POZ Community Forums
HIV Prevention and Testing => Do I Have HIV? => Topic started by: worriedsomuch999 on December 28, 2013, 06:51:56 am
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Here is my story
2 years ago when I was 19 I had sex with 2 prostitutes unprotected but in a country that has strict visa guidlines about people with HIV so I am sure they were tested but they could have got it when they came to my country anyway since they are prostitutes. Well anyway after I had unprotected sex with them I found out that I could have gotten hiv from them so i freaked out but I took a PCR DNA test for early detection and an ELISA test and both came back negative but the problem is I cant remember if I took these tests 2 weeks after exposure or 6 weeks but it MIGHT be 6 weeks I am just not sure so it was my lesson and I never had unprotected sex ever again, since that time I have been only having protected sex but unprotected oral sex and from time to time I used to always dontate to aids foundations and sometimes go to forums and read stories so I can scare myself nd never have unprotected sex, well anyway last week I came through this forum and everyone is saying pcr dna is not accurate and so on so I have been freaking out again about my exposure 2 years ago and I cant sleep for 2 weeks now, do you think those tests i took 2 weeks or 6 weeks after exposure were not accurate ? although the clinic I tested in assured me the pcr dna will detect anything after 10 days but now I am freaking out again after 2 years :( :(
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Worried,
DNA tests are unreliable because they have a high rate of false positive results.
The window period for conclusive hiv testing is three months, not six weeks. A six week negative is highly unlikely to change, but must be confirmed at (or after) the three month point.
The solution to your problem is simple - GO TEST and get it over with. You need to know your hiv status one way or another, and if by chance you are hiv positive, the sooner you know, the sooner you can start treatment to avoid illness, misery and death. And if you test negative (and you probably will), you can relax and get on with your life. Testing is a win-win situation, regardless of your results.
GO. TEST. A.S.A.P.
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. Some of the other STIs can be present with no obvious symptoms, so the only way to know for sure is to test.
Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple!
Ann
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Dear Ann, you said false positives, well what about false negatives ? Can you assest my situation if it was after 2 weeks and also if it was after 6 weeks ? And also I cant test because in my country it is a death sentence for people with HIV so I would really rather not know and live some more years thinking I am HIV negative, if I am pos i cant get married back home nor work nor do anything :( Please tell me about pcr false negatives
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Worried,
ANY PCR test result MUST be confirmed with antibody testing, but an undetectable result (negative) is somewhat reliable. However, it is NOT conclusive without a negative antibody result at the appropriate time to back it up.
Bottom line - you have had a risk and you do need to confirm your earlier negative test results. Your excuses to not test won't fly here. You are currently in the US and you've got no excuse.
Hiv is significantly more difficult to transmit to the insertive partner, but it's not impossible. I do expect you to continue to test negative, but YOU MUST TEST. No excuses.
Today, hiv is only a death-sentence when people don't test and therefore don't know they have it and don't get treatment soon enough.
GO TEST. NO EXCUSES!
Ann
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Ok so today I gathered my strength and went and got an oraquick test, after 20 minutes the result came back negative, the risky encounter was 2 years ago, should I stop worrying ? Am I ok ? Encounter was 2 years ago and at that time , elisa and pcr dna both negative and after 2 years, oraquick negative, please tell me I can stop worrying ? I am a bit releived but I did remember that 6 or 5 weeks ago I got a blowjob from a girl that HIV status I dont know, was that a risk ? It was just maybe a 3 minute blowjob no kissing or anything just blowjob, twice with the same girl, any risk ? Thank you Ann for your support, I was not gonna test if you havent told me that you thought I was probably negative lol
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You can stop worrying, you are conclusively HIV negative . Congratulations .
The new concerns are not a risk .
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Worried,
I'm happy to hear you tested - now you can get on with your life.
Getting a blowjob is absolutely NOT a risk for hiv infection.
In adults, hiv is transmitted through:
Unprotected anal intercourse.
