Question re disclosure

[Msdgh]

Hello,

 Quest igg came back 1.96. I took quest confirmatory test 6 weeks post exposure and inhibition could not be ran because it came out negative but my index number still 1.94. 1st doctor said i was still considered positive. 2nd doctor who was a bit more familiar with confirmatory test said inhibiton test coming out negative stated that it was a likely hood of being a false positive. will be re doing inhibition test again at 12 weeks. Question-should i disclose this to current partner ? Or steer clear of him until i confirm? I just happened to go in for an sdt check but i havent had any symptoms etc. Thanks. 

[VhYolo]

If you are having sex with the person, I think you should disclose. Be honest. You havent tested positive, but you're testing. 

Do you know if you were even exposed? 

[makepeacewithit]

I will preface my response here by saying that when I first tested I received a similar low score for HSV-2 and a similar "diagnosis" of it being a firm positive from the clinic that gave me the test. It turned out later I was actually negative for 2 but had contracted 1, which the IGG test completely missed. 

So, I agree with the other poster, disclose that you are getting testing and that nothing is certain right now, not only because it's the right thing to do (and will be easier than just trying to avoid them in the meantime!) but also because it gives you both the opportunity to talk more about all the things related to this. Just remember, you are not disclosing that you have an STI, you are disclosing that you are a proactive and careful person who is testing and figuring your situation out. This is a good thing. 

[makepeacewithit]

12 minutes ago, makepeacewithit said:

... and a similar "diagnosis" of it being a firm positive from the clinic that gave me the test

I meant to say "similar to what that 1st doctor told you." I'm really happy that you had a better informed doctor to turn to! I think uninformed clinicians mess up the discovery process for a lot of us!!

[Msdgh]

13 hours ago, VhYolo said:

If you are having sex with the person, I think you should disclose. Be honest. You havent tested positive, but you're testing. 

Do you know if you were even exposed? 

 

13 hours ago, VhYolo said:

If you are having sex with the person, I think you should disclose. Be honest. You havent tested positive, but you're testing. 

Do you know if you were even exposed? 

I just went in for a std check up and the doctor ran it. I didnt have reason to think i was exposed to hsv 2 specifically. 

[Msdgh]

4 hours ago, makepeacewithit said:

I will preface my response here by saying that when I first tested I received a similar low score for HSV-2 and a similar "diagnosis" of it being a firm positive from the clinic that gave me the test. It turned out later I was actually negative for 2 but had contracted 1, which the IGG test completely missed. 

So, I agree with the other poster, disclose that you are getting testing and that nothing is certain right now, not only because it's the right thing to do (and will be easier than just trying to avoid them in the meantime!) but also because it gives you both the opportunity to talk more about all the things related to this. Just remember, you are not disclosing that you have an STI, you are disclosing that you are a proactive and careful person who is testing and figuring your situation out. This is a good thing. 

You are right. Its such a hard conversation to have but your perspective makes it much easier to address. 

[Msdgh]

4 hours ago, makepeacewithit said:

I meant to say "similar to what that 1st doctor told you." I'm really happy that you had a better informed doctor to turn to! I think uninformed clinicians mess up the discovery process for a lot of us!!

Its been a whirlwind of emotions. The doctor had no idea. I had to tell her about confirmatory test and which one to order. I feel if dr is going to run blood for either hsv1 or 2 they shld be familiar with false positives and or confirmatory tests . She didnt even screen for hsv1 only 2. I would think i have antibodies for 1 since my mom and ex bf get sores once in a while. I havent had one. 

[makepeacewithit]

After researching I realized that the clinic I was dealing with didn't have a clue, and that makes me really sad to say. It would be nice to feel we could trust professionals, but I think this sort of thing is a reason why the CDC doesn't advise testing without symptoms because of all these potential pitfalls with the results (being asymptomatic was *sort of* the case for me, too, I now think I mistook my first outbreak for a yeast infection, and I was *strongly* discouraged from taking the test). When I did follow up testing I ordered it myself online, and then when I figured out my situation I presented the facts, along with CDC print-outs, to my doctor.

If hsv-1 is something you feel is possible, and if you receive a future negative on the hsv-2, you might have contracted hsv-1 from your boyfriend (or maybe you had coldsores a long time ago). You could start requesting the test for both, just know that the IGG antibody tests miss hsv-1 30% of the time, and, as I understand it, if it doesn't catch it for you once, it likely won't catch it on subsequent tests. The Western Blot is what I did to confirm my hsv-1. Before that I had 2 low-positive results and then a clear negative result on the Elisas.

[Msdgh]

Its all so confusing. I think im going to take the elisa confirmatory one and test for both. Then take the western blot. 

[makepeacewithit]

@Msdgh Yeah, unfortunately sometimes it can be so confusing--the widely available tests have their flaws, there are complications with testing windows, antibody development, and sometimes certain individuals just have something else going on with their blood and can't get accurate results from these tests. I'm sorry the process has made it stressful and confusing for you!

[Msdgh]

1 hour ago, makepeacewithit said:

@Msdgh Yeah, unfortunately sometimes it can be so confusing--the widely available tests have their flaws, there are complications with testing windows, antibody development, and sometimes certain individuals just have something else going on with their blood and can't get accurate results from these tests. I'm sorry the process has made it stressful and confusing fou!

Thank you!