At Black CAP we know that contracting HIV does not mean that your life is going to end. Many of the clients, staff and volunteers involved in Black CAP have been living with HIV and AIDS for many, many years. These days most people living with HIV/AIDS can stay healthy for a long period of time when taking appropriate treatment and medication, in most cases we’re talking decades, not months or years. The best way to live a long and healthy life with HIV is to seek support and find information. The reality is that the best defense against HIV requires three things, community support, information and good healthcare and treatment.

We totally recognize that finding out that you are HIV positive can be both stressful and overwhelming. Many people feel that it is the end of their life, many of us at Black CAP would say that it is the beginning of a new life though. Finding the appropriate support systems in a good friend, a Black CAP counselor, a doctor or a family member in whom you personally feel you can rely on, is a good way to start and a good way to live with HIV.

The reality is that you can:

• Still go to work or to school
• Have a healthy and happy love life
• Enjoy sex again
• Have children
• Live a life much like the one you have planned

There is no doubt that you will need to find the right kind of information and supports to achieve these things. Contact us to learn more about how you can learn to live with the virus.