A charity helping 33 new children affected by HIV is urging other families hit by the condition to "seek support before it is too late".
Positive Life is Northern Ireland's only dedicated HIV support charity and helps those diagnosed with the condition to cope.
Its chief executive Jacquie Richardson said the life-changing and often stigmatised illness can put a huge strain on families leading to mental health issues and isolation.
" The impact of a HIV diagnosis in the family of a young child can have a crippling impact as they move through their teenage years and onto early adulthood," she added.
"Often these children are subject to significant levels of stigma from such an early age that levels of self-esteem are so low that they become isolated from society and mental health issues can develop."
A total of 11 new families turned to Positive Life for support over the past year.
And with help from the Big Lottery Community Fund they were able to help improve the physical and mental wellbeing of 33 children under 12 living with or affected by HIV through their '+Family Life' initiative.
Ms Richardson explained: "At Positive Life it is our job to help them and their families cope with the situation and barriers that they are likely to meet and prepare them as best we can on how they deal with having or being affected by HIV as they grow up.
"The impact that HIV can have on families is immense as it places strain on relationships and the bond between parents and their children. We have been working hard to create a level of awareness around our services that allows anyone who has HIV or at risk to come and seek support before it’s too late.
"These may not seem like big numbers to many, but it’s the lives of thirty-three children and only in the past year. We reckon there are many more families out there that are, as yet, too afraid to come forward. No child or family that has been touched by HIV should have to live their lives in the shadows or feel that they can’t have a fulfilling family life."
The project includes one to one and peer group support, individual and family counselling, child and family focused activities such as art therapy, family fun days, residentials and complementary therapies along with practical advice on matters such as budgeting and finance. In many cases, Positive Life offers the only real and meaningful contact that those living with HIV have due to the overwhelming impact of the stigma around the condition here in Northern Ireland.
In the past year they offered almost 3,000 therapies to help HIV-hit children reconnect with society through psychosocial interventions, provided 384 helpline sessions, 150 advice sessions on housing, welfare, employment and debt issues.
They were also there for 39 people who were either newly diagnosed or reached out to the charity for the first time.
Around 100 people learn they have HIV for the first time in Northern Ireland each year.
But the number of those being diagnosed with the virus continues to rise here while it is falling in the rest of the UK.
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