{"id":388,"date":"2026-10-09T13:59:24","date_gmt":"2026-10-09T13:59:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beyondpositive.org\/sluktest\/?page_id=388"},"modified":"2026-10-09T13:59:25","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T13:59:25","slug":"matthew-hodson","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.beyondpositive.org\/sluktest\/our-campaigns\/positive-people\/matthew-hodson\/","title":{"rendered":"Matthew Hodson"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Matthew Hodson<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\u2018HIV is shit!\u2019 was one response I received to a tweet celebrating my 21 years of living healthily and well with the virus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t know if this was the author\u2019s personal experience \u2013 but it\u2019s not my own. I was lucky enough to be diagnosed a few years into the era of effective HIV treatment. Dosing has improved so that side effects are now minimal. For many people living with HIV, who have access to the vital medicines, the fear and ignorance we encounter may be the greatest challenge that HIV presents. And I\u2019m now immune even to that. I\u2019m HIV and proud. Any HIV serophobia is just water off a duck\u2019s back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A while ago I came to the conclusion that the only way we could successfully tackle the stigma that is still associated with this virus was if people were willing to be open about it. We made great strides in LGBT equality when lesbians and gays started coming out. People were forced to understand that lesbians and gays were everywhere: in their workplace, churches and their families. Similarly, we can tackle much of the prejudice about HIV by refusing to hide our status. People with HIV aren\u2019t frightening or different when you hang out with us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a gay man, going through my teens at a time when homosexuality was still very much taboo, I used to censor myself the whole time. I felt the need to hide parts of myself in the hope that I would be accepted. It didn\u2019t work for being gay; it doesn\u2019t work for being positive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t regret coming out as far and I\u2019ve not regretted the decision to be open about my\u00a0HIV\u00a0status either. It\u2019s been liberating. All of my fear and shame, my self-stigmatising, has been washed away. I don\u2019t fear rejection because I don\u2019t want to be with anyone who would reject someone because they\u2019re\u00a0HIV-positive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But although I\u2019m healthy and feel liberated by being openly, shamelessly\u00a0HIV-positive, others living with the virus don\u2019t feel the same way. There are some who are not healthy, including, but not limited to, those who were diagnosed in the pre-treatment era and those who were diagnosed late.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For some people living with\u00a0HIV\u00a0is a source of huge personal shame. Many people with\u00a0HIV\u00a0haven\u2019t told their families, their work colleagues and some, still, find themselves unable to be open with the people they have sex with. Some who live with\u00a0HIV\u00a0may even condemn others who are open about their status, preferring that no one discuss it at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For me, being open about who I am, about my desires, my strengths and my even my flaws only makes me feel more powerful. What other people think of me is ultimately beyond my control but I know that I\u2019m at my best when I\u2019m fully present. That means not hiding those parts of me, including my\u00a0HIV\u00a0status, just because that\u2019s what others may expect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I didn\u2019t do anything \u2018bad\u2019 to get\u00a0HIV. I had sex. Most of those who seek to criticise or judge have done the same at some point in their lives. So have their mothers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HIV\u00a0is just a virus, not a moral judgement. I\u2019m proud of what I\u2019ve achieved in the years since acquiring\u00a0HIV, and that includes providing encouragement and support to others who are dealing with their diagnosis. I hope that I\u2019ve had some impact challenging stigma. I hope that I\u2019ve been a part of a movement of people who\u2019ve countered the idea that\u00a0HIV\u00a0is\u00a0shit.\u00a0HIV\u00a0doesn\u2019t define me \u2013 and it doesn\u2019t limit me either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You may not be ready to be open about\u00a0HIV. Take your time. But don\u2019t waste your life on feelings of shame or regret.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we smash the viral closet we smash\u00a0HIV\u00a0stigma.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Matthew Hodson \u2018HIV is shit!\u2019 was one response I received to a tweet celebrating my 21 years of living healthily and well with the virus. I don\u2019t know if this was the author\u2019s personal experience \u2013 but it\u2019s not my own. I was lucky enough to be diagnosed a few years into the era of effective HIV treatment. Dosing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":326,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-with-title","meta":{"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-388","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t