Aa
IS THIS OCD?
Is anyone out there who thinks he/she may have HIV after a exposure despite testing -ve a lot of times and then NEEDLE NOT CHANGED and things like begin to haunt ?
Thank you mam , i really appreciate your reply.
Besides that i have found it very useful.
Thank you.
Besides that i have found it very useful.
Thank you.
We are not really qualified to give a diagnosis on these forums. The best place to start would be your general practitioner and discuss your fears to see if they believe it is OCD.
Now having said that, HIV is a common irrational thought that many OCD sufferers have and that includes myself. You are doing the "what-if" thing. Having HIV would be devastating in every aspect of our lives and so it is a fear that stays with us. That is what OCD is about...a bunch of irrational thoughts and the more fearful they are the more you feed the fire with your own ruminating thinking.
The trick to this is to combat every negative thought with a positive one. In this day and age, the needle is changed every single time and it is disposed of in one of those biohazard needle boxes...it is the law. You need to keep telling yourself that. When the "what-if" thought pops up, replace it with a positive one. It is called self-communication.
There is a book written by Joseph Luciani by the same title Self-Communication and I found it to be particularly helpful with learning the techniques to self-communicate.
Also, when the fear comes on. Do some breathing exercises. Take a deep breath in through your nose with your hand on your stomach so you can feel it rise, hold it for 5 seconds and actually count in your head, then let it all out through your mouth feeling your hands go back down. Do this for 5 minutes and see if that does not bring your fear under control. You see a lot of times we start to hyperventilate without even knowing it and when the heart rate is up and the anxiety is up we are in that fight or flight mode. We need to get it under control.
Now having said that, HIV is a common irrational thought that many OCD sufferers have and that includes myself. You are doing the "what-if" thing. Having HIV would be devastating in every aspect of our lives and so it is a fear that stays with us. That is what OCD is about...a bunch of irrational thoughts and the more fearful they are the more you feed the fire with your own ruminating thinking.
The trick to this is to combat every negative thought with a positive one. In this day and age, the needle is changed every single time and it is disposed of in one of those biohazard needle boxes...it is the law. You need to keep telling yourself that. When the "what-if" thought pops up, replace it with a positive one. It is called self-communication.
There is a book written by Joseph Luciani by the same title Self-Communication and I found it to be particularly helpful with learning the techniques to self-communicate.
Also, when the fear comes on. Do some breathing exercises. Take a deep breath in through your nose with your hand on your stomach so you can feel it rise, hold it for 5 seconds and actually count in your head, then let it all out through your mouth feeling your hands go back down. Do this for 5 minutes and see if that does not bring your fear under control. You see a lot of times we start to hyperventilate without even knowing it and when the heart rate is up and the anxiety is up we are in that fight or flight mode. We need to get it under control.
No mam, i mentioned needles because 1 month back i got tested for hiv in a goverment hospital .I have never taken drugs ,but only had a first and last sexual protected exposure in which i was unsure about the status or condition of condom.I had tested till 8 months but then 1 month back this NEEDLE fear caught me.
I feel they forgot to change the needle while testing.
Hence the fear.
Although i got a test after 35 days CMIA COMBO which came -ve.Does it lead to anywhere?
Please help me!!
I feel they forgot to change the needle while testing.
Hence the fear.
Although i got a test after 35 days CMIA COMBO which came -ve.Does it lead to anywhere?
Please help me!!
Just to clarify that I am reading your post correctly. You get tested for HIV regularly becasue you are using needles to do drugs, however, recently you found that the needle was not changed and was shared with who? An HIV infected person or a person who's HIV status is unknown?
If you shared a needle with any drug user, then the best thing to do is to get tested at the appropriate times. There is a bit of a waiting period involved as I'm sure you know. In the mean time, you should abstain from doing anything that would put somebody else in danger. I am not saying you have it, just that you need to be mindful of others at this point.
There is natural worry and then there is OCD. I think sharing a needle when you did not intend to would fall under the natural worry category. The anxiety you are feeling is coming from the unknown and this is why you need to follow the appropriate measures for testing.
Try to self-talk yourself down when you start to feel these symptoms that are most likely anxiety. Do some breathing exercises to bring your heart rate down. Get plenty of exercise, it will help alleviate some of the anxiety.
If you shared a needle with any drug user, then the best thing to do is to get tested at the appropriate times. There is a bit of a waiting period involved as I'm sure you know. In the mean time, you should abstain from doing anything that would put somebody else in danger. I am not saying you have it, just that you need to be mindful of others at this point.
There is natural worry and then there is OCD. I think sharing a needle when you did not intend to would fall under the natural worry category. The anxiety you are feeling is coming from the unknown and this is why you need to follow the appropriate measures for testing.
Try to self-talk yourself down when you start to feel these symptoms that are most likely anxiety. Do some breathing exercises to bring your heart rate down. Get plenty of exercise, it will help alleviate some of the anxiety.
And also suffer some real symptoms like fatigue or headache or twinges or boiling current like flow in diff part like hand or feet?
Have an Answer?
You are reading content posted in the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Community
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Condoms are the most effective way to prevent HIV and STDs.
PrEP is used by people with high risk to prevent HIV infection.
