This past Thursday, December 1st 2011 was
once again National AIDS Day, so I raise the question , “Did you get tested?”
As an avid activist on the importance of
getting tested and knowing your status ,
it could save your life and also the
life as others. HIV/AIDS is the
taking millions of lives and will
continue to take more if we do not own up to the fact that looking past the issue doesn’t eliminate
the problem.
When I decided that I wanted to pursue work within the
non profit field, HIV/AIDS
was my way in beginning as a peer
educator, moving up to health educator and all the way up to Health outreach
worker. I have facilitated over 400
HIV/AIDS education presentations for
youth and young adults throughout the City of Richmond and surrounding
counties, the one common thing that I found out was the cause of them not
getting tested “IGNORANCE”.
So, many of us are concerned about the stigma around
the disease and getting tested , I don’t want people to think that I have it?”,
“ I seem like a slut if I have to go and get tested?” But truth is that
in getting tested you are not only protecting yourself but you are also protecting
others. I am not going to say that when you are sitting in that pre interview
giving out the details of your sexual history and waiting that twenty minutes
for that result wont make your world stop but you get to WALK out of there.
Where as, you don’t get tested you walk around with a ticking TIME BOMB inside
your body, you go to the doctor diagnosed to late and you DON’T WALK out.
IGNORANCE IS NOT AN EXCUSE, GET TESTED TODAY!!
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