Substance Abuse & HIV/AIDS: First Person

Show Archived (Historical) Articles

It took Carlos Perez eight years to recover from his addiction to crystal methamphetamine. Click here for his story.

California Campaign Against Meth Abuse Includes First-Person Web Videos (Regularly Updated)
Viewers of MeNotMeth.org can add their own first-person stories to a growing collection of videos and find resources throughout California for fighting meth addiction.
From Me Not Meth
After Sex Work, Homelessness and Drug Addiction, an HIV-Positive Man Comes of Age (Winter 2008/2009)
Kevin was a teenager when he was infected with HIV. In this moving personal story, Kevin explains how his life got so messy -- and how he got the help he needed to clean himself up.
To read PDF, click here
In Achieve, from ACRIA and GMHC
The Drug Addict Takes a Holiday: A Video Blog by Mark S. King (January 13, 2009)
Mark returns to "the scene of the crime": his old haunt in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., from which he fled three years ago to enter drug rehabilitation.
From The Body
U.S. Harm Reduction Programs: The Cloud in the Silver Lining (January 9, 2009)
A closer look at the lives of the heroic people who make needle exchanges and other harm-reduction programs possible in the U.S., but whose own drug problems may go untreated, with tragic results.
In The Wall Street Journal
Florida: One Woman's Odyssey of Drugs, Sex and HIV Leads to a New Life on South Beach (August 9, 2005)
In CDC HIV/Hepatitis/STD/TB Prevention News Update, from U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Living With[out] Crystal Meth (July/August 2005)
Eddie Young describes how he finally came to terms with his relentless drug addiction.
To read PDF, click here
In Positively Aware, from Test Positive Aware Network
Living With Crystal Meth (March/April 2005)
Eddie Young felt his crystal meth habit was harmless at first, but as it grew into a full-blown addiction, he realized that the price he was paying was just too high.
In Survival News, from AIDS Survival Project
I Changed My Mind (September/October 2004)
A gay, HIV-positive drug user who watched his soulmate die from AIDS in 1993, Len Greenough's long descent was stopped at the last moment by two amazing friends -- and a pivotal decision.
In Survival News, from AIDS Survival Project
Meth Addicts Describe the Recovery Process (October 10, 2003)
A detailed, personal look at what it takes for some gay men to beat their crystal meth addictions. This is the last article of a five-part series; previous articles are also available.
In Washington Blade
Living in Spite of It All (July/August 2003)
Bil Romain and his lover tested positive for HIV in 1997 -- but that was just the beginning of his remarkable story of survival.
In Survival News, from AIDS Survival Project
My Kind of Life: Crystal Death-Amphetamine (July/August 2003)
To read PDF, click here
In Positively Aware, from Test Positive Aware Network
User's Corner: "Keepin' It Together" (Summer 2003)
Recovering drug addict Arams talks about the importance of support groups.
In Resolute!, from PWA Coalition Colorado
Crystal: The New Epidemic (June/July 2002)
In Positive Living, from AIDS Project Los Angeles
Land of Oz: Sex, Drugs and HIV (March/April 2002)
To read PDF, click here
In Positively Aware, from Test Positive Aware Network
Positive Empowerment (November/December 2001)
After years of hiding from HIV in drug use, Tyrone Pittman is now positive about being positive.
To read PDF, click here
In Positively Aware, from Test Positive Aware Network
"If I Kill Myself at This Point, I'd Be Killing the Wrong Person": A Memoir (June 2001)
Frank Salinas' story of surviving a life in the orphanage, in prison, with addiction, and with HIV/AIDS, and emerging stronger in the end.
In Body Positive, from Body Positive
I Have HIV: My #1 Disease Is Drug Addiction (Spring 2001)
Former nurse Judith Fadden writes about her years of drug use, two prison terms and road to recovery.
In Women Alive Newsletter, from Women Alive
AIDS in the Twilight Zone (March/April 2000)
An interview with HIV-positive recovering drug addicts who have worked for many years in the sex industry.
In Positively Aware, from Test Positive Aware Network
Reflections on the Suicide of a Circuit Partier (May 1998)
From Rev. A. Stephen Pieters
Living With HIV: A Fighting Chance for Fulfillment (June 1996)
In Positive Living, from AIDS Project Los Angeles

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