POZ Community Forums

HIV Prevention and Testing => Do I Have HIV? => Topic started by: forestx on July 22, 2011, 11:02:29 am

Title: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: forestx on July 22, 2011, 11:02:29 am
OK i believe I am infected
I had sex with a sex worker six weeks ago and show ALL the symptoms
 
A few days after possible exposure I was out with a friend and left very groggy after only two beers I couldnt drink any more and threw up
Didn't think anything of it

Then two weeks ago I got a cold.
 I wasnt bed ridden up I had a runny nose and score throat I began to panic when the sore throat didnt get better.
My tongue turned white as well and I got sores on it.

Then one morning I notices my eye was bloodshot

I am now really panicing.

Then then last weekend things got worse. Red marks under my arm and tremendous nerve pain mainly on my right hand side. I left like my wind pipe was closing.
Pains started in the base of my head as well as groin.

Then red marks under my arm.

Know before anyone asks this sex I had was protected but I had a scratch on me between my crotch and leg
(where I had trimmed my pubic hair) it was about two weeks old at time of said act.

Now I know I need to get tested but feel I have the infection and as a result trying to get my head around it before I get tested.

I have plans to go on holidays next month
Assuming I have the illness how well can I hide it over the next two months
At the moment i feel ok other than a tightening feeling in my throat and base of head.

I was reading that chronic diarrhea is a symptom of HIV.
Is that likely in the next couple of months
or that I could collapse

I would like one last holiday before "I become the giuy with aids"

Thanks for your help
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: Ann on July 22, 2011, 11:30:56 am
Forest,

You have not had a risk for hiv infection. Hiv can only infect a very few, very specific types of cells and these cells are not found on the surface of your skin nor are they found in small cuts, particularly ones that are two weeks old.

Protected intercourse is just that - protected. Condoms have been proven to prevent hiv infection. There have been 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.

None of the symptoms you are reporting have anything to do with hiv. If you feel unwell, see a doctor. Whatever is going on has nothing to do with hiv as you did not have a risk.

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 PROTECTED INTERCOURSE, 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
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: forestx on July 22, 2011, 11:51:28 am
Thanks for your reply
I found this site at the weekend and read your similar words of reasurance to other posters and felt better but then the nerve pain and red marks showed

The penetration was short lived and she was on top
I never checked for holes in the condom when taking it off
She used the same condom for oral as penetration

The scratch on pelvic area is about 5cms long (I still have a slight mark)

I know you cant say for certain if I am or not and I need to get tested
I am currently just weighing up my options if positive and how long I can hide it
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: Ann on July 22, 2011, 12:03:54 pm
Forest,

Condoms do not have small holes. When they break, it is very obvious and you would have known. The small hole thing is an urban myth, primarily bandied about by the Catholic Church who do not want you to use condoms and so they use scare tactics to stop you.

As I already told you, the scratch would not have been a place where hiv could infect you.

You did NOT have a risk and you do not need to test over this situation.

However, if you are not already having regular, routine sexual health check ups, you need to start doing that. Remember to always check for all the other, MUCH more easily transmitted infections, not just hiv.

Ann
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: forestx on September 02, 2011, 12:18:15 pm
Hi
I have still not had the courage to get tested and I am still worries
Most of my pains have gone but I am still concerned I have

Over the past 6-7 weeks I got a cold
Runny noise
Sore trout
Blood shot eye
Nerve Pain
Red Marks under my arms
Sore under arms


these seem to have gone now

But I just cant get tested I am so scared

I also have other symptoms which I want to ask about
I noticed this before the other one listed above

I have red swelling or red dots around the urethra of my penis
and also a couple of week ago I got terrible testicle pain

I have been tested for both Chlamydia and Gonorrhea and both came back negative

Can anyone tell if this is a symptom of HIV in men I heard somewhere (link on this site) that HIV attacks the urethra
I dont think its Herpes as I dont have marks anywhere else

