Ingrid Floyd

​Twenty Five Years ago last month, the doors opened at 2271 Second Avenue and, with a staff of four, Iris House began serving a community of women of color who were living with HIV.  Two and a half-decades later, we had a chance to honor our founding board president, Sukey Wagner, who brought together some of our original board members to celebrate with us at Stage 48.
 
Several longtime associates — women who knew Iris De La Cruz personally — were brought to tears during the evening.  For them, the evening wasn’t just a celebration, but also had aspects of a memorial.  So many of our founding  sisters — clients, community members and board members alike — never got to see Iris House’s ascent or the amazing successes we’ve accumulated since 1993.  We want to make sure that as joyous as an anniversary is, that we remember Iris House was built in part by women who knew they were dying and wanted to ensure their children were safe and had a future.
 
I hope those women would be proud of the work we’ve done and how we’ve tried to keep their founding vision in front of us.  We include male and transgender clients today, but we have kept our focus on what makes us special in New York City’s HIV community:  our ability to design and deliver gender-specific care, our interest in meeting clients where they are emotionally and physically, and our refusal to keep quiet when greater advocacy is required.   After 25 years, you’d think that women would always have an equal place at the table, but we know that our world doesn’t always honor or acknowledge the value in that.  We may be 25 years old, but our work is as important and as urgent as ever.
 
I want to thank YOU, our friends and supporters, for always having our back and for ensuring that we can continue to deliver thoughtful, creative and personalized programs to all of the clients in our care.  Without your support, yesterday, today and tomorrow, these voices might go unheard and forgotten.
 

Iris House is entering our 25th year of services to the community. This is a really exciting time as we continue to provide critical support services to persons who are HIV+, people who are unaware of how to prevent HIV infection, those who are living with other chronic illnesses such as diabetes and hypertension, persons who are food insecure and those who face chronic homelessness. Our services have continued to evolve as we focus on the needs of women, men and families in communities hard hit by various socio-economic disparities.  In order to evolve we continue to implement new programs, like our new client choice community pantry and education program and our new housing program for persons diagnosed with mental health or substance use disorders. We are excited that our HIV Prevention and Education services have expanded nationally through a new grant from ViiV Healthcare to support Love Your Life, a program to connect women living with HIV across the country to resources in their local communities and online.  Our Board of Directors continues to evolve by adding new members, such as Vanessa Johnson, a fierce HIV advocate for women and we continue to look for others to join our dynamic board. Our staff evolve by learning new interventions that can better educate those they serve and our leadership team stands ready to take the  organization into its next phase.
 
I have been at Iris House for over 12 years and I have seen the tremendous work the organization does in New York and New Jersey and the amazing work at the national level on various committees. I hear countless stories from clients who say that Iris House has saved their life, whether it be a woman who was using street drugs for many years and had nowhere else to turn once she learned of her HIV diagnosis or young men who come for i-Zone, our weekly group for GBTQ men, because it’s the only place they feel safe and supported. Recently a client just walked up to me and hugged me and simply said “Thank You” and a staff member who was out on medical leave text “I really miss you guys”. As we think about 25 years of serving our community and what the future holds for Iris House, it’s this community of people that helps me to know it’s worth it and the work we do really does save lives!

This message originally appeared in the 2017 Fall Newsletter.

Michael Barret Jones, Director of Development

Undetectable = Untransmittable.  PrEP.  Treatment as Prevention.

We are on the cusp of something big here:  in the last few years, tremendous strides have been made and technologies unleashed that can help prevent transmission of the HIV virus between sero-discordant partners, and that's amazing.

If we can control new infections, we're on our way to ending the epidemic, right?

Well, yes and no.  Epidemiologists might say yes, that if you can contain the virus and keep it from spreading, that the epidemic is over.   If you are undetectable, science has demonstrated over and over again that you cannot pass the virus onto a partner.  If you are on PrEP (a once daily pill that acts as a pre-exposure prophylaxis), an invading virus can't get a toe-hold and dies trying, leaving one uninfected.  These are both great advances, and will truly help save lives, ease fears and anxieties, and reduce stigma.  (The CDC and Iris House still recommend condom use along with TASP and PrEP.)

At Iris House, approximately 80% of our HIV+ clients have been declared "undetectable." New York City and New York State are both at 67% undetectable.    This is great news:  we have an above average rate of clients managing their treatment plans, staying adherent to their prescriptions and working to improve their overall health.   Yet, our work, and the need for support programs, is desperately needed.

We have three challenges here: two that stand in the way of ending the epidemic and one which will continue even after we declare the war over.

1)  "Undetectable" is aspirational, but not obtainable for everyone.  Some people with HIV are resistant to certain classes of drugs.  Some need help facing mental health or addiction issues that interfere with their ability to remain treatment adherent.  Some face such tremendous stigma in their homes, families, churches and communities that they don't seek treatment, even when they know they are HIV+.  These aren't people to judge or to pity, these are people for whom repeated contacts, followups, assistance, outreach and compassion are required.  If they can't reach "undetectable," then the epidemic isn't truly over.

