Jackson,I pulled this post over from the HIV forum as the people with expertise reside in that forum when it comes to giving advice re Aids.
AIDS Phobia / Transmission Anxiety: What You Need To Know
by TalktomeHIV, forum Moderator for HIV-AIDS
"As a hotline counselor, one of the most difficult things to address is also one of the more common things we find ourselves facing: callers suffering from severe anxiety.
Anxiety can stem from and/or be complicated by heredity, environmental factors, guilt, abuse, drug use, and many other things, and is often caused by a combination of these things. In this context, anxiety usually masks itself as a difficulty in believing test results. When that is the case, people often will tell themselves, "Ok I have this info now, so after my next test I will feel better." Sometimes that may work. However, often times this same person has made that same call and told him or herself that same thing many times already. It's a vicious circle that will not break itself, and requires assistance in the form of a counselor.
Anxiety is also very capable of manifesting as symptoms, including many people mistake for symptoms of HIV. These symptoms can be severe and long lasting. In order to find relief once anxiety has reached the point of causing illness, intensive one on one counseling is generaly required.
If you find that you experience any of the following, you may be suffering from severe anxiety:
~ Calling hotlines regularly to ease your mind.
~ Checking, and cross checking various web sites and/or hotlines and obsessing over inconsistencies you see.
~ Asking the same questions over and over- "So I can rely on the six week test?"
~Relying upon someone else, ie a "professional" to tell you you're ok, despite having hte information that answers the question for you.
~ Preoccupation with overly technical information regarding testing that is not generally openly discussed as part of testing. A good example of this is the generation of HIV tests, and NA or PCR testing.
~ Multiple tests well beyond the commonly suggested window periods of 6 weeks, 3 months, perhaps with the ability to spout off the exact number of days you waited for each test.
~ Doubting and fearing the accuracy of information given to you by a doctor or hotline counselor when an untrained person says something about HIV transmission that is contradictory. Such as, "The guy on the bus told me HIV can hide."
If you are experiencing any of those scenarios, please try and take a step back to assess your situation. Testing at 6 weeks, and certainly 3 months is completely reliable. The REAL culprit here is not HIV, but anxiety, and/or the many factors that contribute to it. Consider contacting your doctor or insurance company about finding a counselor, or visiting a local community health center to inquire about counseling related to anxiety.
That may be the only way you'll ever be able to ease your mind."
TalktomeHIV, one of our wise Moderators has addressed the anxiety that comes with worry re HIV testing.
I hope you find this helpful.