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Every STD testing negative - perplexing symptoms, doctors do not help, truly lost
Dear Sir/Madam,
I'm a 24 year old male. I had a one night stand last October, or the October before that (I can't recall correctly) without protection, and never looked back. I am unable to track down this female I was with. Fast forward this late June while drinking, I had a sharp pain in my lower back. I got scared, and went to the hospital for a CBC, liver and kidney function. While I was examined there, they noticed that my lymph nodes in my armpits were swollen and also I had been fighting a terrible skin condition for ages now, (folliculitis and little pimples on my chest, arms, knees) so they ordered a HIV test. I was so scared, I had constant diarrhea and was unable to sleep for a while, googling symptoms of HIV, and realized I had oral trush (I'm a smoker) and canker sores in my mouth, so I was convinced it was going to be positive, but had to wait a week for the results, but they came back finally. CBC normal, (including lymphocites and everything) liver and kidney normal, HIV test (4th gen ELISA Ab/Ag BIORAD) seronegative, this was in July, so it was out of the "window period", at 9 months after the supposed exposure, or 1 year and 9 months. Huge relief, and I relaxed, because "test results stump symptoms every time" and would have continued on with my life if only I didn't start getting a rash on my hands, inner thighs, back, fingers (blisters, itchy skin, painful, sides of the palms, on fingers) and my skin on the trunks also worsened, I also started getting sore skin on my face, the skin on my soles started peeling. I'd scratch my skin all day and it would get infected even more, resulting in me looking terrible. It has happened before, but this time it was really horrible and I didn't know what to do, so I proceeded to go to a lab and get tested for virtually every STD a month later, because of fear of syphilis (I remember having some kind of chancre on my penis which quickly healed, but it was so long ago I can't recall correctly). (Aug 13th, 10 months after the incident or one year and 10 months if I recall correctly) Results were the following:
AIDS (HIV DUO Quick) (Biomerieux Vidas) - negative
RPR (Sypilis) (Rapid Plasma Reagin Test) - negative
TPHA (Syphilis) (Core Syphilis) - negative
HEPATITIS-C Ak (Immunoassay) - negative
Chlamydia trachomatis AG (ELFA) - negative
N. Gonorrhoea - negative
Soor - negative
Trichomonas - negative
It was a huge relief but I still had the skin conditions, the itching, and the swollen nodes, so I went to a hematologist in fear of Hodgkin's syndrome. By the time I got an appointment (Sept 3th) I had no swollen nodes, still had the skin problems though. She said that the testings were conclusive, examined me and said that most likely my skin looks like this because of constant picking due to anxiety and stress, and that I had no swollen nodes so CT would not be required. She said I looked healthy, was poking me for a good hour checking for spleen, liver enlargment, kidneys, and so on, she found nothing. She said I should go to a dermatologist with my skin, ( then let me go. So I did. The dermatologist said the next day (4th of Sept) that my skin is like this because I scratch it, and that the testing was conclusive and I'm just full of anxiety hence the symptoms. She though identified a rash on my inner thighs and prescribed me anti fungal pills, and a steroid cream for my skin. I'm getting it on Monday. I called the HIV hotline and they said that no further testing would be required, and that they never documented a case of late seroconversion on my country. I however, am still not convinced. Is it possible that I have some kind of rare HIV strain that is not getting picked up by tests, or am I not be able to produce antibodies against some STDs, hence the negative tests? I have an appointment for the local GUM clinic on the 2nd of October. I'm not sure what to expect. Should I get another test(s)? My skin is healing a little bit but I still have the rash and the follicitis, it's making me insane. Anxiety is over the roof. I honestly think I may really be the case of 1 in a million who has no antibodies against HIV, or a case of late seroconversion. I don't know what to do, the fear is debilitating and I'm unable to proceed on with my life. I can't eat, can barely sleep and I'm crying every day. I've asked for psychiatric help because I obvisously need it, and counseling, which I'm going to attend this month. I'm depressed, anxious, and highly neurotic, for obvious reasons. I don't know what to do. My family says I'm an insane hypochondriac, (I was not like this before that) and my friends turned their back on me, saying it's impossible to cope with me because I'm annoying. I'm all alone now. Any help would be great at this point, because I'm not imagining this up I'm sure, or if I do, I belong in a mental institution. I have no history of any serious disease, but I'm overweight but I'm going to work on that if I can break this horrible cycle of doctors, hospitals and tests. Please answer something for I am truly lost and science does not seem to help me this time.
I'll try to convince the people at the GUM clinic to give me penicillin treatment because my symptoms look a lot like syphilis, or HIV, but since I produce negative test results, I don't know if they will allow it, most likely not, and no doctor will prescribe me ART medications with negative ELISA tests, not that I would want that, but I don't want to die. I've read cases about late seroconversion and people not producing antibodies, and they say that the mortality rate is high among those people. I'm going insane. Please help me out somehow.
