This article was cross-posted from "A Girl Like Me," a program of The Well Project.

My name is Devarah 'Dee' Borrego, and I'm a 28-year-old, HIV+ transwoman originally from Denver, Colorado, who grew up mostly in suburban Connecticut. I acquired HIV at age 20; the same year as I began my transition. I've been living in the Boston area since 2004 where I've worked with and at a number of different community organizations in the Boston area, including JRI Health, TransCEND, the Boston Living Center and Cambridge Cares About AIDS. I'm also a polyglot – I speaks Spanish, French, Norwegian, American Sign Language, and a variety of other languages to various degrees.

On the national scene, I was also a founding member of the US Positive Women's Network (US PWN), an organization led by and for HIV+ American women to address the way HIV disproportionately affects women in the US. I currently serve as a Steering Committee member of the US PWN, as well as a member of their Strategic Communications Action Team. I'm also a member of the Global Network of People Living with HIV (GNP+) North America's Young Leaders Caucus, and the co-chair of the Economic Justice Working Group for the HIV Prevention Justice Alliance (HIV PJA). In 2010, I was chosen to speak at the Opening Plenary of the US Conference on AIDS (USCA) to discuss how HIV affects transgender youth.

I attended the International AIDS Conference in Washington, DC during the summer of 2012. At the Conference, I gave presentations along with colleagues for AIDS Alliance for Youth, Families, and Children – now a part of AIDS United – geared at HIV+ youth and their providers on the topic of disclosure. This was also when I first became more active in blogging about the issues surrounding young, HIV+ people, especially transgender women. I'm passionate about HIV prevention, HIV criminalization, and youth outreach and education around HIV.

Why Dee wants to be a part of A Girl Like Me: I want to share my experiences as a young, HIV+ transgender woman with the world because I see so many of my trans sisters in the US and around the world being severely impacted by HIV and by ignorance about what it means to be transgender and HIV+. I see young people, especially young women and transwomen, becoming infected unnecessarily simply because society has not given them the tools to take control of their sexual health and make empowered decisions about their partners and their sexual safety. This lack of education is something that I think needs to be addressed by the system itself, but I feel that the first steps are talking to each other about our experiences as women. My hope is that by sharing my experiences here on A Girl Like Me it will allow more women who are living with HIV to learn more about the transgender community, especially those who may be supportive of the community, but are unsure of the appropriate ways to do so.

Get email notifications every time this blog is updated.

How to Talk Trans

BLOG:
How to Talk Trans

Ms. Borrego is an HIV+ transwoman originally from Denver, Colo., who grew up mostly in suburban Connecticut. She acquired HIV at age 20, the same year as she began her transition. She has been living in the Boston area since 2004, where she has worked with and at a number of different community organizations, including JRI Health, TransCEND, the Boston Living Center and Cambridge Cares About AIDS. She was also a founding member of the Positive Women's Network -- United States of America (PWN-USA), an organization led by and for HIV+ American women to address the way HIV disproportionately affects women in the U.S. She currently is a steering committee member for the PWN-USA, as well as the HIV Prevention Justice Alliance (HIV PJA).

Read more blogs by women living with HIV/AIDS at "A Girl Like Me"

The Well Project shares its content with TheBody.com to ensure all people have access to the highest quality treatment information available. The Well Project receives no advertising revenue from TheBody.com or the advertisers on this site. No advertiser on this site has any editorial input into The Well Project's content.

Recent Posts:

View All Posts

Interviews With Dee:

Transwomen and HIV With Dee Borrego

This Positive Life: An Interview With Dee Borrego

Conversations Featuring Dee:

Breaking Down Barriers to Transgender Health and HIV Care

Through the Lens of Community: Trans Inclusion in Women's and LGBT Organizations

Articles by Dee:

How to Survive a Plague Screening and Discussion

Criminal Musings at AIDS 2012

The Global Village Effect

Sexual Rights of HIV-Positive Transwomen

Misunderstood Communities: Building Bridges Between "Them" and "Us"

A Reflection on USCA's Coverage of and Dialogue on Transgender Issues

A Brief Disclaimer:

The opinions expressed by TheBody.com's bloggers are entirely their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of TheBody.com itself.

TheBody.com App for iPhones My Health Tracker Medication and Health Reminders Assess Your Risk for HIV Follow Us: Facebook, Twitter, RSS U.S. ASO Finder

The Body: About The Body | Contact The Body | Content Policy | Content Providers | Advertise With Us | Site Map

Remedy Health Media: About Remedy Health Media | Contact Remedy Health Media | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

The Body is a service of Remedy Health Media, LLC, 250 West 57th Street, New York, NY 10107. The Body and its logos are trademarks of Remedy Health Media, LLC, and its subsidiaries, which owns the copyright of The Body's homepage, topic pages, page designs and HTML code. General Disclaimer: The Body is designed for educational purposes only and is not engaged in rendering medical advice or professional services. The information provided through The Body should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or a disease. It is not a substitute for professional care. If you have or suspect you may have a health problem, consult your health care provider.