Unprotected sex 5 weeks ago

I had unprotected sex 5 weeks ago with a woman I did not know and now I am extremely depressed, anxious, etc over the idea I may have contacted hsv-2.  During the encounter, I also performed oral sex on her for maybe 1 minute. I did not ejaculate inside her..not that it probably matters.  After two weeks I noticed a sore throat was developing. I should also note, I do have bad allergies.  Initially I thought it was just that and the changing of the seasons.  I also started having issues urinating.  I didn't burn, but I felt like I always had to pee even when I didn't have.  Almost like I had pee still left in my penis.  A week later my throat got worse and I got a really bad headache.  The severe headache lasted maybe 3 days, then got better.  Over the 2-3 weeks of sickness, I was definitely suffering from severe anxiety and panic attacks.  I was getting maybe 2-4 hours of sleep a night, and woke up with extremely dry eyes, throat, mouth every morning.  I think I was very dehydrated..probably didn't help with my headache.  I also started to experience tenderness in my testicles.  No pain at all, maybe just because I was constantly thinking about them.  I've always had issues urinating, especially when stressed.  For instance, whenever I ejaculated in the past I always feel like I have to pee afterward and it would take me a good 15-30 minutes before I could pee.  
At 21 days I got tested, and was negative for everything except HSV-1 (blood and urine tests).  I don't ever remember having any cold sores...so I must have gotten it when I was young like most people.   At about 28 days I went to my primary doctor and was tested for strep, negative.  But she said I had what looked like healing lesions in my throat.  Said it was a "stumper" to her because my lymph nodes seemed fine.  She said I may have had strep but could be getting over it already and thus tested negative.  I'm not sure if that makes any sense....but she also said I could have mono but there's no need to test for it because there's nothing they can do for it anyway.

After going home and checking my throat myself, I also noticed I had a white tongue.  Going on day 38, my throat is much better but I still have a little white going on with my tongue and started to notice a thicker saliva.  I still don't have any lesions on my penis or anything else, but I now have noticed some red spots on my shaft.  I've never really studied my penis before...so it's hard for me to tell if they are new...normal...or what.  They definitely don't hurt, itch, or have any fluid in them.

It is really hard for me to make any sense of all this or know what I should do.  I got tested at 21 days, but that's most likely too early to know so I know I need to go back after 4 months...but I am really struggling with it until then.  Is 5 weeks too late for herpes blisters to appear?  If they did appear...would they be mole sized red spots that are flat, not that close to each other, and do not hurt or itch.  Could it be irritated skin due to anxiety, and checking a lot? Thank you for your help...it is appreciated more than you know.....

[waterwater]

it doesn't sound like herpes. sounds like you should wait for 4 months and then test again to ease your mind.

[mnonymous]

Thanks for the quick response. That makes me feel a little better...but this is killing me (the wait and not knowing).  I feel like I could go to the doctors for a swab test...except there's no liquid for them to swab.  My red spots look exactly like the rest of my penis...but just red.

[mnonymous]

One thing I forgot to mention was I did experience night sweats during my sickness.  I have read conflicting things about this and HSV, but do know it IS a symptom of mono.  I tend to think it might just be mono causing them...or even my extreme panic attacks I have at night.  Thoughts on this and my previous comment? Thanks again all.

[gracefromHHP]

you were ill with a sore throat, that's why you had night sweats.

odds are this isn't std related at all. not like it's herpes either.

continue to follow up with your provider as needed but try not to get yourself convinced that it's a std.  really not worth the stress of convincing yourself it is when your symptoms don't sound std related.

grace

[mnonymous]

Thanks for the response Grace.  I am hoping that's all it is...but here's my concern still.
1) Red Lesions in my throat (3 weeks of sore throat)
2) Headache, night sweats
2) White Tongue
3) flat red colored spots on my penis (no pain, don't even notice them)
4) frequent urination

[mnonymous]

Hi Grace...I know you are very busy but I am still very concerned and would appreciate any other information if you find time. Also, how do I know if my groin lymph nodes are swollen? If it is herpes, would they both be swollen? Or can one side just be swollen?

