Aa
Nobody really knows what the "window period" is
It seems to me like absolutely nobody knows what the HIV window period is. Some say 6 weeks, other 8 weeks - some 13 weeks and others even 6 months. Then, you hear - "if you have a high risk exposure like anal sex or unprotected sex with a known hiv infected person you need to test out to 3 months or maybe even 6." First off, how do you know if you had sex with somebody who is actually HIV positive? Secondly, why do some have to test out longer than others? Either you have HIV or you don't. I don't know about everyone else but it doesn't make me feel better when someone says "oh you had a low risk exposure so you only have to test out to 6 weeks." Why? What the hell does that mean? So, if I had a "high risk" exposure I'd have to test out to 6 months? It's not like if you have a high risk exposure you'll take longer to seroconvert. Why not the other way around? Let's say I made out with a girl which is considered "very low risk" yet made blood to blood contact with her why would only a 6 week test be sufficient? And considering I had all of the symptoms after this exposure why am i considered a psycho when the CDC itself considers "deep kissing" low risk? What if I had a low risk exposure but didn't seroconvert till later? I just don't get that...it doesn't make sense.
Does it make sense to anyone else???
Does it make sense to anyone else???
Here's what I don't understand...I've seen where Dr. H will tell a person who had gay anal sex that they should test out to 3 months and perhaps even 6 months over a SINGLE incident? Why is that? IF I test negative at 3 months I want that to be the end all to all of my HIV worries. Why does he consider anal sex as a reason to get tested out to 6 months? It's not like if you have anal sex it "might" take you longer to seroconvert. Why not 3 months and be done with it? I just have a bad feeling that I'll test NEGATIVE at 3 months but think about what Dr H said about testing out to 6 months and not be relieved thinking that I too will have to test out that far.
Any thoughts???
Any thoughts???
Looking at the whole thread, i'm sure you have serious emotional disorder. Please go back to where you were.
You have developped a habit of getting worried, so eliminate it!!!!
I posted the below one to QueryGirl, hope it of value to you! It's how i helped myself getting over the stupid habit of being worried!
"another tip for you, hope it'll help during this time.
Now that you're already got worried, and u can't get yourself out of the incidence that took place. The more u think, the more u get scared, the more hopeless u get.
Have ever asked yourself why you never felt this way before you became worried about HIV infection? Why it only happened after you search for the sympthom and it never gone away?
In fact, you have developped a habit: Finding reasons to convince yourself that you've been infected!!!
It's very hard to get over it, once it's become the habit.
But if you simply just wanna forget about the incidence, and wanna move on by accepting the fact that it's okay to live with some uncertainty in life, you will have to develop another habbit of carefree.
Statistics are different, but it's said habit will break in 21 days. Give yourself these 21 days by completely get away from the thinking that u're infected. Stop searching internet, stop worrying or noticing your symptom, stop asking people, move back to other routine things you've done before, Simply just do just exactly what u did before u niticed the sympthom and became worried!
Give yourself a moment of silence, and see what happens after 21 days. Wanna know my results? I almost entirely turned back to my normal state of mind. it's not gonna guarrantee the way the test will do for you, but if you think you're being irrational about the whole issue, try it!!! :)
All the best!"
You have developped a habit of getting worried, so eliminate it!!!!
I posted the below one to QueryGirl, hope it of value to you! It's how i helped myself getting over the stupid habit of being worried!
"another tip for you, hope it'll help during this time.
Now that you're already got worried, and u can't get yourself out of the incidence that took place. The more u think, the more u get scared, the more hopeless u get.
Have ever asked yourself why you never felt this way before you became worried about HIV infection? Why it only happened after you search for the sympthom and it never gone away?
In fact, you have developped a habit: Finding reasons to convince yourself that you've been infected!!!
It's very hard to get over it, once it's become the habit.
But if you simply just wanna forget about the incidence, and wanna move on by accepting the fact that it's okay to live with some uncertainty in life, you will have to develop another habbit of carefree.
Statistics are different, but it's said habit will break in 21 days. Give yourself these 21 days by completely get away from the thinking that u're infected. Stop searching internet, stop worrying or noticing your symptom, stop asking people, move back to other routine things you've done before, Simply just do just exactly what u did before u niticed the sympthom and became worried!
Give yourself a moment of silence, and see what happens after 21 days. Wanna know my results? I almost entirely turned back to my normal state of mind. it's not gonna guarrantee the way the test will do for you, but if you think you're being irrational about the whole issue, try it!!! :)
All the best!"
because she was/is a stripper does not make her high risk...generally speaking, strippers don't sleep with other people....your 8 week test was conclusive. please move on with your life. I will not respond to any follow-up questions.
