Epidemic, Pandemic, and an Outbreak

By Steven Campa

2 min read

I am not sure if any of you feel this way, but I know I absolutely do. It seems like there are so many things going on in the world and just when you think things get better, something else gets thrown our way.

HIV has been and continues to be an epidemic, and we hope that ending it is within our reach. Fast forward to now, we are continuously dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and just when many mandates are lifted, we see a rise in numbers again. To top it all off we are now seeing outbreaks of Monkeypox within the community.

An ignored HIV epidemic

The HIV epidemic is something that we are constantly dealing with. In my opinion, many people stopped thinking about HIV when the pandemic of COVID-19 started.

A lot of it was individuals were not having much sexual activity, so they felt that they did not need to test for HIV. There were also people who did not stop having sex throughout the pandemic.

Many of these individuals were afraid to go into organizations or clinics to receive an HIV test because of the pandemic and the fear of being close to people or in a public setting. If people did not get tested, then that meant that they also did not know their status.

COVID-19 and mask-wearing

We have all noticed that many people are tired of mask-wearing despite the benefits it brings to controlling the spread of COVID-19.

I have seen many places remove the mask mandate and stop from social distancing. I currently work in a public health setting, and we have continued to abide by mask-wearing and social distancing, I feel that for many people this has become a community norm and a way of life.

There have been discussions within the last few weeks about a possible mask-wearing mandate occurring once again in Los Angeles, California. This mandate would once again enforce individuals to wear masks while indoors.

Even though COVID-19 is still among us we now have monkeypox to worry about.

We finally gained the confidence again to gather in large settings and we now have another outbreak that must be on our minds. The thing that does scare me is that it is affecting people within my own community.

Current Monkeypox outbreaks

The current global outbreaks have been seen among gay, bisexual, or other men who have sex with men. The cases of Monkeypox are rising in California and many individuals that I know personally are afraid to social gather again.

There have now been images of what Monkeypox can do to people and how painful the lesions are. This outbreak is frightening because it can occur from skin-to-skin contact and does not only have to be from sexual activity.

At the end of the day, we need to work together as a community. A community that cares about the health of themselves and others. A community that pushes to end the HIV epidemic, stop the spread of COVID-19 and eradicate the outbreak of Monkeypox.

This article represents the opinions, thoughts, and experiences of the author; none of this content has been paid for by any advertiser. The H-I-V.net team does not recommend or endorse any products or treatments discussed herein. Learn more about how we maintain editorial integrity here.

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AngelatLee54 Member
Being someone that has been living with the diagnosis of HIV 38 years.. 😳 and now the world faces a more deadlier stronger opponent such as COVID 19 😟 once again... I feel HIV and its cure takes a back seat. 😔 I mean I do understand that COVID poses more of a threat to human life and its existence then HIV. 😟Nevertheless the intelligence of HIV still needs to be addressed because it's still here and it's still infecting and affecting lives 😔 like you... I wonder what other type of infection could come on board and take precedence over HIV 🤔and COVID-19 such as monkeypox. 😲 I have felt like you...,😳we need to continue to remind these researchers that the need for a cure for HIV is still necessary 😳and I pray that it will not take another 38 years for that cure to exist for every man woman and child who has been infected and affected with HIV 😇😟 thank you 😃
1. Heather Renee Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="AngelatLee58" user-id="2045775"/> You have a very valid point. While the advances in treatment have come a long way, we are still waiting on some sort of advancement in terms of a cure. I have seen occasional accidental cure-like situations in one person. We definitely need to continue to remind researchers that we are still here and are not going anywhere. - Heather R (team member)
Davina Conner Contributor
<inline-mention username="Steven Campa" user-id="2048109"/> You gave some incredibly good insight into pandemics, and everything you stated is right. When do we begin to feel safe again? Who knows! People are not taking any of it seriously and that is what's so scary. HIV, COVID, and now M-Pox but the funny thing is HIV is still here and has been for 40 years and still no cure. Coming together to fight all of this is what it will take but how can that happen if others won't listen?
Khafre Kujichagulia Abif Moderator
Alafia (Peace) Steven Campa What an insightful article. You are spot on. For those of us who are living with HIV and Covid 19 pandemic caused great concern and wearing masks and mask wearing by the general public was and is so important. Now monkey pox predominantly affecting gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men raising yet another cause for concern. It's a lot to deal with. It's a great deal to navigate but I hope the community is finding the resources it needs to get through this without infection. Khafre (H-I-V.net Team Member)