HIV INFECTION AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE EMOTIONS: ANGER AND ENERGY

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•    Anger and energy
•    Depression and hope
•    Fatigue and accommodation
•    Fear and realism
•    Guilt and self-worth
People’s reactions to HIV infection differ widely, but nearly everyone shares to some extent feelings of anger, depression, fatigue, fear, and guilt. These feelings are not stages; they come in no order. Some people notice more of one feeling at certain times, more of another at other times. Some people have several or all of the feelings at once. All the feelings are part of human nature. They are all reasonable reactions to HIV infection. They are also probably more or less unavoidable. This chapter describes the feelings, their causes, and the ways people have found to deal with them.
Anger and Energy-Lisa Pratt: My husband had a lot of anger, which he first directed at me. He criticized, lashed out, once threatened to kill me. At first he refused to use a condom. He said, “Why did some jerk donate blood and now I have to use a condom?” He’d beat his fist on the table.
Alan Madison: I am not particularly angry.
Some people, like Lisa Pratt’s husband, easily admit and express anger. Others, like Alan Madison, do not acknowledge it. In any case, everyone with HIV infection has reason to be angry.

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