Ron Kudrako

More Than a Wheelchair, More Than Hiv: Overcoming Pml Ron Kudrako

What if you were told that you might possibly spend the rest of your life in a wheelchair? Oh, and you are HIV positive too! And, only a few seemed to care? More Than a Wheelchair; More than HIV is a story, my story, of survival of AIDS in the years after 2000 and having to cope with the challenges it presented me. It is so disturbing and disheartening to see the growing indifference toward HIV and to have a younger generation oblivious and unconcerned by its possible resurgence as a life-altering moment in their carefree lives. I was told that I was going to die numerous times in November 1999, but I astounded them first by recovering and then with my determination and use of imagination in my therapies and exercises hoping to regain what I had lost at the beginning of my bout with PML (Progressive Multifocal Leucoencephalopathy). I usually explain PML as like having a stroke. It is the simplest explanation. The PML had taken so much from me which left me to re-build my shattered life piece by piece and this book highlights the various obstacles I had to overcome to attain my goals. Every barrier presented to me brought a new round of flashbacks of my childhood, my career and my happy-go-lucky gay life. As I improved, every hurdle inspired me to write my thoughts. Many things have changed since I first faced the onset of AIDS - new forms of treatments, new drugs and new hope, as well as indifference and attitudes. This story can be used for any physical challenge but gives a more human feel to the HIV/ AIDS crisis which seems to be almost forgotten which should be a source of concern to everyone