Some advice on transmission and testing please?
Hi everyone, I’m new here, but needing some rationale, reassurance or guidance.
I have anxiety that I have HIV but I am yet to be picked up on a test.
Bit of background, I test regularly; every change in sexual partner. My last sexual partner was my first experience with a guy who had previously been intimate with men. In total, we had intercourse twice (both with condoms but he did want to ‘rub it’ on me first) and I gave him oral twice (only ever had one taste of his semen after finishing - sorry for the description but no other way to put it!)
These instances were between the 3rd and 16th of November 2022. I completed a home test in the middle of December and was notified that everything apart from Chlamydia was negative on the 23rd of December.
Since then I have completed my antibiotics but since the middle of December I have had this dry itchy mark on the back of my leg, almost similar to ringworm, that I have seen a pharmacist for this week and prescribed me hydrocortisone.
I had a few days of a sore throat and a mouth ulcer but nothing major.
I completed a blood test at the clinic on the 29th of December which also came back negative but the clinic advised me to do a full retest after Valentine’s Day to ensure the chlamydia has gone.
The marking on my leg is making me worry I have HIV as I’ve seen a woman on tik tok say she was incorrectly diagnosed with ringworm 6 months before diagnosis.
I did trust this guy who I was intimate with who at the time last told me his previous sexual partner was a month ago; but when I spoke to him after we stopped talking he said 6 months ago and that was when he was last tested.
Am I being overally cautious? I potentially may be moving to a new job in March but will not accept this position if I am positive as my currently employement will be very supportive if I need some time off. My life is basically on hold and I am often consumed but the anxiety that it is just not yet detected!
Any advice welcome!
Thank you for reading
it's understandable you are dealing with this anxiety, it is so hard not knowing. No need to apologize for your description, this is a non judgmental space and we talk about all things openly here! As I understand it, you had sexual intercourse twice with condoms, and oral sex. There is a lot of misinformation about transmission, so I'm glad to have the opportunity to talk through some of the things we know. HIV is transmitted only through blood, precum, semen, vaginal secretions, or breast milk (not sweat or saliva) - more on that here ( https://h-i-v.net/transmission ) . The chances of transmission through oral sex are on the lower side of the risk level, and condoms are thought to be very effective (more on condom use here: https://h-i-v.net/video/condoms-anal-sex ) .
Did the pharmacist have an idea about what the mark on your leg might be? Please keep us posted on how you're doing, and we'll be thinking of you as you get your next test in February. Let us know, too, if you're interested in any information about PrEP or other preventative measures. You're not in this alone, we're here to listen. - Liz (Team Member)