[gracefromHHP]

please don't ask me to repeat what I've already told you.

[mnonymous]

Grace, I apologize if I seem like I am asking the same thing. Not my intention. I am just desperate to have some hope, because I honestly feel I'm in denial and I am very much struggling with it.  Since I last posted, the red spots on my penis have seemed to have spread.  Almost all look normal, but just red. But two of them now look like they are very circular, with a second circle inside.  The outer circle is normal colored with a red outline.  The inner circle is more solid red.  I really can't say if they are "ulcers" or just spots.  Another thing about them, I initially didn't think they hurt.  Well, they don't hurt normally. But when I push on them with a bit of force, I can feel that there's something there.  I know this is all very vague.  But now this, combined with being sick for almost 4 weeks with a very sore red throat with what the doctor told me had "ulcers" in them...is making me very nervous.  I have contacted the woman (33, I am 29) and she swears she is clean and was tested in January but ignored when I ask about being tested for herpes.  She has become extremely upset with me even talking about this and doesn't respond to me anymore (texts).  This was total failure in my regular good judgement and I am devastated at this point.  All I can think is she may know, and just didn't care.  I met her at a bar, and she hit on me.  Picked me up. Took me home to her place.  I am not trying to sound like the victim, but it just makes me think she either is in denial herself or is a very very cruel person.  I am sorry for my rant, any response is again very very appreciate.

[mnonymous]

Grace, I should also mention after a week of this encounter I started heavily self medicating...for a while i was taking expired penicillin from an old prescription (stupid...but a decision based on fear).  I was also taking about 3000mg of ibuprofen and 3000mg of acetaminophen (for the fever I started getting after two weeks).  I felt like I had a fever, but never registered one. Not at home or at the doctors when I went in.  I also took nyquil at night, because I was sick of sleeping 3 hours a night.  I don't know if any of this could affect my original STD testing at 20 days, or if it could be causing any of my symptoms.  I didn't start self medicating though until after I got my sore throat and started to feel ill.  Thanks again.

[gracefromHHP]

these aren't herpes lesions. follow up monday with your provider.

[mnonymous]

Hi Grace, I am out of town for work so I will see a doctor when I am back in town. I have uploaded photos of my throat sores for anyone that wants to look at what I'm dealing with. Obviously I can't upload photos of the other areas...But maybe this can help determine what this is...or help out for others after I have seen a doctor.

http://s1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj632/mnonymously/

[gracefromHHP]

we don't look at pictures here. why not is explained in our read before posting post.

[mnonymous]

I understand Grace. I get that it's nearly impossible to diagnose based on pictures. But I wanted to document my 'story' with it for when I find out what's going on with me so maybe it can help others down the road.  I apologize if this was wrong. I have been through 7 weeks of hell with this....and just trying to get answers. It cost me over 400 dollars when I was tested the first time, and I can't afford to do it again until 3 months.  At the same time, due to very personal reasons in my life, I absolutely want to know before 3 months for safety of others in my life.  I have made mistakes, and I am paying for them (7 weeks of absolute hell). If I can save someone else trouble down the road by better documenting my experience I hope I can do that.  Everyone that has helped me through this experience...I am beyond in debt to them.  In 5 weeks I will hope for the best and will post my results.

[mnonymous]

I know I am probably beyond annoying to you by now Grace. But please red this over and give your opinion.  And I promise, I will be getting tested in 4 weeks and will see a doctor next Monday when I am back in town...but for now, I have one last question.  7 days ago I was hit in the left testicle which caused me a good 30 seconds of discomfort. The next day I noticed discomfort in my groin on the left side. A week later, I still have this discomfort. It almost feels like there's gas or pressure stuck in that area. Because of this I have felt around there and noticed I can feel a bulge that is not painful to the touch, and easily movable. It almost feels like a rubbery ligament. I am confused if this is my lymph node or not. If my groin was a V shape, the bumps and feeling of pressure are inside the V above my penis more than they are outside of it (toward my leg).  Does this sound like my lymph node? If it is a swollen lymph node, is 7.5 weeks after my encounter too late for me to be experiencing it as a symptom to STD? Could it be due to my testicle blow?  I have also been dealing with extremely bad gas lately, along with bad constipation, which also brought on a Hemorrhoid. I assume this all happened over my bad sleeping, eating, and extreme anxiety.  Could any of this also cause a swollen lymph node...if indeed this is my lymph node? I am forever grateful for your help. Thank you for everything and I promise to stop harassing you after this since I will be back in town this weekend and able to see someone.

