World AIDS Day 2013

Today is World AIDS Day and I am sure people may get tired of seeing me post this or that about HIV/AIDS...but the only reason I do post so much stuff about it is because I care about each and every one of you. 

I do not want anyone to contract HIV (or anything else for that matter), not because HIV is "bad" or "morally wrong" or "dirty" but because my goal and hope is that at some point in the very near future we will live in a world where there are zero new infections. 

For a lot of people, like myself, living with HIV is a daily struggle. Not in terms of health, necessarily, but in terms of impact. In the roller coaster that is health care these days, one is never ever guaranteed consistent access to HIV medicine. And sadly, because of several such barriers, only about 25% of those with HIV ever achieve treatment success while on medicine. 

There is so so much stigma that surrounds the idea and experience of HIV, that it is very easy to sweep any such talk about it under the rug, but that only increases the stigma, fear, and misinformation of HIV. I believe shining a light on something is the best way to bring attention to it.

Frank and honest discussions will be what cures HIV in the end. Please ever ever be afraid to ask anything about HIV. There are no dumb questions (well, maybe there are some not so great questions...don't ever ask "how did you get it?" or "do you have full-blown AIDS?"...but really, don't be afraid to ask anything else.)

Have a great World AIDS Day, y'all!

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