#wellbeyond

"Optar por la vida es prolongarla y celebrarla. Suena, Cree, Actua."

"I will not let this define me, and I will not let others define me by a virus."

Wishes for our Well Beyond HIV communities.

“Love yourself…Live Well Beyond HIV”

Well Beyond HIV participant, Wanda, shared her incredible story of surviving and thriving after an HIV diagnosis with Sixty and Me.  Read more about her journey and the importance of never giving up on yourself here 

"Today, I smile when I think of aging with HIV and growing older. "

I was diagnosed with HIV in early 1986. I was a newcomer to the U.S. with no friends or family and barely spoke English. When I learned I was HIV positive, the words echoed in my head for days. I didn’t believe it and took the test not just once but five more times, hoping it was a mistake or an error.

 Like many others, I passed through the different stages of emotion—fear, sadness, denial. But never once did I feel angry. I wasn’t mad at the man who gave it to me and I wasn’t mad at anyone else. I just placed the diagnosis in the back of my head and kept going on with my life. I accepted it as part of my life, but for a long time I internalized it and never opened up to anyone. The first person I told was my mom. We have always been close and when I told her in person, I wanted to assure her that I was going to survive this.

 Now I am open about living with HIV because I’ve learned that being open about my status allows me to help others who are also living with HIV or going through a difficult time. With this in mind, I founded the Facebook group HIV Long Term Survivors, a global network connecting fellow long-term survivors for support during difficult times.

 I’m proud of who I am and what I’ve overcome. Over 20 years ago, I was an immigrant, alone with no health insurance and struggling to make a living. Today, I am a citizen of this country with many good friends to enjoy life with. I’m grateful for the support of my friends, family, social workers and doctors; I wouldn’t be here without them.

 Today, I smile when I think of aging with HIV and growing older. Being a survivor has taught me to have hope and to make long-term plans. I want to grow old with a partner in my own home, have the support of agencies and organizations, and I want to always have a seat at the table of my community as a gay Latino and long-term survivor. It gives me so much pride because most of us were told over and over again that we weren’t going to make it. But here we are, and I’m happy to be here telling my story and showing others that even though we have hard times or difficult moments, it is possible to age and live well with HIV.

- Jesus, age 56/Diagnosed in 1986/ 2015 POZ 100 Honoree/ Last Men Standing Participant

We celebrate all individuals living well beyond their HIV diagnosis.