Pep sore throat

[Reecetaylor94]

Hi I was recently prescribed pep after a possible exposure.  I didn’t test for hiv before being prescribed. However I’m 99% sure I don’t have hiv as I’ve had no risks other than gay oral sex. Five days after starting pep I’ve developed a sore throat. Is this anything serious? I have no other symptoms.  Thanks

[Sara_MHModerator]

Our members have accurately answered your question.

***  thread closed ***

[GuitarRox]

Have you posted here before? Oral sex is not a risk for HIV. What was the reason you went on pep?

[Reecetaylor94]

I haven’t posted  before  

[GuitarRox]

What was the exposure that made you go on pep?

[Reecetaylor94]

Oral I had bleeding gums. He didn’t ejaculate in my mouth but is from a high risk area.  I didn’t take a test before being prescribed as I was too scared but now a week later I have a sore throat but no other symptom.

[GuitarRox]

You had no risk and I can't believe an irresponsible doctor gave you pep for that. I won't play the game of pretending you had a risk, you didn't. I think you know that too and that's why you didn't start with your risk. get off pep. You don't even need a test. NO RISK

[GuitarRox]

Do you have an anxiety disorder? I am hoping you can get some help with this as it is likely driving this fear causing you to do things like take a rather hard on your system drug for nothing.

[Reecetaylor94]

I think it’s because the combination of oral hygiene and his demographic and area. Just scared me a bit that I have a bit of a sore throat now after taking pep. I do have anxiety disorder though.

[GuitarRox]

yes, reassurance seeking is often a sign. You've been answered so a test to see if you can win over anxiety by moving on.

[Reecetaylor94]

What do you mean

[GuitarRox]

I mean you  were already answered and shouldn't use this forum for anxiety reassurance seeking. You know the risks. ONLY risks are having unprotected vaginal or anal sex or sharing IV needles to inject drugs. Nothing else. Air and saliva inactivate the virus. I feel like you have probably been told that here or at least read it before this post. So, that's the only answer you will get here. Seeking reassurance keeps you sick with anxiety each time you do it. Work on the real disorder you suffer which is related to your mental health and hopefully you can overcome that.

[Reecetaylor94]

Hmm I’m not sure I agree  with you as it is a risk and is sometimes prescribed in circumstances like mine (bleeding gums etc)if you research it it’s mentioned in several credible websites. My question wasn’t really about wether it was a risk or not anyway it was about developing a sore throat after a a week of pep. I don’t think you’re a doctor? Not in a rude way or anything and I appreciate your reply. How do I contact a dr on here?

[AnxiousNoMore]

Your situation involves personal contact with an object in air  (maybe blood, maybe cuts, mouth touching penis , lips,  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.

PEP is only prescribed in your situation when you are anxious and the doctor wants to get you out of his office. Anything you read about it being a risk is either your misinterpretation of just theoretical risk - not happened in 40 years of hiv history, but some sites like to scare people who google into thinking they had a risk - although it's been calculated to be lower than the chance of getting hit by a meteorite as you typed above.
The advice is to get off the PEP - it's not doing anything to a disease that doesn't exist and can have long term side effects. It's a waste of time studying your body for symptoms, since they are not useful for diagnosis - this isn't your first sore throat and you didn't go to pieces the last time you had once so it is time to instead move on from the idea that you have diagnosed hiv or any other disease.

[GuitarRox]

Your anxiety doesn't agree because it wants you stuck. We can't help that here. We won't continue to reassure you as you have been fully answered you had no risk. There are not doctors on this site but the forum is moderated and inaccurate information is removed. They/we follow experts in HIV's guidance for appropriate answers to hiv queries. Get help with your anxiety. It's really the only thing that is going to actually work for you.