Ever since I was little I have LOVED talking. Being an effective communicator meant that I could get candy, hugs, and laughter. I have always valued this. Now as I’ve gotten older I realize that when I’m hurting or trying...
A Girl Like Me
My birthday month, November, had a great start by doing what I like most, giving my HIV activism a boost. Between 4-7 November I was in Istanbul for a face-to-face 'Skills Training to Empower Patients' (STEP-UP) and networking weekend organized...
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This month Akira, my youngest son of 13 years old, and I travelled to Antwerp for a filmshoot for the 'Undetectable equals Untransmittable' (U=U) campaign in Belgium. Whilst in the train towards Antwerp I asked how he felt to be...
Dear Destiny, We always make it through. I've dealt with some type of depression since I can remember. It was never anything I couldn't handle though. Then again I never had to handle it alone. I'm close with GOD; maybe...
It's the beginning of fall now, the temperatures are beginning to get chilly and leaves are starting to change their hue. It's a season of change when we bid farewell to summer and all the good times we had and...
One of the most powerful things a patient said to me was "Just because I hear you doesn't mean I understand what you're saying". His regimen was changing because he had some resistance and I was doing the nurse education...
I kept my HIV diagnosis a secret from almost everyone for nearly 20 years. Diagnosed at 18 in 1991 and contracted HIV at the age of 15 in 1988, I told family and friends I had leukemia. I became an...
How are you? I'm good. No, you're not! Yes, I am! I need you to gather your things and go take care of yourself! I'm fine! I'm not asking you; I'm telling you to get your shit and go! You're...
It's been almost four years since I contracted HIV. In the back of my mind I've always held onto a little piece of hope. Hope that the man who gave it to me would one day apologize. One day we...