Continuing Education for Psychologists

THE AIDS GENERATION
Stories of Survival and Resilience

For young gay men who came of age in the United States in the 1980s, the HIV/AIDS epidemic was a formative experience in fear, hardship, and loss. Those who were diagnosed before 1996 suffered an exceptionally high rate of mortality, and the survivors--both the infected individuals and those close to them--today constitute a "bravest generation" in American history.

The AIDS Generation: Stories of Survival and Resilience examines the strategies for survival and coping employed by these HIV-positive gay men, who together constitute the first generation of long-term survivors of the disease. Through interviews conducted by the author, it narrates the stories of gay men who have survived since the early days of the epidemic; documents and delineates the strategies and behaviors enacted by men of this generation to survive it; and examines the extent to which these approaches to survival inform and are informed by the broad body of literature on resilience and health.

The stories and strategies detailed here, all used to combat the profound physical, emotional, and social challenges faced by those in the crosshairs of the AIDS epidemic, provide a gateway for understanding how individuals cope with chronic and life-threatening diseases. Halkitis takes readers on a journey of first-hand data collection (the interviews themselves), the popular culture representations of these phenomena, and his own experiences as one of the men of the AIDS generation.

This riveting account will be of interest to health practitioners and historians throughout the clinical and social sciences--or to anyone with an interest in this important chapter in social history.

PERRY N. HALKITIS is Dean, Rutgers University School of Public Health; Professor of Biostatistics and Social & Behavioral Health Sciences, Rutgers University School of Public Health, New Brunswick, NJ; Professor RWJ School of Medicine; Professor Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology; Professor School of Health Professions; Professor School of Public Affairs and Administration

"A modern day parable of loss and resilience. Dr. Halkitis relates the stories of these men with empathy, compassion and connection. Yet, he also embeds the tale within a scientific and historical framework that contextualizes the AIDS epidemic as the public health crisis that rewrote the book on activism and the politics of disease. By focusing on the narratives of individual men, The AIDS Generation artfully illuminates and humanizes the history of the AIDS pandemic."
--Ramani Durvasula, PhD, Professor of Psychology, California State University, Los Angeles

"This book is a remarkable testament to members of the AIDS generation, to the terrors and wonders, the loneliness of illness and loss but also the power of community and resilience that evolved. Dr. Halkitis presents the voices of 15 gay men framed in the context of his own conceptualizations derived from his years of research and teaching about HIV/AIDS and the lives of gay men. The stories are gripping, the writing lucid, and the book will be a lasting contribution to the history of the times and members of his--the AIDS--generation."
--Judith G. Rabkin, PhD, MPH, Professor of Clinical Psychology, Columbia University

"I felt such kinship reading these stories. It was mostly luck that got us through the plague years, but I share more than a virus with these men. We are proudly gay, and have forged unique strengths by getting this far. The AIDS generation shattered the American myth of gay weakness."
--Peter Staley, AIDS and gay rights activist, founder and advisory editor of AIDSmeds

"From one of our leading researchers on HIV among gay men comes a powerful portrayal of courage and resilience that is hopeful and deeply personal. Through compelling interviews with 15 middle age gay men who have been living with HIV for decades, Halkitis conveys the fear and anger of the dark days before antiretroviral therapy when prejudice and hysteria reigned. He describes the strength and vision of many gay men living with HIV whose activism helped transform the disease in the 1980s and 1990s. He also addresses emerging issues of older adults living with HIV, and the connection between anti-gay public policies and social norms and gay men's health. Halkitis weaves in epidemiological research and policy analysis to create a picture of the HIV/AIDS pandemic that is both accessible and nuanced."
--Sean Cahill, Director of Health Policy Research, The Fenway Institute, Assistant Professor, New York University

"Upon completing Perry's beautiful volume, the reader will come to understand two things. First, antiretroviral therapy is not the panacea that many may believe it to be. Perry demonstrates that aging gay men face a gauntlet of unpredictable physical and psychological challenges. Second, resilience, courage, and strength are three terms that best characterize the current generation of gay men bravely aging with HIV/AIDS."
--Timothy G. Heckman, PhD, Professor of Health Promotion and Behavior, University of Georgia

"This book allows a group of remarkable men to tell us about their survival during a remarkable period of gay history. They have a lot to teach future historians--and us--about life, survival, humanity and resilience."
--Ron Stall, PhD, MPH, Director of the Center for LGBT Health Research, University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health

"I believe there are two audiences for this book: long-term survivors who count themselves among the warriors, and younger men who need to learn. If you fall into either category, then reading The AIDS Generation will be a worthwhile experience."
--Washington Blade

"A groundbreaking new book."
--Equality

"A sensible, well-timed and precisely targeted message for companies shaken by macroeconomic crises"
--Financial Times "Books by Nancy McWilliams used in unison make the best psychodynamic resources I have yet encountered in more than 60 years in the field."
--Robert C. Lane, PhD, Department of Psychology, Nova Southeastern University

"This beautifully written, uniquely accessible guide to the psychoanalytic understanding of clinical cases will be of immense value to students and practitioners of all theoretical persuasions. I predict it will be among the most important and widely used books in this field for years to come."
--George E. Atwood, PhD, Professor of Psychology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey

"Psychoanalytic Case Formulation is a worthy successor to Psychoanalytic Diagnosis. Nancy McWilliams has a pellucid writing style that brings complex concepts within the easy grasp of the reader. She has produced a book that is intelligently psychoanalytic without being restricted to any single vision of psychoanalysis. The critical concepts are developed well and the issues important to assessment--a concept that goes well beyond diagnosis--are explicated clearly and helpfully. This is a rare book that can serve as a text for beginning students and still has much to offer to accomplished professionals."
--George Stricker, PhD, The Derner Institute, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY