POZ Community Forums
HIV Prevention and Testing => Do I Have HIV? => Topic started by: Korg on June 18, 2008, 01:54:11 am
-
I want to start this by saying I don't believe I'm infected with HIV which I've been tested for multiple times. The first girl I had sex with was a little over two years ago. She was 28 and I was 23. She'd been with alot of people before me. The first couple of times we had intercourse, I put the condom on wrong and ended up getting a cut on my penis and breaking the condom. The day after, I think I experienced alot of paranoia and what not. Worrying she gave me herpes and stressing about itching and being hypersensitive to things like that. I talked about these things with her. She had told me she always used a condom and there was no way she had anything to transmit. I believed the total opposite. Tests eventually came back.... I was wrong. Shortly after, I broke it off with her. About six months later, I started having symptoms I thought were strange. Fatigue, alot of gas, loose stool. I also had weird skin problems like infected hair folicles, fungal stuff, itchiness (what concerned me most were even small cuts and scratches seemed to heal slowly and leave a scar). I felt dehydrated all the time. I definitely felt like something was going on and the thought that she had infected me with something this severe scared me pretty bad at this point. This girl had alot of health problems. Mostly muscloskeletal things. She was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, and thought to have had lupus (although testing negative) by different doctors. She was anemic and took a load of different painkillers, sleeping pills, and iron supplements. I remember certain times her mentioning how she bruised easily and how her cuts took 'long to heal'. Other times when we were hiking she said she had a weak heart. I never considered any of this to be contagious when were together. Then I started researching HIV and found alot of these symptoms to be identified with it. I freaked out and was almost certain I had it. Again, I was wrong. I've been tested twice since then. Once at five months and another at a year and a half. Both negative.
I've since been in a relationship with another girl. She's shown alot of similar symptoms (without knowing about anything from my past). Althought nothing debilitating, I've experienced a good deal of muscle and joint pain (mostly symmetrical pain) in my ankles, wrists and elbows. I've done some research on autoimmune illnesses like fibromyalgia and CFS. From what I've read, there are alot of cases where it's believed they are brought on by infectious sources or 'stealth' viruses. I now believe I fall I into this category.
I only bring this up here because of the similarity in symptoms to HIV and the transmittable similarities. Also, anyone I explain all this to (including my friends) think I'm paranoid. I don't. I know the moderators here will most likely tell this me 'this isn't an HIV issue' but I thought it was relevant. Any comments are appreciated.
-
I'm sorry you are dealing with this. But you are right, this isn't an HIV issue and this discussion belongs somewhere else.
good luck to you.
-
I don't know what a "stealth virus" is. Whatever is going on with you and your girlfriend, it's not HIV and I don't see what we can do to help you.
MtD
-
If you continue to be concerned about your having some kind of health problem that is something you should be discussing with your doctor(s). You've reliably tested negative for HIV so that has been eliminated from conisderation. This is an HIV-specific website and we cannot diagnose or help you with your concern.
Good luck in getting it resolved in the proper setting.
-
I want to start this by saying I don't believe I'm infected with HIV which I've been tested for multiple times.
As you know and have been told this is an HIV website, while I'm sorry to hear you are having a hard time you really need to talk to your doctor, there is no point in posting here, there is absoulutely nothing we can do.
If you think you have been put at risk then please post over in the "AM I" forum..although I see no indication of that, the other forums are for those of us who ARE living with HIV...thank you for your cooperation but I see no need to you to return to the forum except to read and educate yourself with the lessons we have here...or, as I said, you feel you have been put at risk for infection
Jan