Thanks
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: RapidRod on September 02, 2011, 12:21:00 pm
Reread the replies that you have received, YOU HAVE NOT HAD AN EXPOSURE.
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: forestx on September 02, 2011, 12:35:15 pm
Thanks
Doesnt alter my fear of getting tested but my question remains
Are the red marks like discribed and tescile pain a symthom of HIV

I know I need to see a doctor about it and plan to next week
(only got the test results for Chlamydia and Gonorrhea today)
or is it posible a sign of HPV
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: RapidRod on September 02, 2011, 12:54:14 pm
YOU HAVE NOT HAD AN EXPOSURE, so the answer is no. 
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: Andy Velez on September 02, 2011, 01:03:15 pm
Fortunately fears and doubts are not facts. And the facts of your situation as you have reported them point without a doubt to your not having had a risk.

Whatever is going on with you symptomatically has nothing to do with HIV.

If your symptoms persist you should discuss them with your doctor. There is no need for HIV testing unless you need the inevitable negative result to get you to let go of this unwarranted concern on your part.

There is really nothing more we can say to you.
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: forestx on October 15, 2011, 12:00:07 pm
OK hey all
Hope you are all well

OK I ordered an oral HIV test via the internet and tested myself yesterday
It came back negitive
Good news obviously

I had ordered one before hand and tested myself and the test came back voud (didnt work)

Is this conclusive now?

I have just one consern

I did some reading and saw that oralquick was the main certified salvia hiv test
So I went online googling Oral Quick buy
The main OQ site sales page didnt work so i went to other sites

http://oral-aids-test.com
home-hiv-tests.com

The site showed Oralquick
But the actual test i got was orarapid

Is this a comsulive test or should I get tested again
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: Andy Velez on October 15, 2011, 12:27:23 pm
You never needed to test in the first place so your negative result is no surprise here.

Yes, that is a valid test. There is no further need for testing.

You need need to let go and move on with your life.

I am also going to caution you that if you continue to return here about this same non-risk incident, you are going to quickly find yourself being given a Time Out from the site.

Your fears notwithstanding, HIV is not your problem at this time. And if you consistently use condoms for vaginal and anal intercourse you will be well protected against sexual transmission of HIV.
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: forestx on October 15, 2011, 12:34:58 pm
Thanks
for your answer and help

It was the validity of the test I was concerned about
If orarapid was a valid test


The other symphtoms listed above havnt gone away so I do need to see a doctor which I will do this week but I wont post on this again
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: Andy Velez on October 15, 2011, 12:37:29 pm
OK. Yes, do see your doctor about those symptoms. They have nothing to do with HIV.
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: forestx on September 09, 2013, 12:26:35 pm
To all the worried wells out there and even the not so wells
Fearing you have HIV is terrifying experience and for some of you getting tested fills you with dread.
I was in your shoes and still am
I became sick (pains) a few weeks after a particular sexual encounter in May 2011.
You can see my original AII post here (http://forums.poz.com/index.php?topic=38974.msg501270#msg501270).
That thread ends in October 2011 when I took an at home HIV test
The test was negative.
 
While the fear and concern went away for a bit it came back in March 2012 after watching a programme that referenced HIV. (Scubs)
The fear came back 10 fold and I spent the next year in a state of HIV anxiety.
I checked these forms nearly daily, read blogs, commented on blogs, checked search engines for cure information
All the time worried I had the virus, convincing myself I had it and as a result abstaining from sex
At christmas that year I decided I had to put an end to this so I ordered another HIV home testing kit online. I thought it would be easier to find out I had HIV on my own and deal with it on my own before entering the medical world and having to be labelled as a Person Living With HIV.
While I got the test in the post just after new year I once again put off taking the test, It wasnt until end of March that I took it .
I booked myself into a small hotel and took the test. I live with people and if it came back positive I didnt want them to see my reaction.
I took the test and it came back negative I was relieved to say the least but still wanted to go to a clinic