Assuming my "possible exposure" would have had to been blood to blood contact in our mouths - and considering saliva doesn't transfer HIV because there isn't enough HIV quantity in saliva - would an 8 week negative be conclusive or do I need to test out longer because it would have been a blood exposure? Also, wouldn't this have been a high risk person considering she is a stripper? And what about if her viral load was high - wouldn't that make a difference? My point with all this is that science and "odds" don't seem to take into account these other factors like high viral load and the type of i guess "fluid" that transmits the virus - in my case it would have been blood.
Any thoughts???
Any thoughts???
well...seems like you're beginning to head in the right direction. You're seeing a therapist, you can at least admit that you know it's not really logical to believe you have HIV...so keep heading in that direction. I hope you get out of this soon and are able to move on with the rest of your life. Currently, you must live a pretty miserable existence if you're always worried you have HIV.
Obviously a needle stick is vastly diffrerent as blood is being injected directly into the blood stream. Even in this case the chances of geeting HIV are low - less than 1%.
Okay - I've had a good night's sleep so I'm going to go back on my word and make just 1 last attempt to try and explain things to you. But this will be the very last time I post to you.
Let's set the scene first. Can I get agreement from you that we live in a world of risk? An example is that 600 people a year in the US die from falling out of bed. That means you have a 1 in 250 million chance every night of dying from falling out of bed. Do you worry about that when you go to bed? Hopefully not. So the question you have to answer is what constitutes a risk that you would not worry about? I'll take the falling out of bed as one for you - ie. 1 in 250 million is low enough to consider as no risk (this is obviously a very extreme case - probably every time you drive your car you take on a 1 in 100000 risk of dying).
It's all about overall risk.
Okay - let's look at your situation - making out with a stripper of unknown HIV status followed by an 8 week negative test. The chances of yuor stripper being HIV+ - 1 in 20 say (likely to be much lower). Chances of you catching HIV through making out (1 in 50 million - also conservative estimate as there is 1 documented case with open sores in the mouth of both individuals and the HIV+ person in end-stage AIDS and therefore likely to have very high viral loads). Chances of an 8-week test being negative (1 in 20 - also very conservative). Conservatively your risk of having HIV is 1 in 400 million.
Basically, you are twice as likely to die tonight from falling out of bed.
Do scientists know the window period? Yes they do for the average person but. like you say, there is always a chance someone unusual will come along and not fit into that window period. It's just like the risk of dying when you fall out of bed.
Why do people like Dr H give differing advice for testing? It's because of overall risk and what people can consider as safe. For a person who had anal sex with a known HIV+ person, the risk would be say 1 in 70. Taking a 6 week test would mean that the overall chance that the person is still HIV- is 1 in 70 times 1 in 20, which is 1 in 1400 (still quite high odds). Therefore Dr H says test out to 3 months as the chances of that being wrong are 1 in 5000. Then the overall chance then is 1 in 70 x 1 in 5000 = 1 in 350000. Even then, these people are about 1000 times more likely to be HIV+ then to die from falling out of bed that night, (UNLIKE YOU!!).
If you still don't get it, then I suggest you go back and take some Maths exams....
Let's set the scene first. Can I get agreement from you that we live in a world of risk? An example is that 600 people a year in the US die from falling out of bed. That means you have a 1 in 250 million chance every night of dying from falling out of bed. Do you worry about that when you go to bed? Hopefully not. So the question you have to answer is what constitutes a risk that you would not worry about? I'll take the falling out of bed as one for you - ie. 1 in 250 million is low enough to consider as no risk (this is obviously a very extreme case - probably every time you drive your car you take on a 1 in 100000 risk of dying).
It's all about overall risk.
Okay - let's look at your situation - making out with a stripper of unknown HIV status followed by an 8 week negative test. The chances of yuor stripper being HIV+ - 1 in 20 say (likely to be much lower). Chances of you catching HIV through making out (1 in 50 million - also conservative estimate as there is 1 documented case with open sores in the mouth of both individuals and the HIV+ person in end-stage AIDS and therefore likely to have very high viral loads). Chances of an 8-week test being negative (1 in 20 - also very conservative). Conservatively your risk of having HIV is 1 in 400 million.
Basically, you are twice as likely to die tonight from falling out of bed.
Do scientists know the window period? Yes they do for the average person but. like you say, there is always a chance someone unusual will come along and not fit into that window period. It's just like the risk of dying when you fall out of bed.
Why do people like Dr H give differing advice for testing? It's because of overall risk and what people can consider as safe. For a person who had anal sex with a known HIV+ person, the risk would be say 1 in 70. Taking a 6 week test would mean that the overall chance that the person is still HIV- is 1 in 70 times 1 in 20, which is 1 in 1400 (still quite high odds). Therefore Dr H says test out to 3 months as the chances of that being wrong are 1 in 5000. Then the overall chance then is 1 in 70 x 1 in 5000 = 1 in 350000. Even then, these people are about 1000 times more likely to be HIV+ then to die from falling out of bed that night, (UNLIKE YOU!!).