With respect
I'm a 24 year old male. I had a one night stand last October, or the October before that (I can't recall correctly) without protection, and never looked back. I am unable to track down this female I was with. Fast forward this late June while drinking, I had a sharp pain in my lower back. I got scared, and went to the hospital for a CBC, liver and kidney function. While I was examined there, they noticed that my lymph nodes in my armpits were swollen and also I had been fighting a terrible skin condition for ages now, (folliculitis and little pimples on my chest, arms, knees) so they ordered a HIV test. I was so scared, I had constant diarrhea and was unable to sleep for a while, googling symptoms of HIV, and realized I had oral trush (I'm a smoker) and canker sores in my mouth, so I was convinced it was going to be positive, but had to wait a week for the results, but they came back finally. CBC normal, (including lymphocites and everything) liver and kidney normal, HIV test (4th gen ELISA Ab/Ag BIORAD) seronegative, this was in July, so it was out of the "window period", at 9 months after the supposed exposure, or 1 year and 9 months. Huge relief, and I relaxed, because "test results stump symptoms every time" and would have continued on with my life if only I didn't start getting a rash on my hands, inner thighs, back, fingers (blisters, itchy skin, painful, sides of the palms, on fingers) and my skin on the trunks also worsened, I also started getting sore skin on my face, the skin on my soles started peeling. I'd scratch my skin all day and it would get infected even more, resulting in me looking terrible. It has happened before, but this time it was really horrible and I didn't know what to do, so I proceeded to go to a lab and get tested for virtually every STD a month later, because of fear of syphilis (I remember having some kind of chancre on my penis which quickly healed, but it was so long ago I can't recall correctly). (Aug 13th, 10 months after the incident or one year and 10 months if I recall correctly) Results were the following:
AIDS (HIV DUO Quick) (Biomerieux Vidas) - negative
RPR (Sypilis) (Rapid Plasma Reagin Test) - negative
TPHA (Syphilis) (Core Syphilis) - negative
HEPATITIS-C Ak (Immunoassay) - negative
Chlamydia trachomatis AG (ELFA) - negative
N. Gonorrhoea - negative
Soor - negative
Trichomonas - negative
It was a huge relief but I still had the skin conditions, the itching, and the swollen nodes, so I went to a hematologist in fear of Hodgkin's syndrome. By the time I got an appointment (Sept 3th) I had no swollen nodes, still had the skin problems though. She said that the testings were conclusive, examined me and said that most likely my skin looks like this because of constant picking due to anxiety and stress, and that I had no swollen nodes so CT would not be required. She said I looked healthy, was poking me for a good hour checking for spleen, liver enlargment, kidneys, and so on, she found nothing. She said I should go to a dermatologist with my skin, ( then let me go. So I did. The dermatologist said the next day (4th of Sept) that my skin is like this because I scratch it, and that the testing was conclusive and I'm just full of anxiety hence the symptoms. She though identified a rash on my inner thighs and prescribed me anti fungal pills, and a steroid cream for my skin. I'm getting it on Monday. I called the HIV hotline and they said that no further testing would be required, and that they never documented a case of late seroconversion on my country. I however, am still not convinced. Is it possible that I have some kind of rare HIV strain that is not getting picked up by tests, or am I not be able to produce antibodies against some STDs, hence the negative tests? I have an appointment for the local GUM clinic on the 2nd of October. I'm not sure what to expect. Should I get another test(s)? My skin is healing a little bit but I still have the rash and the follicitis, it's making me insane. Anxiety is over the roof. I honestly think I may really be the case of 1 in a million who has no antibodies against HIV, or a case of late seroconversion. I don't know what to do, the fear is debilitating and I'm unable to proceed on with my life. I can't eat, can barely sleep and I'm crying every day. I've asked for psychiatric help because I obvisously need it, and counseling, which I'm going to attend this month. I'm depressed, anxious, and highly neurotic, for obvious reasons. I don't know what to do. My family says I'm an insane hypochondriac, (I was not like this before that) and my friends turned their back on me, saying it's impossible to cope with me because I'm annoying. I'm all alone now. Any help would be great at this point, because I'm not imagining this up I'm sure, or if I do, I belong in a mental institution. I have no history of any serious disease, but I'm overweight but I'm going to work on that if I can break this horrible cycle of doctors, hospitals and tests. Please answer something for I am truly lost and science does not seem to help me this time.
I'll try to convince the people at the GUM clinic to give me penicillin treatment because my symptoms look a lot like syphilis, or HIV, but since I produce negative test results, I don't know if they will allow it, most likely not, and no doctor will prescribe me ART medications with negative ELISA tests, not that I would want that, but I don't want to die. I've read cases about late seroconversion and people not producing antibodies, and they say that the mortality rate is high among those people. I'm going insane. Please help me out somehow.
With respect
Best Answer
You don't have HIV. That's really all we can tell you. You are conclusively negative.
Thank you for commenting James. I honestly don't know. I'm having a hard time here moving on. Life is too short to be worried all the time but I can't seem to break this circle of worrying so I think I'm going to admit myself to a psych ward if I find out nothing. I wish you well and thank you again for commenting.
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