[mnonymous]

Well Grace, I broke down and went to an ENT doctor today to see what's going on in my throat at least. I am still out of town, but found time today to see someone because my throat has been killing me for 5 weeks. After giving her full disclosure of my sexual encounter, she said she sees nothing in my throat that makes her think herpes, but obviously wasn't going to look below the belt. She said based on what I told her and what she saw, she thinks I have oral thrush. Could thrush also be causing the red spots that spread on my penis shaft? They are still there after 3 weeks, and some of them look like they are now 'healing' and clearly have a center to them but are still completely flat.  If you respond, it's appreciated. If you don't, I am still planning on seeing a specialist next week when I return.

[gracefromHHP]

yes you can have an over growth of yeast both orally and genitally.  

[mnonymous]

Grace, I have experienced yet another symptom I do not know if I should be alarmed by. This past weekend my leg/groin creases broke out into large red rashes. Both sides. They don't itch or hurt, but definitely were red rashes. The seem to be only in the crease and not really on my genitals at all.  I do play sports, but don't remember ever having a rash like this before. I'm thinking it could be from playing a sport after not doing any physical activities for 7 weeks?  It has already begun healing and now looks like the skin is starting to peal (but still doesn't itch at all). No blisters or anything else that I see that isn't normal.  Sorry to keep pestering you!!!!! 3 weeks until I can test and leave you alone! :)

[bobrope45]

Sounds a lot like jock itch. Be seen by a dermatologist, it's easy to treat jock itch.

[mnonymous]

Thanks! Weird thing is..it doesn't itch at all.

[gracefromHHP]

not unusual for it not to itch especially if it's just irritation/chaffing.

go and be seen every time you have symptoms.

[mnonymous]

Hi Grace, I went and had my red spots looked at. They have now been there on my shaft for 5-6 weeks.  The doctor did not believe they were caused by herpes, but rather some sort of iritation...but couldn't give me a good answer.  She did not do a culture test based on they have been there for so long.  Is this the right thing to do? Or should I have pressed for a culture? Is 5-6 weeks really too long for it to stay there if it were indeed herpes? I still only have maybe 5-6 spots that are clearly red. The first spot that came is the only one that looks like it could be some sort of abrasion. Again, no itch or pain even when I spread the skin out of touch it firmly.

Second question, I am now two weeks away from my 3 month test. Should I wait longer than 3 months? And what test specifically should I ask for? Is it worth going straight to a WB?

Also, I never was able to get a good answer from PP where I got my original tests done on what HSV tests I had done. They told me they could only tell me HSV1+ and HSV2- and not any numbers.  Today I looked over the bill I received for the tests and noticed there were two seperate invoice lines for a HSV1 test and a HSV2 test. This leads me to believe it must have been an igg type specific test. Is this all safe to assume?
Thank you once again.

[petal130]

Grace already stated this wasn't herpes, as did your doctor. And no, herpes most certainly won't stick around for 5-6 weeks.

I'd suggest a dermatologist at this point if your regular doc can't help. But move on from the thought of herpes.

[mnonymous]

Thanks for chiming in, but I still want to be certain with a follow up test so my question regarding which test I should take is then my final question. Should I go straight to a WB or still with an igg? Thank you all.

[mnonymous]

I will also add, the ENT I saw thought I probably had oral thrush based on me being sick for 6 weeks with a bad sore throat along with a white tongue, and a few other symptoms. When I asked my doctor about if the red spots could be caused by Thrush she did not believe that to be the case.  Either way, I will make an appt (more money!) to see a dermatologist but also want to follow up with the 3 month final HSV2 test.  This has cost me a small fortunate, but more importantly it has cost me my sanity so the cost is a small price to pay to be done with this so I can move on.  Thanks again, especially Grace.

