Arizona man shares his story as an HIV-positive man with an HIV-negative family

Andrew Pulsipher of Phoenix, Ariz., was born HIV-positive. He lost both of his parents by the age of eight. But now he's being praised for sharing his story about living a happy, normal life with the virus.

In a photo publicly posted to his Facebook timeline earlier this month, he's seated with his wife Victoria and their three children. He's holding a sign that says "HIV +," while his family's signs read "HIV –."

"Having a negative family can be the most positive thing in your life," reads a caption on the picture.

Pulsipher, 33, wrote that until this post he revealed his HIV-positive status only to his closest family and friends. Now that he's gone public with this post, thousands of people have congratulated him for his message of hope.

"None of my brothers and sisters are HIV-positive, just my parents and I. The virus will end with me," he wrote.

"I know HIV has a negative stigma, but that it doesn't have to and I want to help change that. It is a treatable disease and you can live a normal life with it. I am proof of that."

'We have to get rid of the stigma'

Pulsipher's HIV status is considered undetectable with medication. He and Victoria conceived their daughter, now five, with the help of artificial insemination, and their two sons, now three and one, the old-fashioned way.

Victoria said that when Pulsipher first told her about his HIV status, it didn't change her mind to spend the rest of their lives together.

"I kind of just assumed I would get it too," she told NBC News. "And that was OK with me, because I loved him and I wanted to be with him."

With proper medication as monitored by a doctor, the risk of HIV transmission is negligible, Kelly MacDonald, director of HIV research at the University of Toronto told CTV News.

"Just like we used to be afraid of cancer, we're afraid of HIV, but we don't need to be," he said.

Pulsipher is glad to be a part of dispelling that fear. "We have to get rid of the stigma, we have to get rid of the hate," he told NBC News.