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Sore throat symptoms 2 days after protected sex, any reason to worry?
I am a male and had protected sex with a female, and noticed a bit of a tingling, sore throat on the morning of the 2nd day (about 40 hours after sex). A condom was used, however, I did have to manually reach inside and pull it down because it kept slipping a bit and riding higher on my penis. Lots of deep kissing, and biting, and maybe even a bit of breaking of skin of my lips as she was quite aggressive. I did not give her oral sex; my mouth was only used in kissing her mouth and body.
I was last tested for all major STIs, negative for all, about 2 weeks ago, and since then have had protected sex 3 or 4 times. I have no symptoms on my genitals, only the mild sore throat. Is 40 hours even enough time for a symptom like this to occur? If so, when would a test be recommend, and for which STIs in particular?
I was last tested for all major STIs, negative for all, about 2 weeks ago, and since then have had protected sex 3 or 4 times. I have no symptoms on my genitals, only the mild sore throat. Is 40 hours even enough time for a symptom like this to occur? If so, when would a test be recommend, and for which STIs in particular?
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COMMUNITY LEADER
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Also, anxiety seems to be an issue for you. Ever talked to anyone about it?
Thank you Jessi. You're right about the anxiety. It's a combination of several factors, one of them being that I'm fairly new to a lot of things discussed here. My lack of knowledge leads me to have lots of questions and when I don't have a lot of data, sometimes I do get anxious. Thanks again for your response!
So are you new to sexual activity, or certain things with sex?
I can help with that. Get comfortable. This will be long. :)
Receiving unprotected oral sex if you have a penis:
So receiving unprotected oral sex puts you at risk for syphilis, genital herpes type 1, chlamydia, gonorrhea and NGU. You are not at risk for HIV from receiving (or giving) oral sex.
I’ll explain all the risks for everything, but most experts don't think a single act of oral sex warrants testing. If you have a regular partner you're concerned about infecting, you might want to test, but you probably don't need to test unless you get symptoms.
Syphilis:
Syphilis isn't that common, and your partner would have had to have a sore in their mouth to transmit it. You wouldn't see symptoms of this for 10-90 days, but the average is 21 days, and you'd get a sore called a chancre. This doesn't cause burning, pain, discharge, etc. You can test for this at 6 weeks. If you get symptoms, but test negative at 6 weeks, test again at 90 days, and get to the doctor as soon as you see symptoms.
Herpes Simplex Type 1:
If you don't already have herpes type 1 (think oral sores, like cold sores but not canker sores), then you could get genital herpes type 1 from receiving oral sex. This can happen even if the person performing oral doesn't have a sore, but it's more likely if they do. The time from infection to symptoms is usually 2-12 days, but the average is 4 days. You can test for this now, and then again at 4 months to make sure you don't have it. If you test positive now, it's a pre-existing infection that you had before this encounter. About half the adult population has this, and 90% don’t know it. Ask for a type specific hsv1 IgG blood test. You don't need a type 2 test, and that test has some false positives on it, so avoid it if you can.
Gonorrhea:
You'd see symptoms of gonorrhea at about 2-5 days, and this would usually be a discharge, burning, etc. Some people don't get symptoms. You can test for this as early as 3 days, but 5 days is better. You can have a urine test or a swab test.
Chlamydia:
Oral chlamydia isn't common at all, so getting chlamydia from receiving oral isn't likely, but has happened, so I mention it. The symptoms and time frame are similar to gonorrhea. A chlamydia test is usually run at the same time as gonorrhea, but make sure to ask for it.
NGU:
NGU (nongonococcal urethritis urethritis, sometimes called NSU, for non-specific) is an infection in the urethra that is caused by anything other than gonorrhea . This can be caused by normal mouth bacteria entering the urethra, and other germs, like strep, adenovirus (usually causes upper respiratory infections like bronchitis), and the like. The symptoms and testing times are the same as gonorrhea and chlamydia.
GIVING ORAL TO A VAGINA
Giving oral sex to someone with a vagina oral chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis. Syphilis isn't that common, and your partner would have had to have a sore that your mouth came into contact with to transmit it. You would get a sore in your mouth anywhere from 10-90 days, with 21 days being the average. You can test for this at 6 weeks.
Oral gonorrhea doesn't usually have symptoms, but if you got them, it would be a sore, red throat, maybe a fever, maybe swollen glands. If you get symptoms, they usually appear within 7-21 days. You can get a throat swab for this at about 5 days.
Oral chlamydia is thought to be rare, and usually doesn't present with symptoms. The time frame for testing is the same as gonorrhea.