[gracefromHHP]

wait and just repeat the regular type specific herpes igg blood testing at the 3 month mark. no reason to pay more for a WB at this point.  

have you treated for fungal infections genitally yet?

[mnonymous]

Ok thanks I will get the igg in 2 weeks. No, they didn't give me anything for it. My primary doctor looked at it and thought it was irritation because she couldn't figure out what else it would be. She didn't think it was an STD though.  It just left me feeling more confused and frustrated because I would just like to put this to rest :(

I told her the ENT I saw had thought I had oral thrush and prescribed two medications, "Nystatin" and "Fluticasone Propionate". She still didn't think it had anything to do with that based on how it looked.  She also thought the medication was overkill and still thought I had some viral thing.  Does it make sense to get a second opinion or to just go straight to a dermatologist or urologist?

[gracefromHHP]

if you had a fungal/yeast overgrowth orally, not unusual to have one genitally too. not a bad idea to use an otc antifungal cream twice a day for a few days to see if that helps at all.

also if you had an oral yeast issue, consider a probiotic like culturelle twice a day for a month or so too to help replace your "good" bacteria so the "bad" bacteria can't continue to overgrow. Culturelle has so much research behind it, we use it in hospitals :)  you can buy it at drug stores , online and even at walmart/target etc.

[mnonymous]

Hi Grace, thanks for the advice. I stopped and purchased some Culturelle and will begin using it today.

Unfortunately, the medicine the ENT prescribe for me has not cured my sore throat and I still have two red bumps in my throat.  I have a follow up with her in 2 more weeks...I'm hoping it gets better by then but I'm not sure where to go from here.

A fungal infection makes more and more sense when I think about it.  Does this make sense: My sore throat symptoms did seem to start after I started taking penicillin 2 weeks after my sexual encounter.  I took maybe 5 days worth, taking a pill 2-3 times a day.  It was also a year expired (I had it for a previous sports related infection, not sexual related).  I did this out of paranoia.  From what I've now read...this was extremely stupid of me to do. Could my sore throat, red bumps in throat, night sweats, and red spots on penis all be caused by me taking a non-full course of penicillin? When I think back, my first 'symptom' I actually noticed before even a sore throat was two round red spots (the size of a pencil eraser) that were right next to each other on my thigh. They did not hurt but were obvious red burn looking spots.  Then to my surprise the next morning they were 100% gone.  This means they lasted maybe 10 hours max.  I now think this was probably a reaction (allergic?) to the penicillin.  Sorry to rant about this but I feel like maybe I'm finally having some understanding of what might be going on.  

[petal130]

Easily it could be a drug allergy. I had a reaction (rash on thigh) to Z-Pack (after having taken it several times before in the past) and tested through an allergist as allergic to it.

[mnonymous]

Me again Grace.  So I wrote back in early April that I couldn't tell if I had swollen lymph nodes or not, but that I felt weird rubbery things that I could easily move and feel.  It is now a month later, and whatever is going on in that area is much worse.  It has gotten noticeably worse this past week and I can feel pressure there when not touching it.  It's not painful, I can just feel it. Almost like there's a golf ball under my skin in that area.  My question is should I be concerned?  Ever since early April I have experienced a non stop upset stomach that is constantly "gargling".  When this started I also started having issues with # 2.  I've noticed the pressure is usually worse when my gas and stomach issues are worse.  I started taking the culturelle you recommended two days ago.  Would this make it better/worse?

So to sum up my questions
1) Should I be concerned?
2) How long do lymph nodes stay swollen if it were STD related?
3) How to I get this to get better?
4) Keep taking culturelle? Should I increase to two a day?

I am just really wanting to start feeling healthy, and my doctors don't ever offer anything to get me better than to say there's nothing they can give me. Thanks again, I hope you enjoyed your vacation.

[mnonymous]

I'll also add that I get some relief when I feel a large movement of gas in my stomach.  Sometimes it feels like the gas "drops" from my stomach and then I instantly feel some pressure leave the left groin area. There's relief, but not complete. And it does come back.

