and how he had come to grips with that new reality. (27:14)
• Lloyd’s advice for the people that are still discriminating HIV positive individuals. (32:46)
• Lloyd’s advice for people living with HIV. (33:30)

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One of the biggest problems today, with being an HIV positive person is not the actual virus, but the stigma that surrounds it. People in some population groups avoid getting tested because they are afraid of being exposed, stigmatized and pointed fingers at. Stigma is also one of the drivers for mental health issues like depression and anxiety.

Dr. Alison Rodger believes that destigmatizing HIV is one of the most important issues that need to be tackled by scientists and people all over the world because stigma and discrimination are really the reason why we’re seeing so late diagnosis. 

On today’s episode, we’re discussing the studies that Alison was involved in, what the results of those studies mean for the people with HIV, and what are the next steps that should be taken, for reducing the percentage of undiagnosed individuals.

Dr. Alison Rodger is a professor of Infectious Diseases at the University College of London and a consultant in Infectious Diseases and HIV at the Royal Free Hospital in London. Her research interests include reducing rates of a new HIV infection, HIV self-testing, assessing the cost-effectiveness of HIV prevention and improving the long term health of people with HIV. She was the lead author of the Partner HIV Transmission studies that revealed with conclusive evidence that people with HIV on treatment and with an undetectable viral load cannot, under no condition, transmit the virus. Her findings are widely considered as one of the most significant medical breakthroughs of the 21st century.

So, don’t miss out, Episode 02 of Positively Alive!

Questions I ask:

• A lot of stigma is driven by the fear of being exposed. How hopeful are you that your findings will actually help to transform public opinion and bring those attitudes somewhere in line with medical evidence? (07:14)
• How feasible is it really to get people who are on HIV treatment, really undetectable, like 100%? Is that something feasible? (14:03)
• What is your opinion on funding? Are you fearful? And what is your message to international donors? (17:51)
• Now that your studies have been published, what is your focus for the future and where do you think the research in regards to HIV and Aids should be focused on? (21:38)
• Your last message for people living with HIV, Alison? (22:25)

In this episode, you will learn:

• About the findings in the Partner II study and how the researchers got to these results. (04:02)
• Alison’s opinion on PREP as a preventive strategy. (09:39)
• About an Australian study, regarding PREP. (11:25)
• How the UNAIDS reports in 2018 are seen within the context of the UK. (16:19)
• Why the percentage of women transmitting HIV to men is lower than vice versa. (20:15)

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Looking back at the early stages of HIV and AIDS, there is no doubt that enormous progress has been made. HIV is not a death sentence anymore and people living with HIV can live a similar life to people who don't have HIV. Despite its progress, experts are warning that there is a danger of backsliding, due to what they call, “Complacency” and “an overemphasis on treatment at the expense of prevention.”

On today’s episode, my guest, Peter Piot, discusses the reality of HIV and what the future brings.

Peter Piot is a world-renowned Belgian microbiologist, known for his research into Ebola and AIDS. After helping discover the Ebola virus in 1976 and leading efforts to contain the first-ever recorded Ebola epidemic that same year, Peter Piot became a pioneering researcher into AIDS. He was the founding Executive Director of UNAIDS, and Under Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1995 until 2008. Under his leadership, UNAIDS became the chief advocate for worldwide action against AIDS, spearheading UN reform by bringing together 10 UN system organizations. During his career, professor Piot has received numerous awards for his contributions to global health, including the Bloomberg Hopkins 100 Award, the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize, the Prince Mahidol Award for Public Health and the Canada Gairdner Global Health Award. He was the 2014 Time - Person of the Year, and has published more than 550 scientific articles, and 17 books, including his memoirs, "No Time to Lose: A Life in Pursuit of Deadly Viruses.” Peter Piot has made huge contributions to HIV and AIDS research and played a leading role in the global response to the AIDS epidemic, especially in Africa. Today he's the director of the world-renowned London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

So, listen to Episode 01 of Positively Alive, to find out how far are we from a functional cure, what are the problems with funding the HIV and also, Peter’s opinion on stigma.

Questions I ask:

• What is your view on the complacency and overemphasis on treatment at the expense of prevention? (03:19)
• Do you believe that people tend to forget that HIV will be with us for generations to come? (05:17)
• How far are we really from a functional cure and a vaccine against HIV? (09:15)
• How has AIDS been a catalyst for the rise of global health as a multi-disciplinary field of study and practice? (18:24)
• What would you describe as your major accomplishments at the helm of UNAIDS? (26:53)
• What is the role that UNAIDS will play in the near future? (28:44)
• Given the enormity of what you have accomplished, is there really anything that you could have done differently? (32:12)

In this episode, you will learn:

• How realistic it is to get everybody on treatment. (06:43)
• What PREP is and how efficient it is. (08:20)
• The 90-90-90 objective. (13:02)
• The trouble with funding for HIV. (15:24)
• HIV and stigma– the paradox between the fact that progress has been made with HIV but the depression and anxiety rates are still growing. (21:46)
• The importance of the studies that show that undetectable is untransmittable. (24:57)

Resources mentioned:

• Book: No Time to Lose: A Life in Pursuit of Deadly Viruses
• UNAIDS website

Studies mentioned:

• Opposites attract
• Partner 1
• Partner 2

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