It Happened to Nancy

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It Happened to Nancy Page 19

by Beatrice Sparks


  * * *

  Sexual Transmission

  Condoms are not 100 percent safe.

  Spermicides are not 100 percent safe.

  Used together, they are not 100 percent safe 100 percent of the time.

  RISKIEST BEHAVIORS

  • Unprotected anal sex

  • Unprotected vaginal sex

  • Sexual fluids on open sores on skin

  • Multiple partners of unknown HIV status

  • Oral sex

  CO-FACTORS TO INFECTION

  • Genital sores; mouth sores

  • Drug abuse

  • Poor health

  • Repeated exposures

  * * *

  * * *

  HIV is not transmitted by Casual Contact

  Shaking Hands

  Hugging

  Kissing (Unless one has open sores or bleeding gums)

  Coughing, Sneezing

  Eating Utensils

  Toilet Seats

  Doorknobs, Telephones

  Swimming Pools

  Insect or Animal Bites

  * * *

  Resources

  THE ANSWERS WERE SUPPLIED BY:

  Rape Center, National Victim’s Center, Arlington, VA 22201

  National AIDS Hotline, Association for the Care of Children (Pediatric AIDS) Bethesda, MD

  Foundation for Children with AIDS, Roxbury, MA

  National AIDS Clearing House

  TAP, Teen AIDS Program

  Planned Parenting, Adolescent Education

  Family Health Service National

  Children with HIV Infections and Their Families

  U.S. National Disease Center in Atlanta CDC, FDA, WHO (World Health Organization), etc.

  Division of Public Health Service Budgets

  FREE 800 NUMBERS TO CALL FOR ANSWERS REGARDING HIV, AIDS AND SUPPORT SYSTEMS:

  National AIDS Clearing House (1-800-458-5231)

  National AIDS Hotline (1-800-342-2437)

  Spanish (1-800-344-7432)

  Deaf access (1-800-243-7889)

  These hotlines are staffed with information specialists who can offer a wide variety of written materials and answers regarding any HIV-infection or AIDS questions you may have.

  Thanks to all of the above plus Margie Golden with the Department of Health and Human Services; Leslie from the Rape Crisis Center; Nancy’s doctors; Nancy’s mom and dad, Aunt Thelma, Melvin and many others.

  Read on for a preview of the upcoming book

  FINDING KATIE: The Diary of Anonymous,

  A Teenager in Foster Care

  Edited by Beatrice Sparks, Ph.D.

  Friday, January 2nd

  I heard Mama scream and jumped out of bed almost without waking up. As I tiptoed down the stairs I could feel my heart beating so hard inside me that it was almost like it was going to explode!

  By the time I got to the bottom step Mama was barely whimpering and I could hear that Daddy was still pounding on her. Scared to death, I slowly cracked Mama’s bedroom door open and peeked in. Mama was lying quietly on the floor, curled in a tight little ball. She looked like she was sleeping. A big wave of pain almost washed me away into nothingness. I wanted to dash in and help Mama but I didn’t dare, because I knew only too well…what Daddy might do then!

  Daddy gave Mama another hard smack and staggered in my direction.

  I scrambled down the last step, hid in a dark corner trying not to breathe, and stayed there until I heard him zooming down the driveway, smashing into our big metal security gate on the way out.

  Almost blinded by tears and fears, I crept in beside Mama and patted her cheek, below her swollen eye. “It’s okay Mama,” I whispered, “he’s gone.”

  Mama whispered for me to go back to bed. I wanted to ask her about lots and lots of things but I ALMOST KNEW SHE WOULDN’T TELL ME!

  Back in my room I put my pillow over my head and tried to smother out her crying. It wasn’t like any human sounds I’d ever heard before, more like…animal sounds…or…scary movie evil wailings.

  Feeling freezing cold to the marrow of my bones I wondered what Daddy would do when he came back….

  EVENTUALLY he always came back!!!!!!!!!!!!

  Sometimes he was crying and repentant, bringing gifts and flowers and candy…other times…

  I feel like I’m lost! Lost in my own home! Lost in my own body! But mostly lost in my own mind. Will the really, truly me ever, ever BE FOUND?

  When the blackness of night began turning into morning grayness I heard Daddy’s car coast slowly up the driveway.

  Not knowing if he would be Doctor Jekyll or Mr. Hyde I held my breath until…guess I passed out or something….

  I felt like I had laid there in my black, cold, never-never land bed, for forever.

  About the Editor

  BEATRICE SPARKS prepared the bestseller GO ASK ALICE for publication, as well as IT HAPPENED TO NANCY and others. She has been working as a professional counselor with “hurting” kids for many years and has conducted therapy groups and special seminars around the country. She loves, respects, and listens to kids, and they in return “love, trust, and feel safe” with her.

  Beatrice Sparks holds a Doctorate of Philosophy in Human Behavior. Her books have won the Christopher Medal and been named School Library Jounal Best Books, as well as Notable Books and Quick Picks for Recommended Reading by the American Library Association. She has also been a National Book Awards Judge for Young People’s Literature.

  Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.

  Praise

  It Happened to Nancy is a book that all parents and kids should read:

  “Only when one has been intimately involved with a real AIDS-infected person like Nancy can one slightly comprehend the overwhelmingness of the disease.”

  —Milton Norbaum, M.D., AIDS specialist

  “It Happened to Nancy is a deeply disturbing book because it faces AIDS honestly, realistically and head-on.

  “Up to 30 percent of people who have AIDS are diagnosed in their twenties, which means most were infected in their teens.”

  —Dorean Hadley Staudacher, Psychiatrist working with AIDS

  “…the scary thing is that Nancy could be someone you don’t know you know.”

  —Teenage male reader

  Other books edited by

  Beatrice Sparks, Ph.D.

  KIM: EMPTY INSIDE

  TREACHEROUS LOVE

  ALMOST LOST

  ANNIE’S BABY

  Copyright

  Cover photograph © 2005 by És/Nonstock

  Cover design by Andrea Vandergrift

  Cover © 2005 by HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

  This is a work of nonfiction. It is based in the actual diary of a teenage girl who was infected with the AIDS virus as a result of date-rape. It is a highly personal and specific chronicle, and as such, we hope it will provide insights into the increasingly complicated world in which we live. Names and places have been changed at the request of “Nancy’s” parents.

  IT HAPPENED TO NANCY. Copyright © 1994 by Beatrice M. Sparks. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

  Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 93-90637

  EPUB Edition © March 2010 ISBN: 9780062012722

  Version 06022015

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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