WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.833 Early on, and when I say early on, early on. 2 00:00:04.816 --> 00:00:07.348 Like I said, I was diagnosed in 1988. 3 00:00:07.348 --> 00:00:12.091 I remember back in 1990 I was in a treatment program 4 00:00:12.091 --> 00:00:14.508 and the young lady that I was 5 00:00:16.852 --> 00:00:21.685 associating myself with before I had went in to treatment, 6 00:00:23.404 --> 00:00:24.326 while I was in treatment, 7 00:00:24.326 --> 00:00:27.031 she had hooked up with this gentleman, 8 00:00:27.031 --> 00:00:30.804 and they had, like, had kids, you know, while I was gone. 9 00:00:30.804 --> 00:00:35.077 And so, when I got out and I went by to see her, 10 00:00:35.077 --> 00:00:37.476 I remember him telling her that 11 00:00:37.476 --> 00:00:40.107 I couldn't come in their house. 12 00:00:40.107 --> 00:00:44.476 And so, right then and there, you are no longer my friend. 13 00:00:44.476 --> 00:00:47.804 You know, if you let something like that 14 00:00:47.804 --> 00:00:50.137 come between our friendship, 15 00:00:51.108 --> 00:00:56.108 but I still spoke to her, I just kept my distance from her. 16 00:00:56.460 --> 00:00:58.260 And believe it or not, her and the gentlemen 17 00:00:58.260 --> 00:01:02.590 is no longer together, and every time he see me, 18 00:01:02.590 --> 00:01:04.628 he makes it a point to stop his car, 19 00:01:04.628 --> 00:01:06.461 get out his car, give me a hug, 20 00:01:06.461 --> 00:01:08.677 and ask me how I'm doing, you know. 21 00:01:08.677 --> 00:01:10.909 He's also in recovery too now. 22 00:01:10.909 --> 00:01:13.550 And needless to say, she's still in her addiction. 23 00:01:13.550 --> 00:01:15.291 And I still try to talk to her, you know. 24 00:01:15.291 --> 00:01:17.758 Try to get her to get some help. 25 00:01:17.758 --> 00:01:19.470 One other experience that I had, 26 00:01:19.470 --> 00:01:22.124 is when had went to a dentist. 27 00:01:22.124 --> 00:01:26.362 And they were going to do some pulling or some kind of, 28 00:01:26.362 --> 00:01:28.776 I can't even remember what it was. 29 00:01:28.776 --> 00:01:31.193 I was just so thrown back by, 30 00:01:32.541 --> 00:01:35.009 they were going to do the pulling or whatever, 31 00:01:35.009 --> 00:01:37.812 and then when I mentioned that I was HIV, 32 00:01:37.812 --> 00:01:40.419 it never even happened. 33 00:01:40.419 --> 00:01:43.019 And I just felt so very uncomfortable about that. 34 00:01:43.019 --> 00:01:46.033 And also, when I was in the treatment program, 35 00:01:46.033 --> 00:01:48.271 back there in 1990, 36 00:01:48.271 --> 00:01:50.648 my hands started bothering me a lot. 37 00:01:50.648 --> 00:01:52.874 And so, I had went and got a diagnosis 38 00:01:52.874 --> 00:01:55.077 and they had said I got carpal tunnel. 39 00:01:55.077 --> 00:01:57.692 And so, the hospital that I had went to 40 00:01:57.692 --> 00:02:00.192 was going to do the procedure, 41 00:02:01.186 --> 00:02:04.045 but when I told them I was HIV positive, 42 00:02:04.045 --> 00:02:06.024 they said they didn't do that procedure. 43 00:02:06.024 --> 00:02:09.122 And this was like, back there in the 90s, you know. 44 00:02:09.122 --> 00:02:11.288 And so, when I share this with people some times, 45 00:02:11.288 --> 00:02:13.583 they're like, "oh my gosh", you know. 46 00:02:13.583 --> 00:02:16.265 And believe it or not, the stigma is still around 47 00:02:16.265 --> 00:02:18.994 in some different states, 48 00:02:18.994 --> 00:02:20.994 uh, rural areas, cities. 49 00:02:22.616 --> 00:02:25.365 You know, where people are just still so ignorant. 50 00:02:25.365 --> 00:02:27.605 You know, when it comes down to this disease.