Giving oral to someone with a vagina is not that risky. Because nothing is physically in your throat like a penis would be, chances of getting gonorrhea or chlamydia are far less likely.
Unprotected, penetrative vaginal sex:
The risks are for syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, genital herpes type 2, mycoplasma, trich, HIV, hep B, HIV.
The symptoms are the same as listed above for the ones I've already mentioned.
Genital herpes type 2 will have the same symptoms as ghsv1.
You might not get any symptoms for any of them.
Mycoplasma is a newer STD - https://www.cdc.gov/std/mgen/stdfact-Mgen.htm. It's not thought to be spread by oral, but is by vaginal or anal sex. (If something is transmitted by vaginal, it's going to be transmitted by anal, too.)
Depending on your age, you've probably been vaccinated for Hep B. Talk to your doctor.
If you use condoms, the only risk is syphilis, HPV and genital herpes type 2, and condoms offer significant protection against those.
Using condoms for oral also offers significant protection. Oral is considered lower risk, and most experts don't feel that one act of unprotected sex warrants testing.
The American Social Health Association - https://www.ashasexualhealth.org/stds_a_to_z/ - has a ton of great info for you to learn from.
That's enough info for now lol. Read through it all, and relax. :)
I can help with that. Get comfortable. This will be long. :)
Receiving unprotected oral sex if you have a penis:
So receiving unprotected oral sex puts you at risk for syphilis, genital herpes type 1, chlamydia, gonorrhea and NGU. You are not at risk for HIV from receiving (or giving) oral sex.
I’ll explain all the risks for everything, but most experts don't think a single act of oral sex warrants testing. If you have a regular partner you're concerned about infecting, you might want to test, but you probably don't need to test unless you get symptoms.
Syphilis:
Syphilis isn't that common, and your partner would have had to have a sore in their mouth to transmit it. You wouldn't see symptoms of this for 10-90 days, but the average is 21 days, and you'd get a sore called a chancre. This doesn't cause burning, pain, discharge, etc. You can test for this at 6 weeks. If you get symptoms, but test negative at 6 weeks, test again at 90 days, and get to the doctor as soon as you see symptoms.
Herpes Simplex Type 1:
If you don't already have herpes type 1 (think oral sores, like cold sores but not canker sores), then you could get genital herpes type 1 from receiving oral sex. This can happen even if the person performing oral doesn't have a sore, but it's more likely if they do. The time from infection to symptoms is usually 2-12 days, but the average is 4 days. You can test for this now, and then again at 4 months to make sure you don't have it. If you test positive now, it's a pre-existing infection that you had before this encounter. About half the adult population has this, and 90% don’t know it. Ask for a type specific hsv1 IgG blood test. You don't need a type 2 test, and that test has some false positives on it, so avoid it if you can.
Gonorrhea:
You'd see symptoms of gonorrhea at about 2-5 days, and this would usually be a discharge, burning, etc. Some people don't get symptoms. You can test for this as early as 3 days, but 5 days is better. You can have a urine test or a swab test.
Chlamydia:
Oral chlamydia isn't common at all, so getting chlamydia from receiving oral isn't likely, but has happened, so I mention it. The symptoms and time frame are similar to gonorrhea. A chlamydia test is usually run at the same time as gonorrhea, but make sure to ask for it.
NGU:
NGU (nongonococcal urethritis urethritis, sometimes called NSU, for non-specific) is an infection in the urethra that is caused by anything other than gonorrhea . This can be caused by normal mouth bacteria entering the urethra, and other germs, like strep, adenovirus (usually causes upper respiratory infections like bronchitis), and the like. The symptoms and testing times are the same as gonorrhea and chlamydia.
GIVING ORAL TO A VAGINA
Giving oral sex to someone with a vagina oral chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis. Syphilis isn't that common, and your partner would have had to have a sore that your mouth came into contact with to transmit it. You would get a sore in your mouth anywhere from 10-90 days, with 21 days being the average. You can test for this at 6 weeks.
Oral gonorrhea doesn't usually have symptoms, but if you got them, it would be a sore, red throat, maybe a fever, maybe swollen glands. If you get symptoms, they usually appear within 7-21 days. You can get a throat swab for this at about 5 days.
Oral chlamydia is thought to be rare, and usually doesn't present with symptoms. The time frame for testing is the same as gonorrhea.
Giving oral to someone with a vagina is not that risky. Because nothing is physically in your throat like a penis would be, chances of getting gonorrhea or chlamydia are far less likely.
Unprotected, penetrative vaginal sex:
The risks are for syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, genital herpes type 2, mycoplasma, trich, HIV, hep B, HIV.
