S4 E8 Intimacy Starts with I: Women, Self-Love, and HIV with Michelle Lopez

Michelle Lopez

CW: Mention of abuse, sexual abuse, physical abuse, incest, molestation

At 24 years old, in the early 90’s, Michelle Lopez was riding a train in New York with her newborn baby and saw an advertisement that spoke to her. It said, “If you’re a woman and you’re enduring substance abuse, homelessness, or battery, call this number.” Michelle picked up a phone and began her new life. Her and her daughter were diagnosed with HIV, and it was her mission to get clean, understand her own trauma, and help others with similar stories.

Michelle, a bisexual Caribbean woman, realized that women living with HIV continue to be ostracized for both wanting and having sex. Michelle knew she had to combat this and teach herself and others about self-love, pleasure, and intimacy. She has spent her career advocating for HIV prevention and treatment, women’s health, mental health, sexuality, and how to unlearn feelings of shame. She says, “I recognized getting clean would give me more power to fight against situations and circumstances and stand up for my rights. I had to learn what it is to love Michelle and deal with the trauma that I endured.” Michelle shares how she utilizes her experiences from childhood to the present to educate others through clinical work, research, and advocacy. Her story is one of empowerment, celebration, and making lemonade with the lemons she was given.

Download the transcript of this episode.

Resources:  

Michelle Lopez LinkedIn

CAPTC World AIDS Day Page

HIV.gov 

Bio:  

Michelle Lopez is a tireless advocate for public health among Black and Latinx communities. Over the last 30 years, Michelle has worked in HIV and AIDS prevention and health care navigation and substance use services. Michelle has served on boards of directors and advised on policy development that impacts the lives of marginalized communities. Michelle is now focusing on research designs methodology to meaningfully engages community members.

PrEP Learning Collaborative Archived Sessions

This page houses PrEP Learning Collaborative videos and slides from 03/2022 to 09/2024. Sessions occurring after 09/2024 will be entered individually as resources.

West Region Social Media Directory

Welcome to the West Region Social Media Directory!

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The West Region Social Media Directory provides links to the social media accounts of HIV prevention programs in the West region of the United States.

To use the directory, click on the social media handles next to the corresponding prevention program to see how your peers are promoting HIV prevention online.

Request Peer-To-Peer Technical Assistance:

If you discover a program’s social media and would like to set up a peer-to-peer request as technical assistance (TA) to learn more about their campaign, please see below.

For organizations directly funded by CDC:

  • Check with your CDC Project Officer about your TA need.
  • Submit a CBA tracking systems (CTS) request. You can access CTS here.
  • Request peer-to-peer TA with the program you wish to meet.

For organizations not directly funded by CDC:

  • Contact your CDC-funded health department to submit a CTS request.
  • Ask to request peer-to-peer TA with the program you wish to meet.

May 2023 Is PrEP for Me: Addressing PrEP Disparities for Black People (Part 2)

May 18, 2023

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May 2023 Is PrEP for Me: Addressing PrEP Disparities for Black People (Part 1)

May 11, 2023

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April 2023 Injectable PrEP Retention and Equity

April 20, 2023

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California PrEP Financing Update, December 15, 2021

STI Clinical Update Webinar-Back to Basics: Fundamentals of STI/HIV Prevention

Tuesday, March 28, 2023 from 12:00-1:15PM (PDT)
A review of screening, treatment, and vaccination tools to prevent STIs and HIV.
Presented by Drs. Caterina Liu and Kurtis Mohr

Learning Objectives:

  • Review screening and treatment guidance for STIs and HIV.
  • Integrate biochemical prevention tools for STIs and HIV into clinical practice.
  • Summarize recommendations for Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, HPV, meningitis, and mpox vaccination.

January 2023 Seminar on Injectable PrEP Financing and Logistics

January 19, 2023

Slides

Social Media Strategies Learning Collaborative Video Playlist

Web marketing specialist using their phone and laptop to create engaging social media content.

Watch presentations and discussions from our Social Media Strategies Learning Collaborative.

The purpose of the learning collaborative was to highlight examples of social media strategies that successfully engaged communities into HIV prevention programs. Presenters and participants discussed ways to leverage dating apps, reach populations and educate communities about PrEP.

Watch the highlights on our YouTube page!