i am hiv postive.how long will it take for...

[Daniel K]

...me to get sick if i do everything right?

[Skittles]

You may not get sickif you follow doctors orders and do everything correctly.Good luck to you and stay well.

[drjrumley]

Honestly there is no way to know when your Tcell pop will be overcome by HIV. As a rainbow of hope there are observed and proven cases of people beating HIV so don't give up. Take your meds and pray because you never know what will happen in your life.

[blondone]

I know two men who have had it for 12 years and they're doing fine. Take care of yourself, do what every one says and you will live a very long time. Be aware that if you have unprotected sex with some one who is also HIV, your HIV can become worse--a whole different strain, so be careful.Get some support and into a network, then you'll have many people to talk to who are going through the same thing and many people who have been living with the disease for years. HIV is NOT a death sentence any more. Don't give into your fears. Stay positive.

[Roc]

i know someone that was infected for almost 20 yrs and only had mild symptoms. you can live a long life with little to no symptoms if you take care of yourself. magic johnson is a great example of that. take care of yourself and be good to yourself and others.

[kimmibeanz]

with to days antiretrovirals it could be 25 plus years, I would also recommend strickly adhearing to those medications.

[emt_me911]

You may never get sick. Thanks to newer and better medications, people are going MUCH longer before developing full blown AIDS. They are staying healthy much longer and living active, productive lives. There is no promise you will not get sick. It depends on many factors. However, if you take your medication exactly as you are supposed to (not missing a single dose), eat right, exercise and so on, your chances of staying healthy are much better.HIV is not the death sentence it once was. Of course, AIDS is ultimately fatal. However, we ALL die...we just don't know of what or how. Just because you are HIV positive, that doesn't mean you are going to die a long, horrible, drawn-out death from AIDS. You could die in a car accident...or fall off a bridge...have a heart attack...have a stroke...or just die of natural causes when you're 80 years old. My point is, no one knows except that we all know we will die someday. Do your best to stay healthy and follow your doctor's instructions. Don't dwell on the HIV. Keep a positive attitude. Good luck.EMT