Jennifer Vaughan - An HIV Positive Mom That Didn’t Fit The Typical High-Risk Profile

The thought of “This can’t happen to me” is still prevalent in many HIV Negative people’s minds. But as we all learned over the many decades that this virus has been present in the world, HIV does not discriminate. Even if someone doesn’t fit the typical high-risk profile, they can still end up with HIV and AIDS - and this is the case of Jennifer, a 45-years-old mom.

In today’s episode, I discuss with Jennifer how her life changed from the moment she found out she is HIV positive. She also puts an accent on the importance of disclosing your status, regardless of other people’s thoughts or misconceptions because living behind closed doors is a hard challenge that none of us should go through.

Jennifer Vaughan went from an AIDS diagnosis to undetectable. She was diagnosed with HIV in February 2016 and since then, she has become an outspoken and active advocate for other HIV positive women. As a straight, white, middle-aged, non-drug-using mom, Jennifer did not fit the typical profile. At the time of her diagnosis, her T-Cell count was at 84, considering a normal count ranges between 500 - 1500. As a 45-year-old single mother of three, she thought her life was over, but in one month of treatment, Jennifer was living her life again, due to daily medication delivered in the form of a single pill.

After some consideration, she chose to tell her story to her Facebook family and the response was incredible, receiving endless messages of love, concern, and support. In the hope that she could help others, Jennifer also did a Youtube video that went viral, and today, her Youtube Channel where she posts regularly, answering questions on a wide range of topics, has over 47,000 subscribers. The numerous comments and messages she receives daily confirm the difference she is making in the world of HIV.

So, listen to Episode 15 of Positively Alive, to find out her entire story and how she fights against the spread of HIV and stigma, through advocacy.

Questions I ask:

• You talked about your partner and his reaction. Can you describe a little bit how that was and did you, at any point, feel afraid that he may leave you? And how is the relationship with him today? (13:55)
• What about your children, Jennifer? How do you talk to them and how do they deal with the fact that their mother has HIV? (17:05)
• What do you find most challenging as an activist, Jennifer? (25:03)
• In the era of U=U, do you feel that more people will be disclosing their status or would you say it'll take probably years before we get to a situation where we have full normalization of HIV? (26:29)
• What would you like to see happen in the next 10 years, for the HIV community? (35:37)

In this episode, you will learn:

• How Jennifer found out about her status and how this news impacted her life. (04:37)
• Why Jennifer decided to go public with her status and how she became the activist that she is today. (20:07)
• About Jennifer’s private Facebook Group for HIV positive women. (29:23)
• What the biggest challenges are, in the United States, today, regarding HIV. (34:18)
• Jennifer’s message to people living with HIV. (36:30)

Connect with Jennifer:

• Website
• Youtube Channel

Positively Alive Resources:

• Website
• Positively Alive Youtube Channel
• Instagram
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