Worried about HSV2

[ralph5]

Hi, 9 months ago I had protected oral and vaginal intercourse with a worker at a massage parlour. I had extreme guilt afterwards and experienced numerous panic attacks shortly after this experience. 3 months after this I tested neg for everything including HIV all except hsv2 as this test was not offered unless visible symptoms are present. I often have a slight itch which comes and goes on the left hand side of my penis with no visible symptoms at all. My fear comes from contrasting advice - on the one hand experts have told me - if no visible sores appear... relax... you don't have it. On the other hand experts say 90 % of people only suffer from mild symptoms for hsv 2 such as tingling and itching...bloody confusing as you could imagine.
Has anyone had a similar experience? The feeling seems to come from the part of my penis which should have been covered by the condom. Has my anxiety caused this sensation? Experts on this site have backed up the advice where if no visible symptoms appear you are in the clear however websites they refer people to contradict this....

[ralph5]

Hi, thanks for that....these days with all the info on the internet it's easy to get trapped into self-diagnosis - this in itself can be a very difficult habit to get out of.

[ralph5]

Sorry for the confusion, the response from MD HHH was an answer he had made to someone else with a very similar question to my own. In my country the select test is not available so a swab test is the only accurate way of diagnosis, the blood test available has a 20% false neg/pos strike rate.

[barn babe]

I don't understand this message. Are you saying you already paid to have Dr. Handsfield answer your question, your questions were answered, and now you are still asking us (the non-medical non-professional internet bozos) what to do? From your message, it appears you have quoted your own question to the doctor. Is this correct? I'm sorry, but you've lost me.

You had one protected sexual encounter with somebody, you were tested for all STDs except herpes and were found negative. Can't you just get a herpes test and put this thing to rest? If you want my (non-medical non-professional) opinion, you have nothing to worry about and should let this one go. But I'm just an internet yahoo, not a doctor.

[barn babe]

Okay, sorry I misunderstood. I thought it was your message he responded to.  One encounter that was protected is low risk for everything. I don't think you have anything to worry about. I'd forget about it. Of course, if you develop any unusual different symptoms, like a blister, lesion, cut, sore, or anything else that you are suspicious about, you can get it swabbed. Otherwise, I'd just forget about it.

This is not directed at you individually, but in general, the level of anxiety on this forum after people engage in protected sex is astonishing to me. Clearly, many folks shouldn't even be having PROTECTED sex if their head is going to spin around and fly off after each episode.

But I think it speaks to the bizarre sexual messages we receive in our culture - sex is everywhere in our culture, in the media, etc., but a lot of folks feel guilty about their sexuality and/or engaging in sexual behavior in general. Add to that the risk/reward factor, and you've got a recipe for a highly potent anxiety stew (with some guilt sprinkled on top).  Sad.

[ralph5]

This info below is from MD HHH:

1. Given this single exposure and use of condoms, what is my risk/odds for contracting herpes?
1) Almost zero.
2. From what I could gather from previous posts, the primary outbreak of herpes would occur on the penis. Since I was wearing a condom, would this still be true, or could I possibly see primary symptoms on my scrotum or groin instead?

2) If you were to develop herpes having worn a condom, you most likely would develop lesions of the upper end of your penis, above the range of condom contact.

3. Besides visible sores, are there any other possible symptoms I could see in the next few weeks in case of infection?
3) The only symptoms of new herpes infections that count are genital blisters, sores, etc. Do not look for other symptoms, and definitely ignore all the noise on websites about tingling, itching, etc, etc.

It's been several days since, and I've been very worried. Thanks for your help!