San Francisco Therapist

HIV Counseling

We are confronted with ignorance, fear and stigma about HIV on a daily basis. Living with the virus can bring out the best in some of us - for others, the constant stress can lead to difficulties. Wrapping your mind around life with HIV and maintaining a healthy perceptive, can be daunting.

How you think about yourself, your situation, your past, and your future, has a direct effect on your emotional health. It determines whether you thrive, or merely survive. This is true for anyone, but especially so when living with HIV.

I have extensive experience working with people affected by HIV, both here in the US and in South Africa.

I know how challenging it can be:

• when you are first told that you are poz
• when and how to tell friends, family and lovers
• confronting the fear and worry about your health and your future
• feeling 'dirty', 'damaged', 'diseased' and shame
• when sadness and hurt is caused by stigma and ignorance
• feeling angry and depressed about being postive
• dealing with doctors, labs, meds, side-effects and adherence
• negotiating disclosure around sex, dating and relationships
• feeling overwhelmed, tired of it all and wishing it would end

We have an extraordinary will to survive as human beings. Therapy is your opportunity to mindfully unlock that power, to honestly examine your core beliefs about self, others, and your future.

Only you can make the changes that will clear the way for you to:

• make peace with yourself and your life
• be committed to live mindfully in the present
• take action towards a purposeful future