Unprotected vaginal intercourse.
Sharing drug injecting equipment.
And that's it.
Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple!!!
You are conclusively hiv negative - stay that way by using condoms.
Ann
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Ok so I had a couple of more questions, after reading many threads I noticed that some of them are saying that the oraquick gives some false negatives ?? That freaked me out.
Here are my questions:
1) What is the rate of a false negative ?
2) I am getting paranoid so I am getting these what if's thoughts even though I am sure I did everything correct regarding the tests, so what if for example I swabbed my gums twice instead of once even though I am pretty sure I only swabbed once, what if I drank water 28 minutes before the test instead of 30 ? And also the oraquick website said false negatives can come from the test not being able to detect anything due to the low viral load or something like that ?? I also read that 1 out of 12 of HIV positive people will test negative in this test, what should I do ? Is it possible I got a false negative ? Have You ever met someone that got a false negative on this test ? Is it an accurate test ? Please reply to all questions :( , and also what if the girl that gave me a bj had some blood in her mouth or something ? Could she have infected me ? Thanks alot
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Worried,
None of these things you're fretting about will have any effect on your test results.
False negative results only happen when a person tests too early in the three month window period.
Most hiv antibody tests will detect an hiv infection by six weeks. The one exception is the (relatively new) in-home Oraquick test - they can take a bit longer to detect antibodies, but they are also conclusive at three months.
YOU DO NOT HAVE HIV!!!
It's time you put this behind you - remembering to always use condoms from now on - and get on with your life.
Ann
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thanks ann, but I will not remember to wear condoms in the future because I decided to just stop having sex for good, I dont think an hour of pleasure is worth the stress I get into for months, hence my decision to not have sex anymore. So you think it is conclusive ? And what do you mean by it takes more time to detect antibodies ? Like how much time ? Do you think it can happen in my case since the exposure was 2 years ago ? And is it possible my viral load is so low that the test did not detect it ? How can I know for sure it is not a false negative :( ? Sorry for the many questions, I did put it behind me but then I read some threads in this forum of false negatives so it freaked me out.
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"And what do you mean by it takes more time to detect antibodies ? Like how much time?"
Most hiv antibody tests will detect an hiv infection by six weeks. The one exception is the (relatively new) in-home Oraquick test - they can take a bit longer to detect antibodies, but they are also conclusive at three months.
YOU DO NOT HAVE HIV!!!
"Do you think it can happen in my case since the exposure was 2 years ago ?"
NO! Three months - or more - is CONCLUSIVE. YOU DO NOT HAVE HIV!!!!
"And is it possible my viral load is so low that the test did not detect it ?"
NO! The tests do NOT look for viral load, they look for antibodies. You would have started producing antibodies between three and six weeks. WEEKS.
YOU DO NOT HAVE HIV!!!!
If you read the Welcome Thread (http://forums.poz.com/index.php?topic=220.0) before posting like you're supposed to, you will have read the following posting guideline:
Anyone who continues to post excessively, questioning a conclusive negative result or no-risk situation, will be subject to a four week Time Out (a temporary ban from the Forums). If you continue to post excessively after one Time Out, you may be given a second Time Out which will last eight weeks. There is no third Time Out - it is a permanent ban. The purpose of a Time Out is to encourage you to seek the face-to-face help we cannot provide on this forum.
Please consider yourself warned!
Ann
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Ok thanks, I just have 1 more thing to add:
In this topic, the person said he got hiv from protected sex, well that freaked me out so my question is do I have to test again because my last oraquick test was not in the window period since my last PROTECTED sexual encounter.
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That person did not contract HIV from protected sex.
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Ok thanks, I just have 1 more thing to add:
In this topic, the person said he got hiv from protected sex, well that freaked me out so my question is do I have to test again because my last oraquick test was not in the window period since my last PROTECTED sexual encounter.
You do not get HIV from protected sex . You have been warned so now its time for a time out so that you can seek mental health counseling . You do not have HIV .