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Can you get a sti/hiv from using toilet paper off the floor of a public restroom?
I know this is gross but I was in a public bathroom and went pee and realized there was no toilet paper. There was some paper on the floor so I stupidly used that. The paper was dry and nothing was on it but I’m worried I could have given myself hiv or an std. Please help. I am a female.
Your situation involves personal contact with an object in air (toilet paper, maybe someone's saliva, maybe blood, fluids etc. ) . You will be happy to learn that you had no risk, because you can't get hiv from personal contact except unprotected penetrating vaginal or anal with a penis, neither of which you did and you didn't share hollow needles to inject with which is the only other way to acquire hiv - there are ONLY 3 ways to get hiv. Note that 2 of them require a penis and the third requires a hollow injecting shared needle - there are no OTHER ways to get hiv. Analysis of large numbers of infected people over the 40 years of hiv history has proven that people don't get hiv in the way you are worried is a risk.
Hiv is a fragile virus in air or saliva and is effectively instantly dead in either air or saliva so the WORST that could happen is dead virus rubbed you, and obviously anything which is dead cannot live again so you are good. Blood and cuts would not be relevant in your situation since the hiv has become effectively dead, so you don't have to worry about them to be sure that you are safe.
There is no reason for a person to test when they are safe. The advice took into consideration that the other person might be positive, so move on and enjoy life instead of thinking about this non-event. hiv prevention is straightforward since there are only 3 ways you can become infected, so next time you wonder if you had a risk, ask yourself this QUESTION. "Did I do any of the 3?" Then after you ANSWER "No, I didn't" you will know that it's time to move on back to your happy life.
No one got hiv from what you did during 40 years of hiv history and no one will get it in the next 40 years of your life either. You can do what you did any time and be safe from hiv.
The other person's status is irrelevant when you have no exposure to live virus.
If you still have questions about your risk, after reading all of the above, then it is because you didn't answer the QUESTION above.
Hiv is a fragile virus in air or saliva and is effectively instantly dead in either air or saliva so the WORST that could happen is dead virus rubbed you, and obviously anything which is dead cannot live again so you are good. Blood and cuts would not be relevant in your situation since the hiv has become effectively dead, so you don't have to worry about them to be sure that you are safe.
There is no reason for a person to test when they are safe. The advice took into consideration that the other person might be positive, so move on and enjoy life instead of thinking about this non-event. hiv prevention is straightforward since there are only 3 ways you can become infected, so next time you wonder if you had a risk, ask yourself this QUESTION. "Did I do any of the 3?" Then after you ANSWER "No, I didn't" you will know that it's time to move on back to your happy life.
No one got hiv from what you did during 40 years of hiv history and no one will get it in the next 40 years of your life either. You can do what you did any time and be safe from hiv.
The other person's status is irrelevant when you have no exposure to live virus.
If you still have questions about your risk, after reading all of the above, then it is because you didn't answer the QUESTION above.
9 Comments
Thank you for your response. I was worried that there could have been something potentially on the toilet paper as it was in the ground but you’re 100% sure that there is no risk for getting hiv/std? I just didn’t know if I should be tested.
You cannot get HIV or any STD from objects, paper, textiles, etc., no matter WHAT is on them.
Reread the advice since you haven't understood any of it, and obviously didn't even read the last sentence. Since you didn't answer the QUESTION, I'll do it for you. Answer> No, there wasn't a penis in my anus when I used the toilet paper and I wasn't injected with a hollow needle then either so I had no risk and should move on.
I appreciate you response and yes I did read your response. I was concerned as I am a female that by wiping I could have possibly gotten the virus in my bloodstream. I understand that there wasn’t a penis involved but I was just concerned that if there would have been something on the toilet paper that by me wiping I could have done something.
The ways you get HIV are not related to your gender. And the risks were given already. So, you tell me? Did you have a risk? No. If this is something you can't accept, it's an anxiety problem and talking to a therapist about health anxiety would be helpful .
You claim to have read my response, however you have ZERO comprehension of it. I imagine you know the meaning of the word "only", however your responses seems to indicate you don't.
It seems you have a logic issue, so you should see your doctor and let her explain it face to face.
It seems you have a logic issue, so you should see your doctor and let her explain it face to face.
Thank you for your time. I apologize for being an inconvenience. I fully admit that my questions are stupid to some and again I apologize.
I think you've completely missed the point. "Stupid" isn't even in this discussion. Mental health is. Your continuing to fret over something that we're really clear is not a risk is a sign of an anxiety disorder. Right? How much it impacts you, I don't know. But if you have issues with ideas of using toilet paper, it's got to be pretty significant. We all have a gazillion random thoughts a day. Some are horrifying. But those that do not suffer anxiety let them come and go. Those WiTH anxiety glom onto them and they ruminate and fester. Anxiety is a treatable illness and if you talk to your doctor, this could get better for you. That is really the point.
Thank you again. I fully admit that I have health anxiety. I was just concerned that the toilet paper I used which was a piece on the floor of a very public restroom could have somehow been contaminated/infected and me making an obvious bad decision could have affected my health. It wasn’t just toilet paper it was the circumstance of where the paper came from. I just wanted to very that testing was not needed for possible hiv/std. i appreciate your responses.
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