4/17/2025

Are you a person that is best described as “glass half full” or “glass half empty”? I have noticed people are unaware of what type of person they are until life becomes a little more challenging. Most of us function the best we can each day. We do our work to the best of our skills. We parent our children as best as we know how. We care for our parents, spouse and loved ones as best as we can. We do well in school. We make the best decisions that we can at the time we are facing the choice. When there is a challenge, we do what needs to be done to “fix” the problem.

In the last few months, many people are living in a world of fear. We worry about the market, jobs, immigration proceedings, retirement funds, health and healthcare, paying for college, paying for groceries…..we have a lot to worry about. But some people even in the face of fear and worry are able to live a “glass half full” life filled with hope. How do they do it?

Trauma is described as a negative life event. Experts in this field do not define what a negative life event is – each of us defines this for ourselves. Living the last few months in constant fear can be framed as trauma. The following list of symptoms may be experienced if you continue live in fear – difficulty sleeping, unwanted thoughts, hypervigilance or being on guard, difficulty managing your emotions, negative thoughts and feelings, or feelings of aggression and irritability. If you are experiencing these symptoms, I urge you to find ways to work through the stress. A few strategies to help work past the fear include finding and accepting support, make sure that the support you are receiving is judgement free and does not continue the fearful conversations, connect with others in fun and adventurous ways, move your body, pay attention to your feelings, practice-self-care, avoid recreational drugs and alcohol, step out or take a break when things seem overwhelming, do yoga or meditation, and find a way to be creative. 

All of the strategies highlighted above help you to shift your perspective from fear to hope. As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope." Our fear and our symptoms are real but they do not have to be our reality. We can live in hope and believe in change.  We can understand the reality but we can live a “glass half full” life that believes in the hope of human kind and the power of working together for positive change.

For everyone celebrating a religious holiday please take this time to reflect, replenish and rejoice in the beauty of our life experiences!

Our next meeting for Region 3 will be on May 13th at 10:00 A.M.

In these meetings we take space for those to highlight work, accomplishments, and prove that those who are HIV+ thrive and are successful. As long as you're willing to help move the needle forward, by any action small or large, we genuinely want you to join us.

This year we're focused on mapping services that clients can access in our eight county region. We know that the work you currently, do, and might even begin to do is so critical to this effort. Even if you might not join us, we encourage to forward this invite to anyone who might be interested. After all, we're all in this together. 

Can we count on you to join us? If so, click the button below for more information on how to do so.

We can't wait to see you there.

Take a moment and imagine what we’d ask ourselves after receiving devastating health news. Will our health insurance cover this (if you have it)? Do we have a way to consistently get to our appointments? Do we have a safe place to live? Can we keep our homes if we miss work due to this? Will my friends and family be there for me?

For those we help, unfortunately those questions are met with extreme uncertainty. For this reason, PWA urges you to consider making a planned monthly donation to PWA. For as little as $30 a month, you can help heat a home in the winter and have A/C in the summer. For $50 a month you help children get a healthy breakfast each day. For $100 a month, you can help provide a housing deposit that allows a single parent to move into an apartment. 

In today’s challenging times, let’s come together to make sure that we can help as many as possible.