title: Infected Lives: Lived Experiences of Young African American HIV-Positive Women.
abstract: This hermeneutic phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of young African American HIV-infected women. Eleven women between the ages of 21 and 35 participated. One pattern, Infected Lives, and three themes--Living Alone With HIV, Living With Unresolved Conflicts, and Living With Multiple Layers of Betrayal--emerged. The pattern and themes portray the very complex and challenging experiences faced by these young women living with HIV infection. They have experienced isolation, abandonment, betrayal, and discrimination in their interpersonal and social systems. They often dealt with conflicts of hope and anguish in the relationships with their children, and portraying strength, while feeling fragile. These complexities negatively influence the ability to fully engage in self-care activities. Implications for future research include further investigation about the experiences of psychological distress experienced post-diagnosis, development and evaluation of holistic nursing interventions, and evaluative research on mass media educational campaigns to reduce HIV-related stigma.
authors.affiliation: University of Kansas School of Nursing, Kansas City, USA jpeltzer2@kumc.edu.
authors.forename: Jill N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Peltzer
authors.affiliation: University of Kansas School of Nursing, Kansas City, USA.
authors.forename: Elaine W
authors.initials: EW
authors.lastname: Domian
authors.affiliation: University of Kansas School of Nursing, Kansas City, USA.
authors.forename: Cynthia S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Teel
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005195:Family Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology; D066297:Hermeneutics; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012648:Self Care; D013240:Stereotyping; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: African Americans; HIV/AIDS; interpretive methods; lived experience; women’s health