[gracefromHHP]

all I can recommend at this point is to continue to follow up with your provider on a regular basis. none of these symptoms are herpes symptoms.

best of luck getting to the bottom of things!

[mnonymous]

Thanks Grace. I completely get it. I agree now, I doubt I have been experiencing anything related to herpes.  I am just venting now because being so sick for over two months is really taking it's toll.  At first, I think anxiety was causing my sickness and symptoms.  Now, I think maybe I ran my body down so much I really am sick and just can't get over it.  The worst part is, my doctors haven't been able to figure out why I'm sick so here I am still feeling like hell 2 months later.  I just want to be healthy again!  I have a follow up next week with the ENT.  Maybe I will beg her for some sort of steroid haha. Today I checked my throat and I have a white tongue again.  So it looks like the Thrush medication didn't do anything (and it was 120 bucks!)  :(

[mnonymous]

Got my post 4 month test done yesterday and waiting on results. Thanks for all your help and information Grace!

[mnonymous]

Well, Grace. I hope this is the end of my crazy journey so I wanted to say thanks for the help one last time. You're doing the world a great service helping people regain their sanity and lives. It's been over a week since I tested (at 110 days) and since I haven't gotten a phone call I'm assuming I am in the clear *knocking on wood.  So thanks again, truly I appreciate it.

[gracefromHHP]

call and ask just to be sure but giving you and advance congrats :)

[mother2amonkey]

I agree. It sounds absolutely nothing like herpes. U may want to have a more extensive std test done. While the sore throat does sound a little like mono, the problems urinating, as well as the tenderness in ur genitals,  aren't anything that I have experienced while having mono and makes me a little concerned for u.

[mnonymous]

I have been tested for just about everything, strep, mono, bacterial infections including a full STD panel, and everything has been negative.  Unfortunately, I am still sick with a bad sore throat. I've been put on prescription meds for bacterial infections, GERD, allergies, post nasal drip and nothing has worked. I went to a new doctor this week who saw I still have white spots on my tonsils and after whining a bunch more I am finally being put on a antibiotic. Hopefully this works. Either way, I have concluded my sickness is NOT std related but rather a combination of illness and extreme stress I put myself through over all of this.  I will call and double check on my results tonight but I know it's their policy to not call if the result is negative and I was tested last Monday.  So hopefully my long crazy documented journey will help someone else in the future and keep them from stressing out as much as I did.

[mnonymous]

I wanted to add more detail to my story in case anyone ever finds it via search in the future.  After finally finding an ENT that knows what they are doing, I was put on steroids and Amoxicillin for two weeks. According to my doctor, my tonsils were, from a scale of 1-4, a 4 on size, badly infected, and cryptic. 2 weeks later (today) they are back to normal and my sore throat, headaches, and a lot of other symptoms that I have had for 4 months have finally gotten better.  My ENT doctor tells me I most likely had a sever sinus infection along with infected tonsils and they just never got better on their own.  I only wish I would have "shopped around" for a second opinion a long time ago and saved a lot of time and money from going back to the same clueless doctor over and over. Good luck to anyone else still waiting for their results! I'm living proof it can all be in your head and symptoms are most likely from something else.

[gracefromHHP]

glad you are getting better answers and relief finally!!!!

[eraseme]

I had a girlfriend for six yrs. She felt sick often. Each time she felt sick I felt worried because we used to have unprotected sex. One day she was rushed to hospital. About two weeks of her stay in hospital I was so depressed and I couldn't sleep well.
To cut the story short,I was at hospital one day when the doctor said he needs to carry out test on me. I agreed but I was so afraid. I got tested. The doctor told me that there was no traces of infection in my blood. I was so happy but sad when he told me my girlfriend was infected HIV 2. I was afraid and felt depressed since then. From that very day I discovered have sore throat which has lasted for about 5months with light headache. it is worst when I stay without food for a long time. Pls I need advice

[rosscopeeko]

there is no FDA licensed viral load test for HIV-2 and the viral load test used for HIV-1 is not reliable for HIV-2