Vongai is abundantly clear about what self-stigma means to her. It is, she says, "when I blame myself, I limit myself to certain things, I am ashamed, I isolate myself, I get depression, I'm not confident of anything. I feel inferior."

Julien Chiwunda is 59 years old, a widow, and the mother of four grown-up children and four grandchildren. Her husband passed away from HIV 20 years ago, and she herself tested positive for HIV in 2003.

Softly-spoken Nyasha lives in Zimbabwe. Just a moment's acquaintance with her will tell you that she is kind, generous and thoughtful. She discovered that she was HIV positive in 2000, and initially her diagnosis sent her into a tailspin.

About a year into this pandemic, COVID-19 has dramatically changed the lives of billions of people around the world and over 2 million people have died.

Moud, from Zimbabwe, tested HIV-positive in 2009 after which she lost her mother, family, job, and divorced her husband which led her to a spiral of depressive thoughts - ‘’It was not easy and I went through a lot of self-blame, bitterness and pain in her heart ’’ - Moud says.

It All Begins Here

It All Begins Here