A Young Man’s Journey of Living with HIV

Diagnosed HIV Positive Eight years ago at the age of 21, Tyler made the decision early on in his diagnosis to live his life openly as an HIV Positive Gay Man.

His story is as an agent of social change in eliminating stigma.

“I am  from “The New Face of HIV,”  by using my voice and personal story with HIV to educate & advocate

I am able to bring a “Social Vaccine” to communities.”

Since his diagnosis, Tyler has been a strong advocate for the rights of those living with and impacted by HIV/AIDS. He feels fortunate to be living in a time in this epidemic where his diagnosis was not given to him as a death sentence, but a new reality and a new responsibility to manage the HIV Virus in his life. In addition to his work at AIDS Service Organizations, he has traveled around the country as well as internationally to Rural South Africa to share his own experiences of living with HIV as a young adult to address the stigma, treatment, and barriers that are often associated with HIV/AIDS.

“At some point in each of our lives we make the realization that we aren’t as invincible as we once had thought in our youth. This is a hard realization to make, but a barrier that must be broken at some point in our journey to adulthood.

 

 

For some it takes years to discover, for others it’s within the blink of an eye.”

Growing up we hear that” knowledge is power,” but it is Tyler’s belief that knowledge is only that, unless we take action with what we have learned. We have had the power to stop this Epidemic for many years and that is the power of education, prevention, and access to care and treatment for ALL those who need it.

Thanks for stopping by and getting to know Tyler.