Aa
Tired of feeling sick
I am in desperate need for help regarding ongoing severe hiv symptoms for over 4 months. I had a possible exposure over 26 weeks ago and started developing symptoms 6 weeks afterwards that I still have today. I started feeling very fatigued, bed ridden, complete loss of appetite with weight loss and abdominal pain, night sweats, muscle & joint pain, severe oily scalp & face with cystic acne, feeling unable to think clearly, & red spots on arms. At 12 weeks I developed what I know is thrush because bitter taste with loss of taste and white tongue with white spots on gums, checks & also developed yeast infection a week later that will not go away with medicine. I went to er around 16 weeks and they just did basic lab work & said they didn't suspect hiv. My symptoms still consisted so I went to another er 2 weeks later that didn't suspect hiv and all basic labs normal. So I finally went to get my own Elisa 4th generation duo test at a lab at 20 weeks which was negative. But at 21 weeks I developed severe cluster headache that wouldn't resolve with medicine for a week and developed painful swollen lymph nodes behind both ears and neck with more severe night sweats. I also developed these small red spots on hands that turned brown but eventually faded away. Went to er they said my wbc was high & I had uti & gave me antibiotics that didn't really help but most of the swelling went down about a week & 1/2 later. I started having severe hot flashes that I am still having now that my body stays overly heated & my palms stay sweaty all the time. Have developed blurry vision & getting new brown looking freckle marks I never had all over my body with a sore lymp node swelling under armpit & sore groin area. I went back to er again about 2 weeks ago & they said my basic labs were normal and didn't suspect hiv. I went to a internal medicine doctor yesterday & he said he doesn't suspect hiv & wouldn't run another test. So I went & got a oraquick last night that was negative at 26 weeks. I don't know what to do, I can't keep going on like this.
I went ahead and went to the clinic to get a rapid insti hiv 1/2 antibody test to ease my mind and it was negative. Are these rapid tests as accurate as a Elisa blood drawn or should I get another Elisa to feel better? We are thinking of trying to have a baby if I start to feel better but don't want to chance it.
1 Comments
" my Elisa at 21 weeks was negative"
That 4th generation would have been conclusive after 28 days. So you need to move on from HIV worry.
That 4th generation would have been conclusive after 28 days. So you need to move on from HIV worry.
It was mainly 4 er visits and they just treated symptoms but the internal medicine doctor I'm now seeing is trying to figure out what could be wrong. None of the doctors actually tested me for hiv, they just did basic labs and everything was normal. I went to a lab myself at almost 21 weeks and had the Elisa 4th generation duo done and it was negative and then yesterday I performed the oraquick myself that was negative at almost 27 weeks. You don't think there's anyway I didn't seroconvert until 22 weeks when I got the enlarged lymph nodes and horrible headaches for that and that's why my Elisa at 21 weeks was negative? I know I took the oraquick yesterday but I have read about the higher rate of false negatives with them. I know I'm extremely worried about this whole situation but I'm really experiencing all these symptoms. I wake my boyfriend up every night and he sees my shirt soaked in sweat.
4 Comments
They all said it didn't look like thrush to them but my tongue has never been like this before and it's the bitter taste that drives me crazy. It doesn't look like the plaques of thrush but I brush my tongue everyday and the taste and coating comes right back with a white coating inside my cheeks and along my gums by the afternoon. No the uti got better but the headache and lymph nodes took a week 1/2 to go down. Honestly I haven't mentioned my blurry vision to them yet.
This is an HIV forum so I will end this now, but your dentist is the best place to have your mouth and tongue looked at. Could be burning tongue syndrome for instance.
Okay thank you but could you please answer about the Elisa test at almost 21 weeks and possibly not serconverting until 22 weeks? Also the accuracy of oraquick at 26 weeks?
4th generation was conclusive at 28 days.
Not seroconverting is an old myth that is now proven false, so if not understanding that has been the basis for all your testing then I hope you are able to now accept the tests.
Not seroconverting is an old myth that is now proven false, so if not understanding that has been the basis for all your testing then I hope you are able to now accept the tests.
Unprotected heterosexual interiors, I am female
3 Comments
*intercourse
ok, that was a risk but the test has proven you do not have hIV so as I said before, you need to rule that out and move on. It is abnormal to repeat tests that have proven you don't have HIV, and i am surprised the doctors even tested you repeatedly.
It seems your symptoms are all self-diagnosed under stress due to the faulty premise that you are dying of HIV so very high probability that at least some of them don't exist.
For instance the night sweats are likely fear induced. You have seen a lot of doctors so what are they saying? Do they think there is some problem?
It seems your symptoms are all self-diagnosed under stress due to the faulty premise that you are dying of HIV so very high probability that at least some of them don't exist.
For instance the night sweats are likely fear induced. You have seen a lot of doctors so what are they saying? Do they think there is some problem?
Do they agree that you have thrush, blurry vision, lymph swollen and you said the uit didn't improve but the swelling went away so is that still a problem as far as the docs are concerned?
Also I am still having all the symptoms still up until today that I began with including the oral thrush that is really bothering me. I just don't know what else could be causing all these symptoms and am so ill I can barely get out of bed.
2 Comments
What was your risk?
You have no medical training, so the first thing to do is stop self diagnosing that you have a HIV disease that your tests have conclusively proven you don't have. The science is 40 years old, so the test process that you are claiming is faulty was instead proven to work long ago.
More info to come after you answer my question.
More info to come after you answer my question.
Have an Answer?
You are reading content posted in the HIV Prevention Community
Condoms are the most effective way to prevent HIV and STDs.
PrEP is used by people with high risk to prevent HIV infection.
Can I get HIV from surfaces, like toilet seats?
Can you get HIV from casual contact, like hugging?
Frequency of HIV testing depends on your risk.
Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) may help prevent HIV infection.
