Living with HIV
Health-related issues for people living with HIV
Contents
For HIV treatment, please see our Treatment section.
What Does HIV Do to You?
How HIV affects your body
- HIV: The Basics from Managing your health, CATIE’s guide for people living with HIV
- What Does HIV Do to You? from A Practical Guide to HIV Drug Treatment, CATIE’s guide to antiretroviral therapy
Monitoring Your Health
Tests to monitor HIV infection and overall health
- HIV Viral Load Testing, an introduction to the viral load test, answering basic questions about how it fits into a treatment plan
Side Effects and Symptoms
Side effects of HIV treatments and HIV symptoms and how to handle them
- A Practical Guide to HIV Drug Side Effects for People Living with HIV, CATIE’s guide to common HIV drug side effects, with tips on how to handle them
- Ask the Experts: Aches and Pains from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Ask the Experts: Nausea and Vomiting from The Positive Side
See also Side Effects in the Treatment section
Long-Term Health
Long-term health issues that can affect people living with HIV
- A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV, CATIE's guide to preventing and managing multiple health conditions for people living with HIV
- Diabetes and Blood Sugar Problems from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV
- Hormone Changes from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV
Aging with HIV
The impact of aging for people living with HIV
- HIV and aging, healthy living tips for people 50 and over living with HIV
- Managing Multiple Conditions from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV, CATIE's guide to preventing and managing multiple health conditions for people living with HIV
- Growing Old Gracefully from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
Bone health
Bone health for people living with HIV
- Bone Health from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV, CATIE's guide to preventing and managing multiple health conditions for people living with HIV
- Boning Up on Bone Health from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Bone Health from TreatmentUpdate, CATIE's digest on HIV and hepatitis C research and treatment
Brain health
Brain health and cognitive issues for people living with HIV
- Brain Health from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV, CATIE's guide to preventing and managing multiple health conditions for people living with HIV
- A Mind of Her Own from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
Emotional health
Emotional and mental health issues for people living with HIV
- HIV and emotional wellness – how people with HIV can cultivate their emotional well-being
- Coping with stress from Managing Your Health, CATIE’s guide for people living with HIV
- Ask the Experts: Anxiety from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Ask the Experts: Learning to Live with Grief from The Positive Side
Heart health
Cardiovascular health for people living with HIV
- Cardiovascular Health from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV, CATIE's guide to preventing and managing multiple health conditions for people living with HIV
- Keep Your Ticker Tocking from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- HIV and cardiovascular disease – CATIE fact sheet
- Ask the Experts: Managing Lipid Levels from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
HIV and chronic inflammation
Inflammation caused by HIV and its effects on the body
- Oxidative Stress and Inflammation from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV, CATIE's guide to preventing and managing multiple health conditions for people living with HIV
- Inflammation Information from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Inflammation and HIV from TreatmentUpdate, CATIE's digest on HIV and hepatitis C research and treatment
- Why all the fuss about inflammation? from CATIE News, CATIE’s HIV and hepatitis C news bulletins
HIV-related infections and cancers
Infections and cancers that can affect people living with HIV
- HIV-related infections and cancers from Managing Your Health, CATIE’s guide for people living with HIV
Infections
Cancers
- Fact sheets on cancers
- Anti-Cancer Agents from TreatmentUpdate, CATIE's digest on HIV and hepatitis C research and treatment
Kidney health
Kidney health for people living with HIV
- Kidney Health from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV, CATIE's guide to preventing and managing multiple health conditions for people living with HIV
- The Kidneys from TreatmentUpdate, CATIE's digest on HIV and hepatitis C research and treatment
- Kidneys Take Centre Stage from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Ask the Experts: Kidney Health from The Positive Side
Liver health
Liver health for people living with HIV
- Liver Health from A Practical Guide to a Healthy Body for People Living with HIV, CATIE's guide to preventing and managing multiple health conditions for people living with HIV
- Me and My Liver from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Liver Toxicity from A Practical Guide to HIV Drug Side Effects, CATIE’s guide to common HIV drug side effects
HIV and Pregnancy
Pregnancy and pregnancy planning options for people living with HIV
- Having a Healthy Baby from The Power of Undetectable: What you need to know about HIV treatment as prevention
- You can have a healthy pregnancy if you are HIV positive
- Pregnancy and infant feeding: Can we say U=U about the risk of passing HIV to an infant? from Prevention in Focus, CATIE’s online prevention resource
- Is Formula Good for My Baby? – The Teresa Group
More on reproductive and maternal health
Websites
- Caring for kids – Canadian Paediatric Society
- HIVE – University of California San Francisco
Disclosure
Telling others you have HIV
- Breaking the News from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- How do I tell my kids? (A booklet about HIV disclosure in the family) – Teresa Group
- Disclosure: Telling someone you are living with HIV – Positive Living Society of British Columbia
- HIV disclosure: Figuring out how to tell romantic and sexual partners – Positive Women’s Network
- HIV disclosure: A guide for youth – Positive Women’s Network
- HIV disclosure: Figuring out how to tell children and family – Positive Women’s Network
For more on Disclosure, see Legal issues for people living with HIV.
