Can HIV-positive women become mothers?

Yes, and HIV treatment makes this much safer.

Women around the world have safely used antiretroviral (ARV) drugs in pregnancy now for over 15 years. Currently this usually involves taking at least three anti-HIV drugs, a strategy called combination therapy or HAART.

These treatments have completely changed the lives of people with HIV in every country where they are used.

Treatment has had an enormous effect on the health of HIV positive mothers and their children. It has encouraged many women to think about having children (or having children again).

Your HIV treatment will protect your baby

The benefits of treatment are not just to your own health. Treating your own HIV will reduce the risk of your baby becoming HIV positive to almost zero.

Without treatment, about 25 percent of babies born to HIV positive women will be born HIV positive. One in four is not good odds, though, especially because modern HIV treatment can almost completely prevent transmission.

I’ve often said that having an HIV diagnosis does not change who you are. Like many young women I had always wanted to be a mother. In some way, having a positive diagnosis made me think about it even more.

I had my baby five years after I was diagnosed. That was way back in 1998. I guess I was lucky in a lot of ways because by the time I made the decision to have a baby I’d had a lot of peer support, information and met a lot of other HIV positive women, who also had either been diagnosed antenatally, or had children after their diagnosis.

One of the most difficult things during and after my pregnancy was the uncertainty about whether – even taking up all the interventions that were available to me – my baby would be born HIV-negative.

I cannot describe my feelings when I finally got the all clear for my beautiful baby. All the worry, fear and uncertainty were definitely worth the wait!

Angelina, London