Scared that I might be reinfected

[barbch2]

I was having sex with somebody who was poz as am I, and the condom broke almost 10 seconds into him putting it in, I told him to get out and he did, I am really scared that I might be reinfected. If i am, does this mean that I am going to die faster, or my medication wont work anymore, or will any meds work at all. i am so scared. Somebody help me.

[Ann]

Barach,

I've moved your thread into the I Just Tested Poz forum as the Am I Infected forum is only for those people who are hiv negative or questioning their hiv status.

You are highly unlikely to end up reinfected over this brief incident. And even if you do end up reinfected from it (again, highly unlikely) it will not necessarily mean any of the things you're worrying about. There will be meds that will work.

[barbch2]

Thank you so much Ann, I looked for precum, but I literally had to squeez his euretha to get it out, and he was not even fully erect. I am really new to this hiv thing, and it is doing a number on me mentally,

[Ann]

OK, to elaborate further, there are several reasons why you are unlikely to end up reinfected over this.

For a start, there have only been a very few documented cases of this happening. It's rare.

For another thing, you are on meds and those meds will help protect you. In the cases where reinfection occurred they were new infections - but not necessarily new diagnoses . As you are already on meds, the likelihood is that you are not dealing with a new (less than six months) infection.

And last but not least, you say this was a protected receptive (for you) incident where the condom broke almost at the beginning. It doesn't sound as though he came and that is a big plus in your favour. Put it this way, if you were hiv negative I would not expect you to end up positive over this situation.

Relax, you're going to be ok.

Ann

edited to correct a grammatical error that was driving me bonkers

[barbch2]

It has been less than six months for me. I was diagnosed in july, and only been on meds for 2 months.

[Ann]

I just realised that I omitted some information when I talked about new infections. To the best of my knowledge, the people who became reinfected were not on any hiv meds. As I mentioned, the hiv meds will help protect you.

And again, let me stress how rare reinfection is in the real world. It seems to me that some doctors like to use it as a boogie-man because they don't really like to think of poz people having sex lives. This reinfection boogie-man is also used to discourage barebacking amongst pozzies.

The main thing you need to worry about in either the case of a condom break or outright barebacking is the OTHER STIs. You don't need syphilis, gonorrhoea or any of the other more easily transmitted infections on top of your hiv. Some infections, like syphilis, can be more difficult to treat when you also have hiv.

You can use this site's search engine to find the plethora of previous threads on the subject of reinfection or "superinfection" as it is also called. (that's super as in superimposed, not super-dooper)

I really don't think you have anything to worry about with this brief broken-condom incident.

[barbch2]

Ann, I dont know who you are, or where you are, but you are an Angel sent from God himself. I have not been able to sleep for days thinking about this. I actually feel a sense of relief and I think I am going to head to bed. Thank you from the bottom of my heart Ann.

[jkinatl2]

I really have nothing salient to add to Ann's spot-on reply except to fully second it (for whatever that's worth). Your other post and this one makes me think that you are really struggling with this new status. Have you thought about counseling?

HIV, until it is cured, is going to be with you for the rest of your long life. And the sooner you can throttle that fear, the sooner you can find - and enjoy - the happiness (sex, friends, self esteem, etc) that you truly and richly deserve.

You have found a remarkable site with a whole lot of accurate information. I suggest you take it in at a pace comfortable to you, and forgive yourself for not knowing everything all at once. It's a marathon, not a sprint, they say.

Regardless, you are among friends, and things are going to be okay. again, welcome to the forums

[Ann]

You're welcome, Barb. Relax and get some rest.

[Ann]

I knew there was something else I wanted to mention....

A correctly used (and stored*) condom rarely breaks. The two main reasons for condom breakage are:

1) Not using any or enough lube (especially for anal) and/or not using water-based lube with latex condoms. You must always use water-based lube with latex condoms and you really do need to use lube for anal.

2) Not making sure there is no air bubble at the tip of the condom once it's on. The tip of the condom should be pinched between the fore-finger and thumb while putting it on and rolling it down in order to expel any air. Once it's on, stroking along the length of the condom from head to base will pull it snug against the head and help you to see if there is an air-bubble trapped in the top.

*Condoms should be stored away from heat and this includes body heat. Unless it's only going to be there for a few hours, your wallet is the worst place to carry condoms if you keep it in your ass pocket. Heat degrades latex (as does oil) so if your condoms are subjected to much heat, you might end up with a broken one. Also, do not store condoms in your car. The extremes of hot and cold that you get through the seasons will do a number on the thin latex.

Read through the condom and lube links in my signature line to learn more.


edited for clarity