Hello you all. I have a few worries to tell you all about and I hope someone with more experience and knowledge than me could give me some guidance.
My experience was like this (Hope not to be annoying). I am 24 years old. A little over a month, I went on a trip to Mexico. While there, I engaged in sexual activity with a sex-worker. I believe after the act I touched myself while removing the presv. and some of her secretions may have got in contact with my penis.

I returned to the US, and as I was driving back, I started feeling my neck nodes swelling, and pain in my groin and armpits, my neck started to feel stiff, and I satrted to worry.

Over the next 2 weeks after that my node pain got worse and my nodes on the sides of my neck could be seen although not very swollen, I started having mild fever, night sweats (not very profuse), and also loose bowel movements which at times seemed of a dark-greenish, slimish color.

I could not standit any longer and I went to the doc. I was given 10 days of antibiotic, which only seemed to make my loose bm worse. My neck nodes went down 2 weeks after that, although I can still barely feel them if I touch them. Loose bms have gotten better, although my stool still soft, once a day.

I have noticed I have a bit of dificulty eating, but I do eat well and have not lost any weight. One more thing. My eyes...I wear contacts, but recently (maybe its just my imagination) I have noted an increase in "floaters", and some blurriness at times. I feel tired although I can get up to go to work and function normally, but I seem to have a lot of dificulty sleeping, some days I sleep just a few hours...

I am waiting for the window period to pass so I can be tested (as instructed by my MD), and my doc believes I am at very low risk of being +, says that I might have a virus of some kind that will go away soon (yeah right...), I tested - for mono. I have not had significant headache, just my neck hurts when I stare at the PC screen or TV. Have not noticed any abnormal "rash" in my upper body.

For you people out there, help me out (I need and will be tested, but anxiety is killing me!) how likely you see that my symptoms may be due to ARS???

Take care and for those who have not gone through this, be safe, be smart and be happy.


[This message has been edited by jag2k (edited 01-23-2003).]

How are you doing now? Hope the test came -ve. Please let's know as we are worried about your health and Hope GOD gives you atleast one chance.

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-------PLease someone Pray for me I promise, this will be my first and last mistake...

Thanks for your rely. I have not tested yet, although I'm battling really hard against my anxiety, havent been able to sleep much, and scares me a bit that anxiety in itself can be a sign that I do have HIV. But anyway its been almost amonth and a half now and my condition has improved little, precisely today, my rigth side neckn ode is swelling up a bit again andd my neck hurts a bit. Still having trouble with my vision (blurriness, floaters), and also woke up having a mild sore throat. Have not had any fever that I can remember now for as long as 3 weeks.

Hello Jag2k,
Why don't you get tested around 2 months through Home Access it will give you peace of mind. You can find it on net and it FDA approved and less expensive also.
Hope your health is improved and your anexiety is getting over day by day.

Wish you very best of luck

Hello all of you...I took my first ELISA test at 7 weeks (more like 7 and 4 days), and came out negative. Had other tests done, with nothing abnormal, but I'm still having symptoms and my swollen nodes (neck sides) have not gon down after a month of the onset of my symptoms. Dr. tells me I'm not HIV, but we'll see. My anxiety gets better, and I try to live each day at a time.

All of you take care...I'll post my conclusive results in the future.

This is an update on the situation above. On april 7th I had an ELISA test done 16 weeks post exposure, and the result was negative. Just a post to keep this up to date, thanks all who replied to the posts, and good luck to you all.

Jag.

What part of Mexico?

North part. South of Texas.

I'm ****ed.

You live in the McAllen area? I've tested negative THREE times, so at this point I am worried about HIV-2. I sent the CDC an email asking about it, and this is their reply:

CDC has sent your email to us for response. We are CDC STD/HIVNet, the
email service of the CDC National STD and AIDS Hotlines.

The information in the CDC fact sheet, Human Immunodeficiency Virus
Type 2, is still current. We are not aware of CDC plans to revise the fact
sheet at the present time.

Existing antibody tests for HIV-1 would detect infection with HIV-2 in
42 - 92 % of cases. A specific test to detect HIV-2 antibodies was
approved by the FDA on April 25, 1990.

Home Access System (manufactured by Home Access Health Corporation) is
the only HIV home test system currently approved by the U.S. Food and
Drug Administration (FDA). Clinical studies have shown that the HIV Home
test system is able to correctly identify 100% of known positive blood
samples and 99.5% of HIV negative blood samples.

We do not have statistics for HIV-2 in Mexico, but HIV-2 is primarily
found in West Africa. You would be much more likely to be at risk for
HIV-1 than HIV-2 in Mexico.

Another resource for questions, national or local referrals, and
publications is the CDC National STD and AIDS Hotlines (NSTDAH).

