Mental Health Care for People Living With HIV

People living with human immunodeficiency virus can face the same array of mental health issues that affect others. HIV Clinical Resource reports that people with mental illnesses are at higher risk for HIV infection. HIV-positive individuals cope with unique stresses of facing diagnosis and sharing their status with others but may also be affected by HIV-related mental health conditions such as HIV-associated dementia. HIV status is an important factor in determining appropriate treatment for mental illness.

Coping

• An HIV diagnosis is difficult to cope with. According to HIV InSite, newly diagnosed individuals likely experience denial, anger, sadness, fear, anxiety and stress. It is important for people coping with diagnosis to share their feelings with others, possibly getting involved with support groups. It is also important to avoid trigger situations--those known to worsen negative feelings about diagnosis--and to talk to a doctor if these feelings get worse. Symptoms of depression include changes in sleep pattern and weight, persistent negative feelings like sadness and anxiety, loss of interest in daily life and activities, restlessness and suicidal or death-related feelings.

Suicidality

• People recently diagnosed with HIV are at an increased risk for suicide. HIV Clinical Resource reports that this risk levels off as time after diagnosis elapses. Gay men and women diagnosed with HIV are more likely to experience suicidal thoughts after diagnosis.

Trauma and PTSD

• Although the effect of a traumatic event, such as HIV diagnosis or coping with the chronic nature of HIV, might subside on their own, traumatic events might lead to acute stress disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder. According to HIV Clinical Resource, trauma can lead to risk-taking behaviors including drug use and unsafe sex. Recommended treatment for both PTSD and ASD in people living with HIV includes psychotherapy and psychiatric treatment.

Personality Disorders

• Groups at high risk for HIV infection, particularly injection drug-users, also have increased rates of personality disorders such as borderline personality disorder and antisocial personality, according to HIV Clinical Resource. Therapeutic treatment for personality disorders includes developing treatment plans that alter behaviors.

HIV-Associated Dementia

• HIV-associated dementia occurs as a result of the release of neurotoxins from HIV virus and from cells that it infects. It can affect cognition and motor skills and lead to profound dementia, although the severity and incidence of has decreased alongside the use of multidrug treatment for HIV.

Considerations

• People living with HIV who are also mentally ill might have trouble following the guidelines of their treatment, which may include complicated drug regimens for both the treatment of HIV and of mental illness. Those who cannot monitor their own medications might require additional assistance. Doctors treating a person with HIV should know all of a patient's medications and treatment plans to avoid drug-drug interactions.