What do you think?

[Lesmacarons]

Pardon my language, but I am so fXXXing annoyed about this.

Before Christmas our car developed a problem, so I had to rush around doing last minute bits in a bit of a stressed hurry.

On a flying trip to a row of shops I went in to Maplins and picked up two requested lights. Shope assistant popped them in a bag and I popped them in the car.

Then I noticed a bloody pubic hair attached to the bag!

I took the bag back to the shop, despite the embarrassment of saying this in front of an entire queue of people (it wasn't mine and it had pierced the bag). Checked to see if any of them had curly hair (they didn't) and asked if I could replace the items.

This is where I think I went wrong...I should have just not picked up anything until I had washed my hands. I didn't touch the pube (although the shop assistant plucked it off with no bother) but I did touch the bag.

In the panic and embarressment of the situation I just took these two items home (they were running ) and wrapped them and gave them to my 16 year old daughter.

I have now spent the last two days in a state of panic, followed by crying yesterday.

I really don't know whether I have exposed her to genuine harm or I am being to fussy. The people around me have leaned heavily towards me being OTT - but another mother did say she'd feel uncomfortable too.

On the plus side I now know how long HIV can live outside the body (contrary to popular advice that it can't or doesn't last very long or 8 minutes - it can actually be several weeks on dried blood).

I feel sick - I can't believe I didn't follow my own personal hygiene rules (just leave it or wash your hands well in between).

I don't know what to do. I am veering between HIV tests in a few months time and just forgetting about in half hourly cycles.

Merry Christmas to me.

A pube on some packaging won't give you HIV.

Wow, are you usually this anxious?

It was a hair, possibly a pube, possibly a chest hair, stuck to a bag, a bag that would have been full of static electricity. It could have come from anywhere.

No danger from the bag at all. I do think you should see someone about your anxiety tho

Are you ok OP? This is not a typical thing to be worrying about. Are you having treatment for your anxiety? Your fears are completely irrational and I think you need to see somebody.

HIV is not easily transmitted and certainly wouldn't be transmitted on a pube.
Are you usually this anxious?

Yes - thank you - I am thinking of getting help for anxiety. I have had a terrible year and that particular day the car was breaking down, it was just a few days before Christmas, there were rows about who was staying where and I just felt terrible...it triggered an anxiety state I think. I do still think it was unwise of me to not wash my hands though and I think I am worried about these items and annoyed with myself. I think everything was just getting on top of me.

I doubt there is a risk too - it just made me feel really disgusting and handing them over brought back a real chill. It has just made me think and no - I don't feel OK. I'm going to get checked out in the new year.

In answer to other questions about HIV - unfortunately I looked up the risk on the general net and a GP wrote that HIV can cling to pubes. I went in to meltdown.

Your anxiety has overruled all logic.

There is NO WAY on this eath you have exposed yourself to HIV.

Here's the logic. You get HIV from sex with an infected person or peicing of the skin with an infected instrument. That is all. If you were to get HIV from hair (pubic or otherwise ) then it would be at pandemic proportions. It would probably have wiped out half the population by now.

What about hairdressers,beauticians etc?

So even IF it was a pube the chances of catching ANYTHING from it are zero.

Saying that - i suffer from anxiety and totally empathise that it can make perfectly intelligent people convinced of the most wildly off the wall crap.

Force yoursrlf to relax. Warm baths. Bachs rescue remedy. camomile tea (tastes like sick but works better than medication when im in high anxiety mode). Then go to your GP and discuss the possibility of meds and or spme sort of talking therapy.

YOU ARE FINE

"I took the bag back to the shop, despite the embarrassment of saying this in front of an entire queue of people (it wasn't mine and it had pierced the bag)."

What wasn't yours? What had pierced the bag? The queue of people or the pubic hair? Pubic hairs don't pierce bags. You really do need to go to the GP and get help. And stop looking on "the general net", whatever that is.

Thank you LEM. Logically I know this - but yes, the anxiety of having anything like that near my daughter took over and unnerved me at a difficult time.

The advice is good.

These days I wont allow myself to google even the most innocuous symptoms because my anxiety will produce them out of thin air. I am a perfectly intelligent, well educated woman. It is the one thing I can do to control my anxiety to a degree.

Do go to your GP, that level of anxiety is waaay beyond normal. The good news is that there are therapies that you can use to control it. Anxiety ruled my life for many years (and still does to a degree), a combination of medication and finally finding a decent therapist made all the difference to me. A good CBT therapist will be able to give you strategies to cope with anxiety and allow you to convince yourself that its ok.

Don't let the bastard anxiety steal anymore of your happiness. It destroyed my relationship with my DD1 and its the biggest regret of my life.

Good luck xx

Thank you LEM - that is really appreciated and exactly what I needed to read. I will do that.