need advice on hiv symtoms

[woried]

hi there had an incident about six and a half weeks ago where my condom broke.as soon as it broke i stoped an went and washed myself.last friday i started off with stomach cramps then diarrhoea and vomiting. i only vomited twice and the diarrhoea lasted a day and a half i also have a bit of a stuffy nose. a close friend of mine at work had these same symtoms just before i got sick could i have maybe just got sick from him? i did have an hiv test about two weeks ago and it was negative. please advise on what to do thanks

[Ann]

worried,

Neither symptoms nor even the LACK of symptoms will ever tell you a single thing about your hiv status. ONLY testing at the appropriate time will.

Your negative test at what I'm guessing was at or near the four week point is a good indication of your hiv status, but it is NOT conclusive.

The vast majority of people who have actually been infected will seroconvert and test positive by six weeks, with the average time to seroconversion being only 22 days. A six week negative is highly unlikely to change, but must be confirmed at the three month point.

While you have had a risk and you do need to test, your risk is very much on the lower end of the scale. I've yet to see the insertive partner end up positive over a condom break and I do not expect you to be the first.

Here's what you need to know in order to avoid hiv infection:

You need to be using condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, every time, no exceptions until such time as you are in a securely monogamous relationship where you have both tested for ALL sexually transmitted infections together.

To agree to have unprotected intercourse is to consent to the possibility of being infected with an STI. Sex without a condom lasts only a matter of minutes, but hiv is forever.

Have a look through the condom and lube links in my signature line so you can use condoms with confidence.

Anyone who is sexually active should be having a full sexual health care check-up, including but not limited to hiv testing, at least once a year and more often if unprotected intercourse occurs.

If you aren't already having regular, routine check-ups, now is the time to start. As long as you make sure condoms are being used for intercourse, you can fully expect your routine hiv tests to return with negative results.

Don't forget to always get checked for all the other sexually transmitted infections as well, because they are MUCH easier to transmit than hiv.

Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple!

Ann

[woried]

thank you so much for your advice i will get tested again this week.

[Ann]

worried,

You're welcome. Don't forget to also test for all the other more easily transmitted STIs like chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis. All of these can be present with no obvious symptoms, so the only way to know for sure is to get tested.

Ann

[woried]

hi there well got a full blood test done hiv and full blood count all came out good no problems.now do i still need to go for another blood test or do you think im ok.
thanks for all your help.

[RapidRod]

hi there well got a full blood test done hiv and full blood count all came out good no problems.now do i still need to go for another blood test or do you think im ok.
thanks for all your help.

You can obtain your conclusive negative test result 3 months post exposure.

[woried]

so then whats the six week window period all about if i still need to wait three months.is a result after seven weeks pointless and have no meaning?

[Ann]

worried,

A six week or more negative result is NOT meaningless. It means that you are highly unlikely to go on to test positive when you confirm at the three month point, but you still need that confirmation.

The window period remains at three months to catch the rare person who takes a little longer than six weeks to seroconvert and test positive. With hiv, your motto should be "better safe than sorry".

Ann

[woried]

thanks Ann i agree better safe then sorry so ill wait till three months are up and get tested againg.

[Ann]

Worried,

Good plan. I fully expect you to continue to test negative, but please do make sure.

While we're at it, I should explain to you that a correctly used condom rarely breaks. Here's what you need to know to avoid broken condoms in future:

There are two leading causes of condom breakage.

One is not using enough water-based lube. You need to use water-based lube even when having vaginal intercourse - the lubrication a woman naturally produces isn't always enough.

The other reason is having an air bubble trapped in the tip. When you put a condom on, you must pinch the tip between the thumb and finger of one hand, while rolling it down with the other.

Once it's on, give it a firm stroke from tip to base while watching the tip. If there's air in the tip, you'll see it. If there IS air present, roll the condom back up and try again.

Once you are sure there is no air present, apply plenty of lube and go for it. With a little imagination you can make putting the condom on part of your foreplay and with a little practice, you can do it with very little interruption. Get some condoms to practice with in the privacy of your own home so the correct usage becomes second nature.

Also, make sure you read through the condom and lube links in my signature line.

Again, I fully expect you to continue to test negative when you confirm at three months.

Ann

[woried]

Thank you Ann so so much.I dont really have anyone else to talk to about this so talking to someone like you really helps especially because you know what you talking about. i get stressed out really easily about this and my mind starts messing with me so you are a big help thanks for all the advice.

[Ann]

Worried,

You're welcome.

Ann