“My heart sank,” Shontia Matlock recalled of the moment her doctor told her she had HIV. “I just kept thinking, ‘This cannot be right' ”
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/tout-Shontia-Matlock-Preschool-Teacher-050726-80e7785a2fbd431eb35c4830c723dd1a.jpg "Shontia Matlock Preschool Teacher Was Given Inaccurate HIV Diagnosis")
Credit: Courtesy of Shontia Matlock
NEED TO KNOW
- A Georgia woman said she was mistakenly diagnosed with HIV while pregnant at age 19
- After developing severe symptoms, including swelling, rashes and skin blisters, doctors later determined Shontia Matlock actually had lupus — an autoimmune disease that runs in her family
- Matlock, now 39, tells PEOPLE she hopes others learn to “listen” to their bodies and advocate for themselves when something feels wrong
A Georgia woman was incorrectly diagnosed with HIV while pregnant, and it took digging into her genetics and family history to reveal what was really going on.
Shontia Matlock became pregnant at 19 years old, at which point she began experiencing a number of alarming symptoms, according to Everyday Health.
“When I got pregnant, everything started going downhill,” Matlock, now 39, tells PEOPLE exclusively. “I could barely get up in the mornings or walk. I was extremely swollen, had blisters on my hands and feet and developed rashes.”
Matlock says things got even worse after she gave birth.
“After I had my baby, everything just went haywire. My kidneys started having issues, my blood levels were up and down, and I stayed sick … I didn’t realize how serious it was,” she says, adding that she also eventually began losing her hair.
Matlock visited her doctor, and after initial testing, received a shocking diagnosis: She was told she had HIV.
“My heart sank,” Matlock, who works in childcare, says of the moment she heard the news. “I felt my whole body get hot. I just kept thinking, ‘This cannot be right.’ I was so upset I cried and asked the doctor, ‘Are you sure?’ ”
“For those few days waiting for the retest, I thought that was something I was living with. I cried every day. I just couldn’t believe it,” she adds.
However, retests confirmed that Matlock’s initial instincts were correct: She did not actually have HIV.
Credit: Courtesy of Shontia Matlock
Her doctors continued to search for the true cause of her symptoms, and eventually diagnosed her with lupus — an autoimmune disease that she said runs in her family.
“My mom has lupus, so after the doctors mentioned it [as a possibility], she told me, ‘You need to tell them about your family history,’ ” Matlock recalls to PEOPLE.
“That helped [my doctors] connect the dots, and having [my mom’s] experience made a big difference for me,” she continues, adding that getting an accurate diagnosis was “a relief.”
“I finally had an answer,” she says.
Matlock later learned that the symptoms of HIV can mimic those of lupus, which contributed to the initial incorrect diagnosis.
The woman also said she “leaned on her mom” a lot in the initial period after her diagnosis, as well as made a concerted effort to take better care of herself and her body.
“I started trying to do everything [my mom] told me — eating better, taking my medication, doing what I needed to do,” she explains.
Credit: Getty
“And creatively, I paint. When I can’t go outside or I’m having a flare, I paint and create. That’s really my outlet,” she adds.
Matlock is currently using the Saphnelo infusion, an intravenous mode of treating her lupus. “It’s definitely more convenient," she tells PEOPLE.
"From where I came from to now, it’s a total difference," adds Matlock. "My lupus has really calmed down. I can move, I’m manageable, my hair grew back, my eyebrows came back — everything."
As for what Matlock hopes others will take away from her story?
“Listen to your body, it will tell you something is wrong before any doctor will,” she says. “And advocate for yourself. Ask questions. If something doesn’t feel right, speak up. You have to advocate for yourself.”
Credit: Courtesy of Shontia Matlock
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“Take care of yourself. It really matters,” she adds.
Matlock also encouraged others with the disease to discuss medication options with their doctors. "You never know until you try,” she says.