I Gave My Husband H.I.V. And Watched Him Die By Stephanie Van Niekerk
“What is my name? I’ll tell you later.” That’s how Stephanie Van Niekerk opened her life changing story of living as a lesbian with H.I.V. Born on July 8, 1975, to two parents and an older brother. At an early age, Stephanie felt different from other girls growing up. She often wore boys clothes, played with her brother's toys, and would get into things in her father's garage. For Stephanie, life couldn’t be any better. She was happy and so was the family until a tragic event that altered their family forever.
One day her father decided to visit their grandfather for a week and rode up on his bike. The day after, on her …show more content…
After being released from the hospital, she and her friend moved into an apartment where she met her future husband, the grandson of her landlord. A few years into the marriage her husband was diagnosed with cancer. After manny failed attempts of surgery and chemo, it was discovered that what was preventing the treatment from working was the fact he was HIV positive.
She was encouraged to get tested and was found also to be positive. They began taking medication and for some time things were good. Eventually, cancer consumed him. On his death bed, he told her to live true to herself and fall in love with a woman and be happy. Following his death, she fell into a deep depression, struggled with health issues, the loss of her mother and bad relationships. At the end of a relationship, she was taken in by a friend she had formed a bond with through an internet chat site. They fell in love quickly and soon after were engaged and then
“What is my name? I’ll tell you later.” That’s how Stephanie Van Niekerk opened her life changing story of living as a lesbian with H.I.V. Born on July 8, 1975, to two parents and an older brother. At an early age, Stephanie felt different from other girls growing up. She often wore boys clothes, played with her brother's toys, and would get into things in her father's garage. For Stephanie, life couldn’t be any better. She was happy and so was the family until a tragic event that altered their family forever.
One day her father decided to visit their grandfather for a week and rode up on his bike. The day after, on her …show more content…
After being released from the hospital, she and her friend moved into an apartment where she met her future husband, the grandson of her landlord. A few years into the marriage her husband was diagnosed with cancer. After manny failed attempts of surgery and chemo, it was discovered that what was preventing the treatment from working was the fact he was HIV positive.
She was encouraged to get tested and was found also to be positive. They began taking medication and for some time things were good. Eventually, cancer consumed him. On his death bed, he told her to live true to herself and fall in love with a woman and be happy. Following his death, she fell into a deep depression, struggled with health issues, the loss of her mother and bad relationships. At the end of a relationship, she was taken in by a friend she had formed a bond with through an internet chat site. They fell in love quickly and soon after were engaged and then