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Author Topic: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me  (Read 4125 times)

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Offline Sonny88

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Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« on: January 08, 2012, 04:55:27 am »
Hi
I'm new to this forum. I'll explain my situation as best I can . . .
I visited a commercial sex worker on the 10th nov. I was intoxicated. I recall her putting a condom on me prior to oral sex. We then had intercourse. My memory is a little sketchy after that but I don't recall the condom breaking and I assume it stayed on after the oral sex.
On the 30th nov I had what seemed like balanitis. I went to the local hospital and an std screen incl hep c/HIV was all clear (just an antibody test for HIV - early I know)
On the 27th dec I again started getting balanitis with a rash on my glans penis and by the following day I'd developed extreme lethargy, anorexia/no appetite, felt hot (no fever with thermometer) and felt a little lightheaded. No rash or ulcers or sore throat. These symptoms cleared up over 3-4 days but since then I've had some tenderness in both axillae and groin. The lymph nodes don't seem enlarged however, nor is there any problem with my cervical nodes.
I'm pretty stressed/losing sleep about all this. Can you reassure me? I have to assume that the condom would have remained on during the visit?
Although my symptoms are a little delayed, do they seem consistent with ars?

Thanks for your time. . .

Offline Sonny88

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #1 on: January 08, 2012, 04:57:19 am »
Ps the premises was a licensed brothel in new zealand

Offline Ann

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #2 on: January 08, 2012, 05:28:50 am »
Sonny,

You have not had a risk for hiv infection.

Getting a blowjob, with or without a condom, is not a risk for hiv infection.

Protected intercourse is just that, protected. Condom have been proven to prevent hiv infection. There have been three long-term studies of couples where one is positive and one is negative. In the couples who used condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, but no barrier for oral activities, not one of the negative partners became infected with hiv. Not one.

I'm quite sure the condom stayed on and stayed intact for the entire act. Sex workers use condoms to protect themselves, not their clients. Sex workers in licensed brothels depend on negative results on STI test panels (including but not limited to hiv tests) to keep their jobs. If something went wrong with the condom, she would have said something to you.

Balanitis happens for all sorts of reasons and it is not necessarily sexually transmitted. It is not a symptom of hiv infection.

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.

ALTHOUGH YOU DO NOT NEED TO TEST SPECIFICALLY OVER THIS NO RISK SITUATION, 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
« Last Edit: January 08, 2012, 05:30:30 am by Ann »
Condoms are a girl's best friend

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"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

Offline Sonny88

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #3 on: January 08, 2012, 05:37:58 am »
Thx Ann

That's what I needed to hear

Offline Sonny88

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #4 on: January 08, 2012, 11:20:44 pm »
Still have tender glands in axillae and groin. Very unusual for me. Just had antibody test done for HIV. Hopefully result back soon. Still very worried

Offline jkinatl2

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #5 on: January 08, 2012, 11:27:11 pm »
No one has EVER been documented as having gotten HIV through getting a blowjob. It's not supported by a single iota of HIV science.

I honestly don't know what else to tell you.

"Many people, especially in the gay community, turn to oral sex as a safer alternative in the age of AIDS. And with HIV rates rising, people need to remember that oral sex is safer sex. It's a reasonable alternative."

-Kimberly Page-Shafer, PhD, MPH

Welcome Thread

Offline Ann

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #6 on: January 09, 2012, 03:33:49 am »
Sonny,

If you're still experiencing balanitis, that is the most likely reason for your soreness. SEE A DOCTOR.

Balanitis is most often caused by not washing the head of the penis and the foreskin in uncircumcised men (poor hygiene). It can also be caused by washing too much, particularly with harsh soaps that irritate the skin.

I have to wonder if you started excessively washing or even scrubbing your penis after the experience with a sex worker. Go easy on your little man if this is the case.

 You need to see a doctor about this to get the necessary medicated cream to clear it up. It has NOTHING to do with hiv and in most cases, it has everything to do with how you do or do not wash your penis.

You have NOT had a risk for hiv infection. Please re-read your thread until it sinks in.

Ann
Condoms are a girl's best friend

Condom and Lube Info  

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

Offline Sonny88

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #7 on: January 15, 2012, 06:24:23 pm »
Hi Ann

Firstly thanks to you and the others for all your hard work.

Just a quick update. . .
I had a HIV antibody test at 8.5 weeks - negative.
I'm still experiencing tiredness and tender lymph nodes in my armpits.
I'm worried that given my initial symptoms started late (6.5 weeks), could that cause a false negative HIV antibody test? I know that assuming intercourse with the sex worker was protected I don't have a risk but my symptoms are very worrying.

Offline Andy Velez

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #8 on: January 15, 2012, 06:32:19 pm »
There is nothing HIV specific about your symptoms. Which is not surprising since even though you don't seem willing to accept it, you did not have a risk for HIV. So your negative result is not a "false negative." Test results can for different reasons yield a false positive sometimes. But not a false negative at the point when you tested.

Instead of misinterpreting your symptoms and playing doctor with yourself, discuss your symptoms with a doctor. They have nothing to do with HIV. Believe it or not.

Andy Velez

Offline Sonny88

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #9 on: February 08, 2012, 06:10:31 am »
Dear Ann/Andy

Had combo test at 68 days - normal.
I'm sure you expected it.
Reall worried though as I still have tender lymph nodes in my armpits for 5 weeks now with no obvious cause.
Im worried as I don't remember all details with the csw. I remember a condom going on for oral sex but that's it. For all I know she could have then removed it.
I know you don't concentrate on symptoms as some would be falsely reassured if they didn't have any but my armpits definitely have me worried.
I'm really scared that I'll be the first on your forum to test positive at 13 weeks after a negative at just under 10 weeks.
I'm going to get tested tomorrow. If its negative. I'll definitely believe it.
I'm so scared right now. . . I wish I had your faith

Offline Ann

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Re: Another scared person. Pls advise/reassure me
« Reply #10 on: February 08, 2012, 06:32:17 am »
Sonny,

If your swollen lymph nodes had anything to do with hiv, you would most definitely have tested positive by now. The symptoms that sometimes accompany hiv seroconversion are not caused by the virus itself. They are caused by the process the body goes through while producing antibodies.

If your nodes continue to bother you, see a doctor and in the mean time, keep your hands off them. Constantly touching them to see if they're swollen can actually irritate them and cause them to swell. HANDS OFF!!!

Your nearly ten week negative is absolutely not going to change.

Ann
Condoms are a girl's best friend

Condom and Lube Info  

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

 


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