life experience/age as an asset

Phumzile, age 52 / Johannesburg, South Africa

June 5, 2018 by admin

We need to remember that HIV is a justice issue. If we don’t deal with the structural injustices, people will continue being vulnerable to HIV and AIDS. The religious community has a responsibility to spread positive messages and if we still have negative messages within our religious contexts, I believe that those messages […]

Categories: Africa, Age 50-54, Female • Tags: advocacy, anger, arthritis, body image, caregiving, Caring for Older Adults, children/parenthood, dating, death/dying, depression, diabetes, dignity/respect, doctor/patient relationship, employment/retirement, exercise/fitness, faith/spirituality, family, finances, helping others, HIV/AIDS education, human rights, intergenerational, justice, life experience/age as an asset, married/life partner(s), menopause, positive outlook, pre/post-test counseling, sex/sexuality, side effects, South Africa, stigma, stress, support, treatement access, weight, Women & Girls

Sebastian, age 65 / Harare, Zimbabwe

December 3, 2017 by admin

I remember it was about 15 years ago. I was constantly sick and I didn’t know what was wrong with me. When I was hospitalized for the last time, when I was very, very ill, it was a teaching hospital. A group of students surrounded me and they were asked by a senior doctor […]

Categories: Africa, Age 65-69, Male • Tags: advocacy, ageism, burial, caregiving, Caring for Older Adults, children/parenthood, cost of treatment, death/dying, dignity/respect, disclosure, doctor/patient relationship, family, grandchildren, helping others, HIV/AIDS education, HIV/AIDS myths, intergenerational, life experience/age as an asset, married/life partner(s), moving home, pre/post-test counseling, rural health, stigma, stress, support groups, treatment access, Zimbabwe

Susan, age 54 / New York, USA

June 19, 2017 by admin

I guess I don’t even think about it too much anymore. In the first few years? Like, almost 24/7, it was something that was on my mind: am I gonna be around for my kids? I didn’t even think about grandkids at that time. And I always worried that my daughter would […]

Categories: Age 50-54, Female, North America • Tags: advocacy, anger, cancer, caregiving, CD4 count, children/parenthood, death/dying, disclosure, employment/retirement, family, grandchildren, helping others, HIV/AIDS education, intergenerational, isolation, life experience/age as an asset, married/life partner(s), mother-to-child transmission, nutrition, positive outlook, stress, stroke, support, United States, Women & Girls, working in HIV/AIDS community

Bob, age 69 / Warkworth, Canada

December 2, 2016 by admin

HIV is the kind of thing you can’t really understand until you experience it, because remember, in those days we’re talking about, it was a death sentence. And since then, we’ve had to go through this period where, after treatment, suddenly it wasn’t a death sentence. That’s a – I use the expression “mind-fuck,” for […]

Categories: Age 65-69, Male, North America • Tags: ACTIVISM, ageism, Canada, clinical trials, death/dying, dignity/respect, grief/loss, isolation, life experience/age as an asset, long-term survivors, memory/brain health, rural health, stress, treatment access

Olive, age 53/ Saint Catherine, Jamaica

December 1, 2016 by admin

I actually don’t do “My Story.” I don’t do testimonies. People like other people’s business, so it’s not what I do. It’s about the issues. The challenges of really living and coping, and serving, and supporting, and peer needs and so on. Yeah. It’s fine what we are going to be doing, in that it […]

Categories: Age 50-54, Female, North America • Tags: celibacy, dating, disclosure, doctor/patient relationship, employment/retirement, faith/spirituality, family, helping others, HIV/AIDS community dynamics, HIV/AIDS education, intergenerational, Jamaica, life experience/age as an asset, pre/post-test counseling, sex/sexuality, stigma, support groups, treatment a, working in HIV/AIDS community

Neale, age 54, and Max, age 60 / Melbourne, Australia

November 30, 2015 by admin

Neale: I met this man while we were conversing online. It was really a meeting of minds on a whole lot of levels. I could sense that he was very open about his status. He worked for an organization where he was identifiable as a positive man, and I was intrigued with how he […]

Categories: Age 50-54, Age 60-64, Couple, Male • Tags: Australia, dating, disclosure, fear, fear of transmission, libido, life experience/age as an asset, love, positive partners, sex/sexuality

Bev, age 63 / Gunditjmara Nation, Wangaratta, Australia

December 1, 2014 by admin

I don’t feel OLD old, ‘cause I’m still feeling young, because I’m still here, you know. I feel really grateful that I don’t ponder on, oh, you know, I’m turning into this old woman or anything. I used to be offended when, say 10 years ago, when people would stand up for me in the […]

Categories: Age 60-64, Asia-Pacific, Female • Tags: Aboriginal/Indigenous/First Nations, Australia, children/parenthood, grandchildren, gratitude, life experience/age as an asset, positive outlook

Claire, age 55/ San Francisco, CA, USA

November 30, 2014 by admin

I just remember being very naïve, you know, and people would tell me to do something, and I would do it. I didn’t know any better. The good news is is that they told me– this is when AZT was the only treatment. And they put me on AZT and I just took it, because […]

Categories: Age 55-59, Female, North America • Tags: AZT/early medications, gratitude, HIV/AIDS education, HIV/AIDS myths, Illness/Wellness, life experience/age as an asset, privilege, shame, side effects, treatment adherence, United States

The Graying of AIDS

Stories From An Aging Pandemic

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