HIV in Specific Populations
People from specific populations who are living with HIV
- Population-Specific HIV/AIDS Status Report: People Living With HIV/AIDS – Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)
Gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM)
Gay and other MSM living with HIV
- The epidemiology of HIV in gay men and other men who have sex with men
- Sex and the Poz Gay Man from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Population-Specific HIV/AIDS Status Report: Gay, Bisexual, Two-Spirit and Other Men Who Have Sex With Men – Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)
Women
Women living with HIV
- The epidemiology of HIV in women
- Women and HIV from Managing Your Health, CATIE’s guide for people living with HIV
- Women Lovin': A sexual health guide for queer women – AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT)
For more, see Women in the Specific populations section of Prevention.
People who use drugs
People who use drugs and are living with HIV
- The epidemiology of HIV in people who inject drugs in Canada
- Pre-fix, CATIE’s comprehensive new guide to living with Hep C or HIV for people who inject drugs
For more, see People who Use Substances in the Specific populations section of Prevention.
Aboriginal peoples
Aboriginal peoples living with HIV
- A Mile in Our Moccasins: HIV education and awareness through lived experiences and an Indigenous lens
- Honouring our Journey – Chee Mamuk
- Speak With a Strong Voice – Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network
- The criminalization of HIV – Kimamow Atoskanow Foundation
For more, see Aboriginal Peoples in the Specific populations section of Prevention.
Children
Children living with HIV
- Children and HIV from Managing Your Health, CATIE’s guide for people living with HIV
For more, see Children in the Specific populations section of Prevention.
Youth
Young people living with HIV
- Talkin' 'Bout My Generation from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Growing Up with HIV from The Positive Side
- My Sex Life: Info for Young Poz People – AIDS Committee of Toronto (ACT) | CATIE
For more, see Young people in the Specific populations section of Prevention.
Older adults
Older people living with HIV
- HIV and aging from Managing Your Health, CATIE’s guide for people living with HIV
- Growing Old Gracefully from The Positive Side, CATIE’s health and wellness magazine for people living with HIV
- Aging and HIV – Toronto People With AIDS Foundation
For more see Older Adults in the Specific populations section of Prevention
Ethnocultural communities
People living with HIV from ethnocultural communities
For more, see Ethnocultural communities in the Specific populations section of Prevention.
Immigrants, refugees and non-status people
Immigrants, refugees and non-status people living with HIV
- Immigrants, refugees and non-status people with HIV from Managing Your Health, CATIE’s guide for people living with HIV
For more, see Immigrants, Refugees and People Without Immigration Status in the Specific populations section of Prevention.
National HIV Organizations
Contact information for HIV organizations and health ministries in Canada
HIV 411
HIV411 provides access to up-to-date information about HIV/AIDS and related services in Canada
Provincial and Territorial Ministries of Health
Contact information for provincial and territorial ministries of health
- Alberta - Ministry of Health and Wellness
- British Columbia - Ministry of Health Services
- Manitoba - Department of Health
- New Brunswick - Department of Health
- Newfoundland and Labrador - Ministry of Health and Community Services
- Northwest Territories - Department of Health and Social Services
- Nova Scotia - Department of Health
- Nunavut - Department of Health and Social Services
- Ontario - Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care
- Prince Edward Island - Department of Health and Wellness
- Quebec - Le ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux
- Saskatchewan - Ministry of Health
- Yukon - Department of Health and Social Services
National Organizations
