I have smoked for 15 years and drink quite alot of alcohol. I smoke canabis and that has been increasing in the last 4 years since travelling. I have recently returned from Asia where I smoked it constantly and heavily for the last 2 1/2 months. I also took ectasy quite alot in the last 3 weeks that I was there. I have had bacterial vaginitus for over a year and anti biotics never completely clear it up. I am menstruating now. I have had a boyfriend that I have found is very promiscuous. I had a HIV test last August which was clear. I have lost 22 lbs in the last 6 months and since returning home 3 weeks ago have had diarrohea constantly and I had boils on my skin appear when I was still in Thailand though this has been a problem for 28 years. I am very concerned. I had a blood test a few weeks ago (not for HIV) which said my potassium reading was 5.6 - I am really worried - could these symptoms mean several things as I have been looking on the internet and cannot stop worrying about HIV

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Dr. Joshua’s Answer:

It’s great that you had a negative HIV test! Your symptoms are not specific to HIV infection. Since your skin problem is old news, I wouldn’t be too worried about that. The diarrhoea and weight loss could be caused by some bacterial infection - has a stool sample been examined? I wonder if you suffer from malnutrition - are you eating properly? Hard to say exactly what caused your potassium levels to increase - however, it’s not THAT high, and you should have it controlled to check whether it stays high.?

As for the fear of HIV, it is true that because you have had unprotected sex with a promiscuous male from an endemic area, that increases your risk of infection. The good thing is, you’ve had a negative HIV test, and may well have been spared. However, to be sure, you should definitely discontinue unprotected sex and have a HIV test done again in 3 months’ time, and again at 6 months from now. That’s how you can be totally sure and stop worrying about it.

In any case, I recommend that you give up cigarettes, alcohol (except in moderation) and the other drugs, and start exercising and eating properly. Can’t go wrong with that, huh?