If you still don't get it, then I suggest you go back and take some Maths exams....
don't do it! don't be drawn into his nonsense! we've both been there before and it gets us nowhere!
It's my last ever post to him, though I noticed that I need to go back and take a Math test....:)
I actually worked out the probabilities wrong for badday. They work out as 1 in 20 x 1 in 20 x 1 in 50 million, which is 1 in 20 000 000 000 !!!
Badday - you have 80x more likelihood of dying from falling out of bed every night for the rest of your life than having HIV. I don't know whether that will make you feel better or worse!
I'll try and give you another example. The planet killing meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs is meant to occur once every 50 million years. Basically, there is just as much chance as another one arriving TODAY and wiping out the human race as your likelihood of having HIV. Please, please get the message.....
I actually worked out the probabilities wrong for badday. They work out as 1 in 20 x 1 in 20 x 1 in 50 million, which is 1 in 20 000 000 000 !!!
Badday - you have 80x more likelihood of dying from falling out of bed every night for the rest of your life than having HIV. I don't know whether that will make you feel better or worse!
I'll try and give you another example. The planet killing meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs is meant to occur once every 50 million years. Basically, there is just as much chance as another one arriving TODAY and wiping out the human race as your likelihood of having HIV. Please, please get the message.....
Just got back from the neurologist and he said I have nerve damage from a serious viral infection. Said it doesn't usually happen with a normal infection...now you tell me if its HIV and whether or not its justified that I worry about HIV!
No one here ever said you didn't have a viral infection.
It's just not HIV.
Did he mention HIV??
Look if you're so worried why not visit an infectious diseases specialist?
Or have a PCR done?
I guarantee you it'll be negative though.
It's just not HIV.
Did he mention HIV??
Look if you're so worried why not visit an infectious diseases specialist?
Or have a PCR done?
I guarantee you it'll be negative though.
you don't trust your HIV results, even though you should know by now that if it was HIV that your test would be at least indeterminate by now.
What makes you doubt your HIV results and not those for flu/mono?
What makes you doubt your HIV results and not those for flu/mono?
I guess I don't "trust" my HIV tests because there is a significant window period that is debated throughout the world. That just doesn't exist with mono or the flu. Either you have mono or you have the flu. I had neither...so what else could it possibly be???
It could be anything!
Not answering anymore. If you're so worried get thee to the hospital. It sounds like you're seriously ill. But it ain't HIV. I'm not a doctor, but it ain't HIV.
Not answering anymore. If you're so worried get thee to the hospital. It sounds like you're seriously ill. But it ain't HIV. I'm not a doctor, but it ain't HIV.
If it could be "anything" then I just want to know why the doctor at the hospital didn't check for other possibilities and if she really thought it was HIV then why didn't she do other tests like PCR? She didn't know about how I made out with the stripper because I didn't tell her...it never even crossed my mind to be quite honest with you...
HIV does not excist in saliva or in quantites that can infect someone. It is thought that saliva inhibits HIV. Through kissing therefore it is impossible to aquire HIV. There would only be theoretical risk in the case of intense bleeding gums. Logically if HIV could be spread by kissing imagine how many would have been infected that way.
I've been to about 87 doctors who have done about 87,000 tests...The only thing I found was that I have high Triglycerides. And guess what I found out - when one has a high HIV viral load their triglycerides go up. So, I have been worried sick over this "no risk" incident because of all these symptoms that seem to point toward HIV. What would you do? I don't know what else to do...
My anwer would be: because it is biologically neccessary for HIV infection to occure, that's why needle stick is different from making out! Given that condition, you can tell now why even needle stick is also hardly result in infection.
Isn't it too late for a PCR test? How do I go about ordering one? My PCP was barely even willing to order an antibody test for me.
Well...guess you're givin up on me. Hope everything turns out ok for you. Good luck dobber.
Badday, check this out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypochondria
Read it all the way through. The information is good, and I think you would really benefit from trying some of the approaches listed (journaling, making sure you get plenty of exercise and time with friends, etc.). And ask your therapist about trying CBT--if s/he doesn't know/specialize in that type of therapy, you might consider looking for someone who does.
Just so you know, I won't respond to any further comments.
Read it all the way through. The information is good, and I think you would really benefit from trying some of the approaches listed (journaling, making sure you get plenty of exercise and time with friends, etc.). And ask your therapist about trying CBT--if s/he doesn't know/specialize in that type of therapy, you might consider looking for someone who does.
Just so you know, I won't respond to any further comments.
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