Three weeks later and even more stressed out I went to a clink to get an instant test done.
I spent those 3 weeks as I spent the last year – stressed.
 I had read more (I think the Mississippi baby news was around then), I watched videos online of people talking about living with HIV and so on
I went to a local clinic near me that offered Insti finger prick tests
results in one minute.
I was waiting for about 1 and a half hours before been seen and was in quite a state
I was standing banging my head against the wall muttering “oh god oh god” over and over again.
I was finally seen by some nurse and was rocking in my chair nearly in tears as I got the test...
negative again.
The relief wash intoxicating, much more so than the self administering tests I took.
This was someone else telling me I was negative.
I went straight to the pub and had a few drinks. Can’t really describe the feeling I had but I was relieved.
After nearly two years of hell and fear I was free.
But not for long
Two weeks later I began to think my face was wasting away
I instantly thought of lipoatrophy.
I began to panic again but this time instead of waiting another year booked an appointment with a HIV/STD specialist, the next week, for another fingerpick instant test (different to the other one) went in on a Friday afternoon and had the test
Explained to him symptoms and what I was worried about
Had the test and came back negative again

S0 4 tests later and nearly two years after possible exposure I am negative
So the end…. No
About 3 weeks later while sitting in a beer garden I notice veins coming up on my leg once again thought of HIV and lipoatrophy and felt I needed to get tested again this time full bloods in a lab.

I didnt though as I was going on holidays in a couple of days.
So I waited and the feeling went away in a week I began to relax again and stuff returned to normal I stopped visiting this site and reading news and the like.
All was fine til about 2.5 weeks ago
One night when going to bed I noticed large round blue marks on my lower leg
I thought crap what is that and KS came into my mind.
The following day was Friday and I phoned around STD clinics looking for a place that was affordable and had results back from full lab within 5 working days
Found one and went in Monday morning.
I got my 5th HIV test done there.
I also got tested for other stds

At an early point of this madness I had an urine test for STDs and all were neg,

The following Monday I phone up for my results and told I am negative
That was a week ago and over 2 years since I first became concerned and joined this site.

So 5 tests later I am still negative.

Why am I telling you this. To encourage you to get tested and find out one way or another. Especially if you have had a minimal risk like I had.
Also symptoms or not a diagnoses
Over the two years I convinced myself I had thrush, Lipodystrophy, Lipoatrophy,  Kaposi's Sarcoma, shingles, CMV and Peripheral Neuropathy.

I did and do have dental issues, pains and lymph nodes pain and sensitivity on and off.
BUT NOT HIV

I have also not had sex nor even kissed anyone in the last two years


You do not want to go through what I did.
I am still not 100% over it and suffering from HIV anxiety
I got a copy of my last results just to remind myself that I am negative.
I have learnt a lot about HIV in the last two years and I am thankful for that but if I had my time over again I would have have gotten a clinic test done in September or October 2011 three months after the incident and I would say the same to all of you who are worried to do the same 

Thank you for your time and reading this
and thanks to all who run this forum
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: Jeff G on September 09, 2013, 12:39:55 pm
Do not start multiple threads and only post in this one thread , if you cant find your thread go to your profile and select show own post and it will take you here . 
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: forestx on September 09, 2013, 03:53:25 pm
I wrote this as a lesson to others worried or putting off getting tested
but anyhow best of luck Jeff, Ann, Andy and everyone else
Title: Re: I think I am infected - how long until I have to tell
Post by: jkinatl2 on September 09, 2013, 06:28:21 pm
I wrote this as a lesson to others worried or putting off getting tested
but anyhow best of luck Jeff, Ann, Andy and everyone else

Thanks for the kind words. I honestly wish that those sort of posts made a discernible difference. Sadly, when dealing with an irrational fear, rational discussion is all but pointless. Everyone thinks that his/her experience, despite all evidence to the contrary, is unique and falls outside previous issues covered here, or anywhere.

So far this has never proven to be the case. But I am glad you are getting better. It's a process, a journey.