A Girl Like Me (AGLM), a program of The Well Project, is a blog where women (
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My name is Jae, I am 39 years old and have been HIV+ for 18 years. I am a wife, mother to 3 boys, an employee, and full-time student. I live in Southern California, USA. I work in the medical field, the city I work in I come in contact with men that are HIV+. I just don’t have anything in common with them. First of all they are men. Second, most of them are gay. I am neither. I have a family and have been married for 21 years. My husband is in law enforcement and I was a stay at home mother for many years. He is a bit of a private person and has suppressed my participation in activism. So reluctantly I have agreed to forgo being a face to the masses to sitting back and Blogging about my own experiences.
As I sit here today, I am reminded of how precious life truly is for each of us. A recent tragedy in the family resulted in the all-too-soon death of a child from an automobile accident and the...
I don’t know how other girls like me react to stigma and injustices we suffer because of our statuses. I usually beat myself up. Sometimes, depending on the source of the stigma, I’d loathe myself. But a recent incident opened my eyes to a whole new dimension of reaction. If I am responsible and suffer the consequences of my own actions, why then don’t I let other people do the same? The stigma might be directed to me, buts it’s not about me. It’s about the other person’s ignorance and misinformation, so then why must I punish myself because they are ignorant? It does not make sense at all.
Who am I? My family know me as the Diva, the strongest HIV+ woman they've ever seen. What they don't know is what happens when I switch off the lights and close the door, I suddenly am not so strong...
You know, I love the holidays, I really do. But a part of me dreads them as well. I love spending time with my family, both immediate and extended. But a part of me can’t help but feel so alone when I...
Tonight at the grocery store my 7-year old stated definitively that this was the last day of November as she stared at the billboard size calendar in our local Whole Foods. I jumped on this open door...
December 1st is World AIDS Day. While I should be happy that the world acknowledges the day, I am a bit disappointed. My disappointment comes from the fact that World AIDS Day is just that - one day...
This time of year, we reflect on what we are thankful for in life. Some of the things I am thankful for include my family, my home and my job. But I am most thankful for my son. His joy, beauty, and...
Ladies, last weekend my daughter and I (who, by the way, is 33) shared the most amazing empowering experience while we attended the 2009 Sistersong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Conference in...
Why do I want to submit blogs to The Well Project’s “A Girl Like Me” Blog? Mainly because I know how alone I felt when I was first diagnosed. Not only did I feel alone but I felt violated, vulnerable...