Question:
so i had unprotected sex 3 weeks ago. i developed symptoms of herpes right on schedule. 3 days after, i got one whitehead-like thing on my shaft, fever, fatigue, etc. that whitehead slowly went away and is now a very small, hard bump. then a second wave of bumps came. several small red bumps where my pubic hair is and 2 mosquitobite-like bumps on my scrotum. these were painless and never opened up. they just rose and went down. i was absolutely sure i had herpes. but then i started to read about symptoms of HIV and i developed a thick white coating on my tongue. i started to think there was a possibility that i had HIV. so i went to the doctor. he told me he didnt think it was either...i didnt understand that. my symptoms were step-by-step congruent with herpes. anyways, i got a blood test for herpes, syphilis, and HIV. all came up negative. i know 3 weeks isnt completely reliable for HIV testing, but how reliable is it for herpes testing? is it possible that i still have both or either? im not going to have sex until i have conclusive results, but is it ok to kiss girls? im going to get tested in 2 weeks when i go to school just to be sure. let me know if u have any input/advice for me. thanks.

Answer:
and sorry...just realized i posted this in the wrong section.

Answer:
3 weeks is not long enough for your body to build up the antibodies to herpes for the blood test.

I have heard different stories about the time frame. Some people say 12 weeks, some say 16 weeks, some say between 12 & 16 weeks. I waited until 16 weeks to the day just to be sure. I didn't want to get a false negative and end up giving this lovely gift away.

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does that mean that there is no way that it could have tested positive? i saw this as a little bit encouraging.

Answer:
I'm not an expert but from what I've read (believe me - you can't even imagine how much I've read in the last month!) 3 weeks is too soon for an accurate diagnosis.

I just got tested Tuesday myself and I'm waiting for the results as I write this. I had a swab/culture test when I first had symptoms but that came back negative. While that was a little bit encouraging, I am not a person to take chances with someone else's health so I opted to seek out a blood test. I know the swab tests frequently get false negative results.

Answer:
haha man...believe me, ive done nothing but read about herpes and HIV since i had that first little bump. there are so many maybes to this, because someone really close to me just died a week after the sexual contact, and i got really depressed and lost about 12 pounds. also i can feel my wisdom teeth growing in and there is swelling in that area...could be an infection in there. also, once the first bump came in, i shaved my pubic hair with an electric razor. the irritation could have caused the small bumps in that area. also, the mosquito bite marks disappeared within 2 or 3 days...like a mosquito bite. the negative test made me feel fairly confident that i may be a victim of a ridiculous series of coincidences and maybe alot of it is in my head. another thing that comes to mind is HPV. im reading that 70% of the nation has this, but all this internet info seems to be hearsay, and its driving me insane. but...i guess i just need to be safe and play the waiting game.

Answer:
Notleft,

I got tested @ a little over 4 weeks and it came back positive. Go to a doctor that can do IgG and IgM testing. I first went to planned parenthood and they couldnt' tell me anything.. Of course I did take it way too soon, but they couldn't tell me anything about antibody levels...

If you are truly worried about it, get re-tested.

I stressed myself out worrying about it and I thought it was in my head, so I started to relax, felt a little better, went in for my blood work--came back positive.

So, I feel your pain. BUT don't just count on symptoms alone, there are very different for each person.