Do I have HIV, but negative test at 6 and a half weeks?

[worried_adam]

Hi I had 2 possible exposures MSM a week a apart. 2 weeks after the last encounter discovered I had penile thrush. 4 and half weeks after possible exposure I got really anxious and came down with really bad headaches, sight fever, woke up in sweats some nights and was tired during the days, lasted about a week. I finally calmed down and symptoms seem to reside a bit. I took a HIV test in Sydney 6 and half weeks after last exposure, from what I can tell the standard test is a 4th generation test in Sydney. I felt relieved and moved on. I have since read conflicting statements about window periods some say 4, 6, 8 and 12 weeks. really confusing. on top of this I have had other issues since. Weird bouts of diarrhea, after a big weekend drinking my mouth turned white and peeled, I was treated for oral thrush and it cleared. I got sick about 5 months after the exposure and had the cold/flu for 2 weeks and then felt better for a week and sick again for 2 weeks. Ever since this cold/flu I have had swollen glands under jawline and having pain around them and ears back of the head (for 2-3 Months). It has now been 7-8 months since my exposure and again after some drinking and use of listerine, I am having the mouth problems this time white patches on cheeks around teeth line, on gum behind back molars and just inside my lips, I am worried this is oral thrush again. I am starting to think I must have HIV and my test was inaccurate? Are there other explanations for my symptoms? Before this I don't recall symptoms like this before and I didn't really ever get sick.

[mike_no]

1. What was your 'possible' exposure?  Oral is not a risk.

2. Unprotected penetrative sex is the only scope of risk.

3.  Australia has the best HIV care and testing technologies in the world,  they were the ones to profess 6 weeks negative post exposure when the rest of the world was going with 3 months.  The introduction and availability of the IV gen testing was initiated there.

4. For someone with a real risk a 6 weeks negative should rule out HIV.

[worried_adam]

Both times I am 98% sure condom were used and was just unprotected Oral, however second time I was super drunk and don't remember everything. So there is an unknown element to the risk.
It is strange because different Aussie states have different guidelines in NSW they still recommend a 12 week test from what I can see regardless of test. I think I should just go see the doc again explain my issues and retest for peace of mind. I have got to the point where I feel with everything that has happened and going on, there must be some major issue causing my symptoms. Is it possible that it is all a bit of a combination of stress/anxiety and co-incidance?

[AnxiousNoMore]

You are making a simple issue complicated with all your what-ifs. Ask the clinic what test they use. Not that it matters, since you just had oral which is zero risk.
It is doubtful that you will stop trying to work up HIV theories after you do another placebo test though, so you might want to see a therapist instead to get at the heart of the problem which is HIV fixation.

[GuitarRox]

Your test is not wrong if it was a 4th generation test taken 28 days or beyond.  You have recurrent oral thrush perhaps.  How did you treat it the first time?  Did you see your doctor?  I think you need to go back, have the white stuff in mouth swabbed and then treat again.  And talk to your doctor about your immune system.  Are you stressed? Tired? You need to boost your immune system.  Talk to your doctor about this. But your test results which are conclusive indicate your oral thrush is not related to HIV.  

[worried_adam]

Treatment was with combination of Amphotericin B lozenge and Nystatin oral drops and I did see a doctor the first time. I could be a little stressed/tired does that really cause this much to go on? I forgot to mention before that I also have found it difficult to get rid of the penile thrush over this same time period ( 7 months) using standard 1% anti fungal creams. Also had a few other symptoms during that initial illness which I won't go into. My test was a lab blood test, if it wasn't a 4th generation, but was a 3rddoes that change much? My doctor never said what test I was getting. I have just read that the 4th is the standard test used in most Australian Labs.