And, I was so scared for him, because I was still totally ignorant on the topic of HIV. One of my good friends outed his status to me. It wasn't until right around the time of my breakup with my ex that HIV hit very close to home. What I knew of HIV/AIDS, I had picked up from the play RENT. I knew nothing of the treatments that were available. I had AIDS (or so I thought), so, therefore, I was going to die. I had hooked up with a guy, who afterward, freaked out on me, and told me that I had given him AIDS. But, he wasn't someone I really knew, and it's rude to ask people questions about their health.or so I felt at the time. By this time I was in high school, and had a lot of questions that I wanted to ask, and probably should have. He worked in a hospital lab, and was infected by a needle stick. It wasn't until the 90's when I actually met someone who was HIV positive. But, I remember the fear that anything could give you AIDS. But, being in a place like Maine, those things happen in other places. I remember in elementary school hearing about Ryan White and his having died from this disease called AIDS. I was very young when the initial AIDS epidemic hit in the 80's. And, my favorite stupid response was, "Well, this is all just a publicity stunt." Multiple times, I saw things like, "He deserves it," or "What took so long for him to get it?" I saw a couple of, "Aww so sad that you're so sick, you'll be missed," as if he had died the moment he "came out" (for lack of a better term). It bothered me less that a well known celebrity was admitting, openly that he is HIV positive than it did when I started seeing responses to this admission. Due to my own ignorance, at the time, I just figured that it was someone's own fault if they were exposed to it. But, it appears, that that is exactly where my life is headed.Īs recently as 4 years ago, I was guilty of shaming those who are living with HIV. If you had told me five years ago, that I would be trying to educate about HIV, and that it would be in response to Charlie Sheen's admission of his status, I would never have believed you.
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