Living My Dreams

After spending a day at the local air show, I decided to enlist in the Air Force. I wanted to become a Thunderbird. 

Before I was scheduled to leave for my first assignment, I received a letter telling me that I had a “medical condition of a potentially serious nature.” A few days later, the Air Force informed me that I had tested positive for HIV. They tested me again; again the result was positive. 

I felt fine. I was never sick a day in my life. I couldn’t comprehend that this was happening to me. After some bloodwork, I found out that my immune system was severely compromised. 

On the advice of a friend, I went to see Leonard Calabrese, DO, at Cleveland Clinic. When I met him for the first time, I felt he knew more about what was going on with me than I did. When I was in panic mode, Dr. Calabrese was always the voice of reason. 

My health got worse and worse. I worked at a therapy center for disabled children, and when a sick child would touch my desk, the next day I would be deathly ill. In the winter of 1997-1998, I was sick for more than two months. I spent New Year’s Eve in the emergency room. I knew that I was dying. 

In February 1998, a new class of drugs came out. Dr. Calabrese immediately got me started on them. They caused me to have horrible kidney stones, but I noticed something incredible: I stopped getting sick when kids would touch my desk. Every month, my T-cell count got larger and larger. I got married in July 1998 and brought my wedding photos to show Dr. Calabrese. 

Today, I have a normal immune system. As of 2021, I’ve been HIV-positive for 36 years. Thanks to Cleveland Clinic and Dr. Calabrese, I’m living my dreams in California. 

Even though she didn’t get to become a Thunderbird, Wendy Malek became a civilian employee of the Air Force.