Why health and fitness are so important to life.
Why are health and fitness vital for life? One may take it for granted, but I could not be afforded the privilege of not being able to slack on eating healthy foods, regularly exercising, practicing a balanced yogic mindset, and be able to maintain a productive, youthful lifestyle. You see, I tested positive for HIV in 1996 when I was twenty when HIV still pretty much equaled AIDS. The life-saving medications that came out that year were
beginning their field-testing stage. Nobody knew precisely how affective they would turn out to be. These anti-retroviral cocktails had many side effects in the beginning (of which I experience many), but the science has come a long way. If one now has access to consistent, effective, and affordable HIV medications, and dutifully takes their regimen, they can live an average lifespan and engage in unprotected sex without infecting their partner. U=U.
However, not too much of the general public is aware of how far HIV science has come. The world could end AIDS by 2030 if it only tried.
Goals
My name is T and I am also a classically trained musician. However, after testing HIV positive in 1996, I quit my classical music studies. I started to compose songs and learn how to sing. This musical change of career eventually led to the composition and production of my rock opera ‘Southern Time‘ as a multi-media stage production in Vancouver in 2005. After nearly dying from AIDS in 2009 (I was not taking medications or seeing a doctor for 10 years), in 2015, I moved to Toronto for the third time to put the Southern Time Band together — the rock opera band for the cinematic version of my rock opera. In 2018, I found the instrumentalists for the band, and in 2019 I found Justin Anantawan — the first of possibly three additional HIV positive singers in the band. Justin and I want to help end AIDS by 2030 through encouraging the Southern Time Band’s fans to pressure their governments to meet UNAIDS‘ goal. The band is now ready to record our first album, but we lack the funds to do so. We also need to perform more to refine the songs before recording.
If you or somebody you know would like to hire the Southern Time Band to perform, please let us know! We are a rock opera band based in Toronto. We are for hire and are willing to travel.
Method
In 2014, I became vegetarian, eating mostly organic foods, and since, my physical health and clarity of mind have been relatively exceptional. And in 2016, I started seeing a naturopath, and have subsequently been receiving weekly acupuncture treatment and health advice. In 2018, I started seeing a physiotherapist, which has made me understand what it will take to get my mobility back to normal again. I also try to walk in nature, mindfully or swim at least three times per week. And though I am now forty-three, people often comment on how young and healthy I look. However, I have been eating healthy and exercising in nature since I tested positive. If I did not do so, I believe I would not enjoy the health I do today.
Recommendations
I have found is that if one watches what they eat, regular exercises, and directs their health and self-care, the results of such are staggering. A reliable and positive support network is also a must. Though I have sustained potentially permanent lower spinal cord damage from nearly dying from AIDS, my nerves are still improving every year. As well, my immune system is now as comparable again — health wise — to an average person’s.
I cannot stress enough how important it is to eat healthily, and maintaining regular exercise is to one’s overall physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual bodies.
Take care, and good health!!
T
