Background: HIV remains a significant public health concern for African American women. Despite successful linkage to HIV care, self-management of HIV is still difficult for older African American women due to co-occurring factors, such as gender, financial insecurity, race, societal expectations, and HIV-related stigma. Few studies have explored optimal aging from the perspective of older African American women with HIV. Purpose: This qualitative phenomenological study aimed to examine the meaning of optimal aging among African American women 50 and older with HIV in the Southern United States. The study's primary focus was understanding how older African American women with HIV viewed optimal aging across physical, cognitive, emotional, social, and spiritual domains. Method: Ten participants meeting the inclusion criteria were recruited through snowball sampling. Semi-structured interviews explored how African American women 50 and older in the Southern United States viewed optimal aging while living with HIV. Using Colaizzi's descriptive phenomenological method, data were analyzed to describe how participants perceived optimal aging with HIV. Results: Seven major themes resulted from the data, including taking responsibility for your health, feeling and looking younger than your actual age, being in “your right mind,” being “kept” by God, social connectedness and support, keeping yourself up and adjusting to your new normal. Discussion: Providing culturally appropriate HIV care and support services tailored to the unique needs of older African American women with HIV in the Southern United States could improve their self-efficacy, improve their chances of experiencing optimal, and enhance their perception of optimal aging.
Keywords: African American women, HIV, optimal aging