Seeking another voice until it's time for testing

[dotdwg]

Hello all,

I'm sorry to make another thread like this. I know HIV can not be diagnosed online, but I guess I kinda want to hear what somebody else has to say until it's time for my test.

On Saturday, July 28th, I had my first unprotected sex with a same-sex friend that I somewhat trust. We've been having encounters for years, always protected, and we always keep each other in the know about our status, showing our papers and all. Anyways, this time, he suggested if we could try it without protection, and me not having sex for about half a year, stupidly said yes. I was in the giving end.
It didn't take long afterwards for me to regret the decision, especially when I realized that his last negative test was in May. [He promised to get tested tomorrow, but I don't know if I should trust that, at this point].

Five days after the event, I woke up with a tickle in my throat. I walked it off. On the 6th day, my throat was acting up, but nothing major. On the 7th day, however, I felt horrible. I had a bad sore throat, a fever, body aches, and a bit of congestion, but the congestion was very light. Nothing like a cold. On the 8th day, everything was getting better, but my throat was still hurting pretty bad. I could barely eat, and even swallowing ice cream hurts. Today, my throat still hurts, and I feel fatigued. I feel like my throat is very tight.
I do not know if I have swollen lymph nodes, because I've never been able to figure out how to diagnose that. I don't have any sort of rash, nor do I have any spots in my mouth.

I will get tested when it's time, but in the meantime, should I be worried, some-what worried, barely worried? :\

Thank you all!

[Andy Velez]

There is nothing HIV-specific about your symptoms. And neither the presence nor the absence of symptoms will ever tell you anything accurately about your HIV status.

Unprotected receptive anal sex is high risk. You can get tested initially at 6 weeks after the incident. If you test negative at 6 weeks then the likelihood is you will continue to test negative at 3 months for a conclusive result.

So you have some waiting time to get through. Avoid this kind of worry in the future by always, without exceptions, using condoms for anal. Whether you are receptive or insertive, condoms are a must.

Good luck with your test and keep us posted.

[dotdwg]

Thank you for your reply, Andy.

I do have quite an eternal wait.
Just a quick update, today I feel fine. My sore throat is gone. The only thing is that my Asthma kicked in [it always does after any cold or flu], so my chest feels a bit tight.
Just a quick correction: I was the giver, not the receiver. He was tested negative in May, which is why I took the dumb on-the-spot decision to go bareback [that, and the fact that I haven't done anything since Pluto was a planet]. He did say he was gonna get re-tested this week, to at least give me a bit of calm [or mini heart attack if he turns out positive] until I get tested.

Anyways, thank you for listening and replying!

[Ann]

dot,

Hiv is a fragile, difficult to transmit virus and it is more difficult to transmit from the receptive partner (bottom or woman) to the insertive partner (top or man).

I would not expect you to test positive following a one-time unprotected insertive incident. But you do need to test to make sure, regardless of his test results.

You really need to learn from this and make sure you're using condoms every time, no exceptions.

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