After all, she was the girl who had a full panel STI/STD screening every quarter.
I felt like I was on a rapid deceleration, and life had cut my brake lines.
An entire rollercoaster and wave of all emotions.
God & Man
Her diagnosis prompted LaDeia to question everything she had done to get to that point.
Fight or flight kicked in, she recalls.
All I knew is that I didnt want to die.
However, some reconciliation was in order.
I was angry with God, she said, and in some ways, with herself.
It forced her to heal some long-standing wounds, she says.
And that was just the beginning.
Today, LaDeia is an activist and HIV+ influencer, helping to educate, inform and uplift her community.
I kept Googling, I am HIV+, now what?'
Everything that I was finding was very white, very male, and very gay.
Being an inspiration comes from this being heart work… this is ministry for me, she says.
These depictions are deeply rooted in stigma and stereotypes that are so far from the truth.
Black women are the most vulnerable population of women when it comes to HIV transmission, she says.
