With the news this week that a man has been declared officially “cured” of HIV by way of stem cell therapy (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/14/hiv-cure-berlin-patient_n_796521.html), I was heartened, to say the least. Immediately, my mind went to two things: one was about what this means for the immediate future of HIV eradication research, and how soon could something … Read more
I was driving with the radio on the other day, and a holiday ad came on that started with, “Have you been naughty or nice this year?” My first reaction was, “Hmmmmm. Define ‘naughty’.” And then I got to thinking: Just how DO we assess our own personal ethics for the year? Have I been … Read more
What is professional self-esteem? In recent years in my psychotherapy practice, I have noticed a dramatic increase in the demand for more “coaching”-style services, and I have been happy to develop this for my clients. There are personal coaching issues, to be sure, but what I find much more frequently is that clients need professional … Read more
Living with HIV: It was 20 years ago today, November 3rd, 1990, that I was diagnosed with HIV. Knowing this “anniversary” was coming up, I was thinking about how to write about it. I had things in mind, like a bullet-pointed “highlights” of the challenges and even perhaps “rewarding” or at least “poignant” experiences … Read more
My take on this election season is: Hoo-whee! There is a WHOLE lotta crazy goin’ on! From Christine O’Donnell, the senatorial candidate in Delaware, confusing witchcraft with Satanism (a common mistake, but annoying as hell (so to speak) to Wiccans/Pagans), to Vicky Hartzler, the venomously anti-gay House candidate in Missouri, to Sharron Angle, senatorial candidate … Read more
In honor of National Coming Out Day, I offer a reprint of an essay I did for an AIDS Project Los Angeles publication a few years ago: Coming Out: Again and Again Many young gay men, in childhood and early adolescence, as they become aware that they are gay, often build an internal awareness of their gay … Read more
How many times in a year do I hear that there are people who “hate birthdays”? Far too many. For these people, any recognition of a birthday is somehow a validation of their fears of aging, or a reminder that they are “just getting older.” What can I say about this, as a sophisticated licensed … Read more
Imagine, just for a moment: A group of people, motivated by an extreme devotion to their religion, ban together and begin to plan action that expresses their rage against those whom they disagree with on religious, cultural, and social grounds. They carefully plot a strategy to act out that rage, carefully, systematically, secretly, and determinedly. … Read more
The story of the week, for me, was the tale that included equal parts amazement and poignancy: the report that 22-year-old actor Thomas Magill, of New York City, jumped off the 39th floor of his West End Avenue apartment after leaving a note on his Facebook Bio page that said, “I’m over it”, and listed his … Read more
Looking at the news over the past couple of weeks from a gay men’s mental health point of view leaves quite a bit to be desired. In my last post, I was talking about how the overturn of Prop 8 is a collective mental health booster for the entire lesbian and gay community. Conversely, the … Read more
Ken Howard, LCSW, CST is a life/career/executive/relationship coach who has specialized in gay men (individuals and gay male couples) and LGBT+ for over 30 years.
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