2) A Need for a Cure.  Say everyone living with HIV is undetectable.  They might get a cold, or have an illness or infection that challenges their body's immune system:  bam!  a weakened immune system can lead to a temporary rise of the viral load back in to the detectable status.  At that point, it is transmissible, and is able to cause damage to the body in other ways and open it up to opportunistic infections.  As long as there are still live viruses, detectable or not, there's always a chance for them to bounce back.  

3)  Support for Long Term Survivors.  Individuals who have been living with the virus and its impact on their body, mind and finances for a decade or more, face even greater challenges.  They may have been out of the workforce, they may have physical ailments which can never be overcome, they may still be living with PTSD from their initial diagnosis, or depending on how long they've been living with HIV, from having seen too many loved ones fall along the way.  Even with "Undetectable" and the possibility of a cure, long term survivors may continue to need support services for the rest of their lives.  Mental health, substance abuse, physical challenges:  these don't go away with medication and require individually tailored therapies.  Functional job training, confidence building and opportunities in the job market (for those who are able) are also crucial, as well as incentives for employers hiring people who have been out of the workforce for decades.

Until this epidemic is over for all of us, it isn't over for any of us.

In the meantime, we need to make sure people know how to prevent transmission, how to take care of themselves, and how to rebuild their lives after decades spent literally at war.

At Iris House, we're here for them.  Are you?

by guest blogger
​Anne Forbes

Reduce Your Cholesterol With a Healthy Diet
Recently discovered that your cholesterol levels are too high? You’re not alone. More than 102 million Americans currently have cholesterol levels that are higher than they should be. High cholesterol increases your risk of heart disease and of suffering a heart attack, but you don’t have to suffer for the rest of your life; it is also a reversible condition, and it is entirely possible to reduce your cholesterol back down to healthy levels. If you are HIV+ then having high cholesterol levels could prove particularly dangerous to your health, and it is important to keep your levels under control in order to remain as fit and healthy as possible, so that you have the physical strength you need to battle your condition.
Many people are reluctant to take cholesterol lowering medications, particularly if they are already taking a cocktail of drugs for other conditions: they may not want to put more chemicals in their system, or they may not be able to afford or have the health insurance to cover yet more medication. The good news is that, if you are prepared to put in some effort and completely overhaul your lifestyle, it is possible to reduce your cholesterol levels without medication, using diet and lifestyle changes alone. Here’s how:

Eat Heart Healthy Foods
We all know how important it is to eat at least five portions of fruits and vegetables every day, but did you know that, when it comes to heart health, some fruits and vegetables are better than others? All fruits and vegetables are good for you, and you should aim to eat as many as possible, but when it comes to their cholesterol lowering properties, the super veggies you should be including in your diet are: sweet potatoes, apples, aubergines, strawberries, broccoli and prunes. All of these fruits and veggies contain high levels of soluble fibre. They are also all easily accessible and affordable, making them a great place to start if you are trying to modify your diet to lower your cholesterol.  Other foods you should add to your diet are oats and barley, which are rich in cholesterol lowering beta glucan. Why not start your day with a bowl of porridge oats or an oat-based cereal? This will start your day right, and immediately kick start your cholesterol lowering efforts. Finally, it’s time to give up butter and lower it with a spread containing plant stenols instead. These block cholesterol absorption in your gut and will lower your cholesterol by up to 10% in just three weeks.

Avoid Saturated Fats
Unfortunately you can’t just add delicious foods to your diet: you also have to take certain types of food out. One of the biggest offenders is saturated fat, which most of us include in our diet at far too high a level. You will find saturated fat in processed foods (such as ready meals) and manufactured snacks, such as cookies and cakes. If you tend to buy pre-packaged foods then you should read the labels carefully and stick to the products with the lowest available levels of saturated fat. Better still, if you have the time, avoid the pre-packaged foods and make your own from scratch, so that you know exactly what you’re eating. This doesn’t mean that you have to avoid eating fat altogether: the natural fats that occur in nuts and fish can actually help to lower your cholesterol, whilst still ensuring your diet is as balanced and well-rounded as possible.
​
Stop Smoking
One of the biggest things you can do to lower your cholesterol levels, increase your heart health, and improve your health and wellbeing generally is to stop smoking. Whilst in the short term, giving up nicotine can lead to cravings and withdrawal symptoms; in the long term you’ll notice your sense of wellbeing improve: your lung capacity will increase, you’ll find it easier to exercise, and after just one year without a cigarette your risk of heart disease will be halved. If you go for 15 years without smoking then your risk of developing heart disease will be the same as that of a non-smoker. Giving up smoking is one of the best things you can do for your long term health, and there’s no better time to do it than right now. ​