HIV INFECTION AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE EMOTIONS: GUILT AND SELF-WORTH-CAUSES OF GUILT
Guilt does not necessarily have a cause. Guilt, like fear, is a feeling that may or may not have anything to do with the facts. Some people feel honestly that they did something they should not have done. Perhaps they knew they ran a risk when they became infected. Others are accepting blame for something over which they had no control. Perhaps they knew nothing about the virus or they thought they were taking appropriate steps to avoid infection or they unknowingly received infected blood. Guilt, like all other reactions to this infection, is a natural human feeling. Sooner or later in their lives, most people feel guilty about something, sometimes justifiably, sometimes not. Alan, for instance, remembers stealing a plastic toy from a dime store when he was seven years old, and though he does not feel like a criminal, he does feel a vague sense of shame and is not able to forget the incident. Perhaps guilt comes from a sense that good behavior deserves reward and bad behavior deserves punishment. Perhaps people feel that since the virus feels like a punishment, they must have behaved badly. Perhaps social disapproval operates the same way: people feel isolated and punished, so they feel they must have done something wrong to deserve it. Both of these possibilities are built on bad logic and are just plain wrong.
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