Transcript

My name is Nairobia. My hometown is Baltimore, Maryland.

I am 27 years old.

I am an hr coordinator which is a Healthy Relationships Coordinator and what I do is I provide services to those living with HIV or AIDS and help them to reduce risk to themselves and others.

I was diagnosed in 2005.

I was 24 at the time and attending college.

What went through my head at the time was...

"Ok what is she talking about?"

I had heard of AIDS before or the word the Bug or things of that nature, but what is HIV?

I didn't even ask her I turned around and I looked at the TV monitor that was up on the wall.

I deliberately... just... pretended she wasn't there.

Today I'm fine, I do have AIDS because it took me a long time to get to the point of taking medications, and because I didn't take the medicines when I was told to, which is a choice my counts went down and I'm living with AIDS, I'm LIVING with AIDS, not dying of AIDS.

It gets better.

It takes time,but it gets better.

You can stil live—just because you have HIV or been diagnosed with HIV doesn't mean tomorrow you're gonna die.

No one really knows when they're gonna to go.

And one more thing, imagine the world with no tests for anything.

How would you feel if there was no test to diagnose if you had diabetes if you had cancer if you had anything. How would you feel then?

I think it's best to know than not to know.