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STDs (Expert Forum)
SCARED OF STD INFECTION (Im a suffering hypochondriac)
Answered by
University of Washington
Seattle - WA
Welcome to the STD Forum, which is intended only for questions and support pertaining to sexually transmitted diseases other than HIV/AIDS, including chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, human papillomavirus, genital warts, trichomonas, other vaginal infections, nongonoccal urethritis (NGU), cervicitis, molluscum contagiosum, chancroid, and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). All questions will be answered by H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D. or Edward W Hook, MD.
SCARED OF STD INFECTION (Im a suffering hypochondriac)
by worriedone4life, Aug 11, 2005 12:00AM
I am a 23 year old male who had breif unprotected sex with a female. Oral sex was unprotected, vaginal sex was protected but the condom broke. Penetration was approximately 1 minute unprotected. She was tested and she has herpes antibodies in her blood but no outbreak and no signs of herpes in culture. I have not spoken to her since and i am not sure if she was tested for all stds. I was tested 11 days after exposure for everything, blood and culture. All came back negative. I also did and do not have any symptoms of herpes. I would like to mention that I suffer from severe anxiety, and hypochondriasis (an anxiety problem which a person believes they are sick all the time) which causes me to worry severely about this whole situation. I no longer talk to this woman anymore and i am afraid of possible hiv risk or other std risk. It has been 6 weeks since exposure and i was tested for hiv again today which results will be in in about 3 days. I have not eaten in about 7 days. My anxiety gets me worked up and causes me to lose my appetite. About 4 days ago i started to have loose stools and gas, 3x a day, and last night i developed a low grade fever, 99-99.2. The day before the loose stools i took mylanta 3 times, to stop the nausea caused by anxiety, which may have triggered this. I have soreness in my groin area, muscle soreness on right side, with no swollen lymph nodes. I also have been phlegmy in my throat for the last few days without swelling or soreness, possibly from not eating. I dont notice any swollen glands and I do not have a sore throat. I am so scared of contracting stds and my hypochondriasis isnt helping any. What do you think my chances of risk are?
-Note: I was put on lexapro three days ago and have taken it every day since. It is noted in the side effects that increased sweating is a side effect, could this have caused the spike in temp?
-Note: I was put on lexapro three days ago and have taken it every day since. It is noted in the side effects that increased sweating is a side effect, could this have caused the spike in temp?
Doctor's Answer
by H. Hunter Handsfield, M.D., Aug 11, 2005 12:00AM
, Aug 11, 2005 12:00AM
You have almost zerro risk of HIV from the exposure you describe, and the negative HIV test at 6 weeks is strong proof you aren't infected. Some experts recommend being tested one more time at 3 months; you can do that if if will give you more confidence about HIV, but the result will be negative. Your temperature is normal. (Lots of people believe 98.6 is the maximum normal temperature. In fact, it is the average; everybody has temperatures 99-99.5 from time to time, and some people are there all the time.) It also is unlikely you have any other STD. Your various symptoms sound more like anxiety-related than HIV.
If you're not seeing a health care provider for your anxiety/hypochondria, that is what you need to do. I can't help further.
Good luck-- HHH, MD
If you're not seeing a health care provider for your anxiety/hypochondria, that is what you need to do. I can't help further.
Good luck-- HHH, MD
The doctor will probably tell you that you're fine and at low risk. If you search thru the other threads, you'll see lots of cases similar to yours and in each case, the person came up negative and Dr. H told them not to worry. Maybe there's a small risk of things other than HIV, but pretty low risk, and I'm pretty sure your HIV risk factor is close to zero.
Also, lately a lot of people have been posting about the types of symptoms they get from unfounded HIV anxieties. You can read some of them for support. I went thru a lot of the things you describe, although in my case, I had much more reason to worry.
J
I also have an anxiety disorder. I started Lexapro about a month ago and it made me feel dreadful for the first 4 or 5 days! Hang in there, it should stop making you feel crappy and start working. I hope that reassures you somewhat.
Also, I must agree with Johhny, your risk was really low. But I know how you feel, I am getting my results in 5 days and I am an absolute wreck. I can't eat, or sleep right. It seems like I feel worse every day. It's easy to think you have symptoms, especially if you keep looking them up. Just remember that your anxieties can really mess with your body. Stress can make you really ill.
J
RYN21