Thomas Lange is no stranger to speaking out about his HIV status.
The 49-year-old opened up about his condition on national television when he appeared on the Channel 4 show First Dates.
At 18 years old, his world had been turned upside down with the diagnosis of HIV.
It was an era long before incredible advances in treatment made it possible for people with the condition to live long and healthy lives (by reducing the amount of virus in the blood to undetectable level).
And when his partner, who was also HIV positive, died in 1991, Thomas’s life appeared to be on a downwards spiral.
Thomas Lange, 49, was diagnosed aged 18. He credits the Terrence Higgins Trust support services in London with saving his life, and has launched a petition to save them from cuts
Thomas opened up about his HIV status on the Channel 4 TV show First Dates. Now, the 49-year-old is speaking out again, urging people to sign his petition to save the support services in south London
For the next 14 years, he neglected his condition, ignoring his HIV status, throwing himself into work, ignoring friends and refusing to date.
For many years his health appeared to be consistent.
But, after a stint living in America, when Thomas returned to the UK in 2007, his condition worsened.
Too embarrassed to tell friends the truth, he ended up living on the streets unable to refrigerate his medication and as a result ended up in hospital.
It was there that he first encountered the work of the Terrence Higgins Trust.
An advisor visited him in his hospital bed, offering legal advice and practical help to secure a house in Lambeth, London.
‘I think I’d be dead if they hadn’t stepped in when they did,’ Thomas recalls.
Now, almost 10 years on from that life-saving encounter, the tables have turned, and it is Thomas who is working with all his might to save the services the charity provides.
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He is urging people to sign a petition to save these vital HIV support services, which are at risk from government cuts.
The proposed cuts to advice and counselling services will affect people like Thomas, who are living with HIV in Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham, where HIV rates are soaring far above the national average.
Thomas credits the Terrence Higgins Trust’s advice services in Lambeth as a lifeline, helping him through homelessness and the stigma surrounding his diagnosis.
With a final decision just weeks away, the service’s future hangs in the balance.
Thomas, from Brixton, said: ‘Without the counselling and advice I received from Terrence Higgins Trust, I genuinely don’t think I’d be alive.
‘I was lonely, suicidal and sleeping rough.
‘They helped me get out of homelessness, and my counsellor showed me a level of kindness and understanding that I’d not had since I was diagnosed with HIV aged 18.
‘If these services are cut, the effects could be devastating.’
The UK’s leading HIV and sexual health charity, Terrence Higgins Trust, currently provides specialist advice and counselling services for people living with HIV across the three boroughs.
The services are currently funded by Lambeth Council, Lewisham CCG and Southwark CCG.
But under the new proposals, these services could disappear by October 1.
If these cuts go through, up to 900 people living with HIV across the three boroughs who currently use the Terrence Higgins Trust services will be abandoned.
‘First Point’, a service offering support to 600 people a year who have been newly diagnosed with HIV, provided by charity METRO, is also facing cuts in all three boroughs.
The only HIV support services that will remain in Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham under the new proposals will be METRO’s peer support and family support services.
Thomas said: ‘Where will people go?
‘General services cannot meet the needs of everyone with HIV in these boroughs, and they don’t understand what it is emotionally and physically to live with HIV.’
Thomas’s local area Lambeth is the worst-hit borough in the whole of the UK for HIV prevalence – there are eight times as many people living with HIV in Lambeth compared to the UK average. Southwark is the second most-hit area for HIV in the country, with 6.5 times as many people with HIV compared to average, and Lewisham is in the top 10. (Pictured, Thomas with Rebecca Adlington)
Thomas’s local area Lambeth is the worst-hit borough in the whole of the UK for HIV prevalence – there are eight times as many people living with HIV in Lambeth compared to the UK average.
Southwark is the second most-hit area for HIV in the country, with 6.5 times as many people with HIV compared to average, and Lewisham is in the top 10.
Thomas fears that the impact of such significant cuts could be felt far beyond South London. ‘If we lose the HIV support services in Lambeth, the worst-hit area for HIV in the whole country, what kind of message does that send out?
‘There is already far too much stigma and apathy towards HIV and this will make it worse.’
Ian Green, chief executive of Terrence Higgins Trust, agreed: ‘Worryingly, this is part of an alarming trend of cuts to HIV services that we’re starting to see across the country.
‘As three of the highest prevalence areas for HIV, Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham have a leadership role to play in terms of providing exemplary HIV support services for their local communities.
‘Instead, we fear the cuts in these boroughs could set a dangerous precedent on a national level, potentially leaving thousands of people with HIV without the emotional and practical support they need.’
Recalling his experience, Thomas said his partner, ‘the love of my life’, sadly died from the virus in 1991.
‘I was heartbroken after my partner died, and I ran away from my HIV until 2005,’ said Thomas.
Thomas added: ‘A counsellor who specialises in HIV might be the only person that someone living with HIV feels they can open up to’
‘I threw myself into work, I distanced myself from friends and I didn’t date for 20 years, as I thought, what’s the point? I didn’t look after my health as I couldn’t see a future for myself.’
For many years after his diagnosis, Thomas had a successful career in international hotels, where he hosted presidents and celebrities.
But on returning to the UK from America in 2007, his health caught up with him and he found he was no longer able to work.
‘I was in a bad state and was incorrectly told by the Council that I wasn’t entitled to benefits, which left me with no income at all for a year,’ he said.
‘I left suitcases at friends’ houses and told them I was redecorating – I was too embarrassed to tell them the truth. I found myself sleeping rough and in hostels.
‘My medicines need to be refrigerated and there was no fridge in the shelter, so my health deteriorated.
‘While I was in hospital, I spoke to an advisor from Terrence Higgins Trust who gave me the legal and practical advice I needed to get back on my feet and to get a house in Lambeth.’
Thomas is now enjoying life as a much-loved member of the community in Brixton. But he is far from being alone in his experiences.
A report has shown that one in six people with HIV are living in poverty.
The news of the planned cuts also comes as findings from the annual Stigma Index recently revealed around half of participants reported feeling shame, guilt, low self-esteem and/or self-blame in relation to their HIV status.
The survey also showed 28 per cent of people diagnosed with HIV in the past 12 months reported suicidal thoughts.
Thomas feels counselling is crucial to helping people with HIV to cope.
‘Counselling from Terrence Higgins Trust helped me to picture a future for myself for the first time,’ he said.
‘Stigma is still a huge issue and lots of people don’t feel they can tell their families, friends, colleagues or health care professionals.
‘A counsellor who specialises in HIV might be the only person that someone living with HIV feels they can open up to.’
Thomas is now on treatment and is supported to live well with his HIV.
‘I have had so much public support after talking about my HIV on First Dates and received thousands of messages from people who were touched by my story.
‘It would mean the world to me for just some of these people to show the same solidarity now by signing this petition.’
To sign the petition click here.