A Model Example: Rebekka Armstrong, Former Playboy Playmate Turned HIV Activist

Rebekka Armstrong, 34, a former Playboy Playmate turned HIV activist, is on a speaking tour of the United Kingdom to address sexual boundaries with teenagers. At 18, she escaped to Los Angeles where she became what she euphemistically calls a swimwear and lingerie model. She was soon incredibly successful, becoming Playboy's Miss September in 1986. But by the age of 22, Armstrong had become chronically fatigued. She took an HIV test as part of an overall physical. It was the craze in Los Angeles clubs to carry proof of a negative test result. But hers came back positive.

Armstrong now believes that she contracted HIV at 16, either from a lover or a blood transfusion. For five years, Armstrong kept her diagnosis a secret, attempting to maintain her modeling career while her body was being ravaged by the high doses of AZT she was prescribed. When the side effects became unbearable, she began abusing amphetamines and alcohol. The turning point came when a friend took Armstrong to a seminar for HIV-positive women. She came out about her HIV status in the gay and lesbian magazine the Advocate, and has since talked to thousands of young people in schools and colleges across the United States.

Armstrong's message goes beyond preaching safer sex. "What I want people to go away with is the ability to set boundaries and make a mental note of their own limitations, so that they don't put themselves at risk," she says. "Every time I tell my story, I get back twice as much as I give," she said. "So I win."

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