Sometimes it can be good just to talk to someone about how HIV affects you, whether you are positive or supporting someone who is positive.

Our Support Services Co-ordinator can simply listen to you and/or will help you resolve any issues you may have. Sometimes it will be necessary to recommend other appropriate services with specialist skills/knowledge and he/she will set up appointments for you.

For example, if you need help with a particular emotional issue or problem, then the Support Services Co-ordinator can arrange for you to access our counselling services to help you develop ways to deal with your issues.

A range of therapies are offered with the aim of improving your physical and emothional health, to ensure that you are better able to cope with the demands of living with or supporting someone who is HIV positive.

For example aromatherapy massage can at a simple level make you feel relaxed which reduces stress. At another level, it can help to alleviate the side-effects of medications or boost the immune system to keep it healthy.

Therapies currently on offer include: aromatherapy massage, Indian Head massage, Reflexology, Reiki, yoga, art therapy and creative visualisation.

These can cover a wide range of topics which encourage our service users to maintain healthy living habits including eating well for better health, practicing relaxation techniques, learning about HIV medications and regimes, understanding your own sexual health and how HIV impacts on it, and building self-esteem.

There are times when it can be beneficial to share common concerns with other people in a similar situation. Sharing like this may help you see a way forward that you previously wouldn’t have seen or can help you recognise that there are others experiencing similar problems.

We offer a number of group situations including a group for recently diagnosed people and a group for people who have been living with HIV long term.

Other possible groups include a carers group, a group for women who have been diagnosed through ante-natal screening, a group for gay men, a group for Black Africans and a support group for women.

These can be provided on a one-to-one basis for example through The Citizen Advice Bureau provided in-house on practical issues such as benefits, housing etc., in a group setting or by availing of information available on all aspects of HIV and sexual health and can provide magazines specifically for people affected by HIV.

We also provide internet access in our Belfast office.

This service has many different levels. At a basic level, you may feel that you need someone to talk to openly on a regular basis, without having to hide your HIV status, then we can arrange for you to be assigned a Home Support Volunteer.

This volunteer will meet with you at mutually convenient locations and times for a coffee perhaps. Home Support Volunteers can also help by visiting you at home and helping with household chores if you need that little extra bit of help due to illness or change in medication regimes.

We have a limited number of respite opportunities available for people who are recovering after an illness or a long hospital stay.

These are held in relaxing environments, usually over a weekend, giving our service users an opportunity to meet with other service users who have similar concerns.

They are particularly beneficial for service users who can be otherwise quite isolated and helps develop service users own network of contacts for support, which can be called on at a later date.

We can assist you in accessing various hardship funds.

We try to encourage our service users to build their networks of contacts so that they can develop their own support systems with people they want to keep in touch with and feel they have made a connection with.

To this end we organise various social events throughout the year such as a Christmas Party, Women’s Days and a Halloween Party for families with children.