Serving San Diego’s HIV Community
Who we serve:
Every once in a while I get questions regarding the community we serve;
Do I have to be HIV+ to attend your events?
I want to learn more about living with HIV for a good friend who was just diagnosed
My brother/uncle/father/cousin/sister/mother/husband has HIV. How can I support them?
Isn’t HIV over, I thought there was a cure
POZabilities was formed to provide an opportunity for the community to gather in a place without the stigma and isolation that fear of HIV generated in the early years of the epidemic. A place beyond the bars and other traditionally gay meeting places. We still work to counter the loneliness and isolation that are all too easily found in the community still. The fear of HIV is greatly reduced as it is widely recognized as a treatable condition, however many of us who survived the early years are now aging with HIV. Aging carries its own level of stigma and isolation in the community. The need to support and educate the community is just as necessary today as it was 26 years ago when POZabilities was formed.
The best antidote to this stigma is to know people living with and affected by HIV and to be a part of an accepting and loving community. It is said that familiarity breeds contempt, but in this case just the opposite occurs. If you know someone who is gay, HIV+, older or different than you in ways you have been taught to fear, you soon recognize that they are just people living with one of many challenges that face all of us day to day. For this reason our mission is to create a community of people who come together to share space, tech, learn, enjoy and celebrate each other. You can be HIV+, have friends or relatives affected by HIV, provide services to the community or just want to learn more and be a part of the community of support. We won’t ask your status and ALL are always welcome s long as you are supportive of the community and its goals.
So how do we build and grow our supportive community? We have 3 main program areas we use to do this;
Social Support;
We have regular and ad hoc events that allow people to gather together and share stories, a meal or just hang out. Weekly coffee at Lestat’s Hillcrest, walks at the San Diego Zoo every Friday, a monthly bonfire, trips to museums, picnics , movies or whatever the group comes up with. All of our events are run by volunteers, so by and for the community. We work hard to make sure everyone is welcomed if they respect the group and its members. Even if there is a cost, if someone can’t afford to go we can usually work it out. About the only thing we avoid is Zoom and virtual meetings. It’s hard to fight loneliness and isolation if you can’t gather face to face, so all of our events take place in person.
Healthy Living:
Multiple studies have clearly shown the positive benefits of exercise and good nutrition on teh health and quality of life of people aging with HIV. Cardiovascular health, liver and kidney, muscle wasting and delaying frailty and cognitive decline are all improved by taking the time to get out and be active. A combination of light cardio and strength training will make a difference, you will feel it and see the results when you get your lab results over time. For this reason POZabilities has worked to provide a numbe of outlets to both educate and actively enable folks to get out and move as well as understand the impact of nutrition on HIV and aging. We welcome all to join us for strength training or yoga as well as our nutrition classes, although we encourage folks to do this through any opportunity you are comfortable with.
Education:
Our philosophy on HIV education is simple. You can learn about the science and theory at any number of organizations around San Diego, but we focus on things that are actionable in our daily lives.Our classes and town halls are focused on teaching and passing on information about things that you can take home and apply to your lives now. We hold occasional sessions as we come across information that we believe can benefit those aging or living with HIV now. If members of the community have ideas on what we should be talking about or experts we should hear from, we will work to make that happen.
Each of these programs are designed to get people together in community through activities that are fun, engaging and possibly educational. We use our expanded definition of the community we serve to ensure each event has people from all walks of life and who view the HIV epidemic through different lenses. This helps to address stigma by exposing people living with HIV to the rest of the community in a supportive manner and giving those not HIV+ exposure to people living with HIV. This blending of perspectives helps reduce the fear of getting out into the community and making new friends addresses loneliness through events designed and run by members of the community.
If you have thoughts on how we can improve our services, please let us know at poz@pozabilities.org.
