Mmabatho Ranake ‘My Journey With HIV’ will be held on August 31.

Mmabatho Ranake chose to see her HIV diagnosis as a challenge rather than a death sentence. This “can do” attitude birthed her dialogue sessions which she holds annually.

The ‘My Journey With HIV’ 2019 edition will be held at Kwa Malume restaurant in Protea Glen extension 11 on August 31.

Ranake vows to break barriers with her dialogue session this year, issues such as dating while HIV positive and informing your partner about your status. She will also be tackling issues about revealing your status to your family and employers and when you should do it.

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She has been living openly with HIV for the past 15 years. “I always get messages on social media asking for advice and information on HIV so I decided to hold these dialogues. People always ask me why it’s so easy for me to talk about my status and it’s because I want to change people’s perception about HIV,” Ranake said.

Kwa Malume will be celebrating women this women’s month by offering Ranake a space to hold her dialogue session for free and also empowering female DJs by booking them throughout the month of August. Ranake says the biggest challenge people face when discovering that they are HIV positive is finding a way to remain the same person they were before they knew.

“Overcoming, healing and discovering that I can still be the same person I was before discovering this status are some of the challenges people face…we are going to be talking about things that people are afraid to talk about this year,” Ranake concluded.