NSTDAH English Service:
800-342-AIDS (800-342-2437), open 24 hours daily, 7 days

NSTDAH TTY Service for Deaf and Hard of Hearing:
800-AIDS-TTY (800-243-7889) Monday - Friday, 10a.m. - 10p.m. EST

NSTDAH Servicio en Español:
800-344-SIDA (800-344-7432) open 8a.m. to 2a.m. EST

You can find information about sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) on
the CDC Division of STD Prevention's Web page: www.cdc.gov/std/ (http://www.cdc.gov/std/)

You may also want to visit the CDC National AIDS Hotline's Web site at: www.ashastd.org/nah/index.html (http://www.ashastd.org/nah/index.html)

Once there, you will find links to many reliable sources of
information. Many of the CDC's HIV/AIDS publications are available at: www.cdc.gov/hiv/pubs.htm (http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/pubs.htm)

The CDC recommends that women aged 18 or older OR women who are/have
been sexually active have a Pap smear performed at regular intervals. The
timing of the intervals depends on each woman's case history and
individual risk factors.

We hope this is helpful. Thank you for contacting us.
CDC STD/HIVNet
sms

My ELISA test was for both HIV-1 and HIV-2. Although the HIV-2 was unnecessary, because there is no incidence of HIV-2 in Mexico (at least not reported).

Where did you get the test? Did they tell you the HIV-2 test was unnecessary? I've taken three tests in the past seven years, but these symptoms scare me to death.

Never going to boystown again. Biggest mistake of my life.

I got the test in the state of Missouri. The lab tested for both HIV-1 and HIV-2 at my request. The doctor did not say anything about being unnecessary, but the CDC does state that while there are no accurate statistics about HIV-2 in Mexico, the incidence is slim to none. HIV-2 is only prevalent in Subsaharan Africa.

As for your 7 years of constant testing, have you had repeated exposures?? or has it been 7 years since your last one? If so, I dont have a clue why you still worry about HIV. Although HIV-2 takes longer to show up in an antibody test, there is absolutely NO WAY it will take 7 years to happen. I would venture to say your symptoms are not HIV-related, and gioven that it has been so much time, you probably have a very well-documented clinical history, which would be the first staep towards trying to rule out CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome), which shows symptoms almost identical to HIV. There is no blood test for that one, thats why I mentioned clinical history.

If your doctor is not supportive of you (I'd say after 7 years, most docs would get tired of seeing concern about HIV in their patients).

And yes, my exposure was at a boystown too, so there you have it. I called CDC and they recommended that I test at 6 months, which I will do.

So, you aren't from Texas? No clinical history, I tested using Home Access, which is why the CDC mentioned it in their e-mail.

No exposure since the last two tests for sure. No one has ever mentioned Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, so maybe I should investigate that.

I'm quite confident I don't have HIV-1 (one test could be wrong, MAYBE, but three?), so I was just looking at other options.

Thanks.

HIV-3??? Some how that does not sound familiar....as I understand, the most common strains are HIV-1, HIV-2, and HIV Type O. I'm not from Texas, but I am Mexican, living in Missouri. I have never had exposures here in the US, and my only exposures were in Mexico.

Three, as in three TESTS. Never even heard of HIV-0.

Sorry...I misread you post. I now see you were talking about the 3 tests you took. Hey...have you ever considered having a test done at a local lab? Not to doubt the Home Access results, they are as accurate as any ELISA can be, but I think you'd feel better mentally. And yes, there is type O, but taht is rare too.

I'm fairly certain the HA results are accurate, after three tests I have pretty much accepted the negative results...for HIV-1. You don't think they would be wrong after repeated testing, do you?

Terrified of going to the doctor, but I've told myself that if things don't improve in a month I just may have to do go.

Why wait, man?? Docs are there to help you out, not to mess you up. If you wait more, you will continue to bein anguish because you dont really know what is wrong with you...I'm in the same boat...I dont know what I have since I steel feel sick (glands swollen and in pain, diarreas some times,floaters, fatigue...you name it, I have it)

But going to the doc as soon as possible can enable you to find what is called your differential diagnosis, (or the illness that you may have in absence of HIV), but you need to go...look for a good Infectious Disease doc, they will give you counseling, and will make you feel comre confident. They did it to me, and it sure works. Also if you cant sleep or eat, maybe you can get your doc to prescribe you some Prozac...it has helped me tremendously!

Even SAYING I will go to the doctor is a big step for me, so I will just see how things go.

I don't have as many symptoms as you, (I have a coated tongue, difficulty tasting, and some strange growth on my lips)but I am worried nonetheless.

No night sweats, diarrhea (other than when I first started stressing, but it has disappeared since I started to calm down), fatigue or fever...YET.

Seven years into this, I would THINK I'd have more obvious symptoms. But what do I know?