Know your status! Popular IG model linked to celebs learns she’s had HIV/AIDS for nearly a decade
Not only is it important to know your status, it is even more important to not engage in unprotected sex with others, at least until you know theirs, particularly when it comes to HIV/ AIDS.
A hard lesson and extremely sympathetic reminder is on display after former Instagram model, Gena Tew, recently revealed on TikTok that not only does she have HIV/AIDS, but she has been living with the virus for almost a decade, unbeknownst to her.
She bravely shared her diagnosis on social media, showing her now frail frame and the toll the disease has taken on her body. Her posts show her weight mostly varies between 65 and 95 pounds.
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She can barely walk, is partially blind and is in constant physical therapy.
“So I get this question a lot. I do not know who gave it to me or where I got it, how I got it,” the 27-year-old model shared. “All I know is that because I was so sick at the point of death, that they said I had to have it for eight to 10 years.”
She went on to explain that, during that time period, she was homeless while living in New York, had been raped a couple of times and that she had received a number of free tattoos – possibly exposing to dirty needles.
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Reports across the internet and social media say the model has been linked to celebrities including Chris Brown and Nick Cannon, but the extent is not known.
“I was naive, I was stupid and I was dumb,” Tew said.
Well, we have to say, you are not either of those words you called yourself. You are BRAVE and BEAUTIFUL. Keep fighting and many can appreciate you sharing your story. We send our prayers, love and well wishes for healing and comfort to you.