The symptoms are the same as listed above for the ones I've already mentioned.
Genital herpes type 2 will have the same symptoms as ghsv1.
You might not get any symptoms for any of them.
Mycoplasma is a newer STD - https://www.cdc.gov/std/mgen/stdfact-Mgen.htm. It's not thought to be spread by oral, but is by vaginal or anal sex. (If something is transmitted by vaginal, it's going to be transmitted by anal, too.)
Depending on your age, you've probably been vaccinated for Hep B. Talk to your doctor.
If you use condoms, the only risk is syphilis, HPV and genital herpes type 2, and condoms offer significant protection against those.
Using condoms for oral also offers significant protection. Oral is considered lower risk, and most experts don't feel that one act of unprotected sex warrants testing.
The American Social Health Association - https://www.ashasexualhealth.org/stds_a_to_z/ - has a ton of great info for you to learn from.
That's enough info for now lol. Read through it all, and relax. :)
Jessi, I want to thank you for posting all of this. Part of my frustration is that the infection window can be so wide. For example, above for one STI it says "7 to 21 days, test at 6 weeks." 21 days is a long time for symptoms to appear, and 6 weeks is a very long time. Also, in some cases symptoms simply don't appear at all. Having frequent sex with multiple partners complicates this as I may have sex with many more people over that multi week time frame.
I want to assure you that despite appearing overly worried, I just like to have lots of detailed info. When I have actual data, I am much more confident and less worried about acquiring or transmitting. For example, knowing the HSV2 stat from the study about a 4-10% chance of transmission for partners over a years time, when using a condom and avoiding sex during breakouts, this gives me actionable, real numbers that I can use to calculate my risk. OTOH, just knowing that "7 to 21 days, symptoms may or may not appear," this isn't as actionable and it feels a lot more like a guessing game.
Thanks again, you're awesome.
I want to assure you that despite appearing overly worried, I just like to have lots of detailed info. When I have actual data, I am much more confident and less worried about acquiring or transmitting. For example, knowing the HSV2 stat from the study about a 4-10% chance of transmission for partners over a years time, when using a condom and avoiding sex during breakouts, this gives me actionable, real numbers that I can use to calculate my risk. OTOH, just knowing that "7 to 21 days, symptoms may or may not appear," this isn't as actionable and it feels a lot more like a guessing game.
Thanks again, you're awesome.
You're welcome. :)
We can't pinpoint exact times. Every body is different. I have ghsv2. I got symptoms on day 2. I woke up, had big bad painful sores. I knew right away what it was.
Someone else might get symptoms on day 4. Or day 8. It depends on how your body responds to the infection. Some people don't get symptoms.
Think of covid. Some people got no symptoms, some had mild, some ended up hospitalized, some died. Some have long covid, some don't.
We know why some people got more severe symptoms - maybe they have diabetes or heart disease or lung problems, but some perfectly healthy, young people died. Bodies are different.
My 80something year old mom with cancer didn't have it as bad as I did, and I got long covid, and she didn't. Bodies are different. My sister got covid multiple times and doesn't have long covid. I got it once and have it. Go figure.
The very best you can do is use condoms every time, especially since you have multiple partners. Test regularly.
I don't know where you live, or I'd give you stats for your area (you certainly don't need to tell me - don't put that out on this site) - but you can google it. If you live in the US, google "syphilis incidence US", for example.
You're going to be okay. :)
We can't pinpoint exact times. Every body is different. I have ghsv2. I got symptoms on day 2. I woke up, had big bad painful sores. I knew right away what it was.
Someone else might get symptoms on day 4. Or day 8. It depends on how your body responds to the infection. Some people don't get symptoms.
Think of covid. Some people got no symptoms, some had mild, some ended up hospitalized, some died. Some have long covid, some don't.
We know why some people got more severe symptoms - maybe they have diabetes or heart disease or lung problems, but some perfectly healthy, young people died. Bodies are different.
My 80something year old mom with cancer didn't have it as bad as I did, and I got long covid, and she didn't. Bodies are different. My sister got covid multiple times and doesn't have long covid. I got it once and have it. Go figure.
The very best you can do is use condoms every time, especially since you have multiple partners. Test regularly.
I don't know where you live, or I'd give you stats for your area (you certainly don't need to tell me - don't put that out on this site) - but you can google it. If you live in the US, google "syphilis incidence US", for example.
You're going to be okay. :)
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You are reading content posted in the STDs / STIs Community
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
I'd guess allergies, dry air, a cold, strep, covid, the flu, sleeping with your mouth open, dust mites in your pillow, etc., etc., long before I would an STD from protected sex. That would be way, way down on my list of possibilities.