Guys I need help!! Two days ago my hand bled from cracked skin from hand washing too much. I got on a train with my fresh bleeding hand and as I sat down, my hand with the fresh small bleeding cut on banged against the plastic head rest. I didn’t notice before If there was any blood on the plastic, but when I looked up there was what looked like fresh blood on the area I think I knocked my hand on. Since then I’ve had this overwhelming fear that it might have been someone else’s blood, and now I’m riddled with hiv etc. I phoned the hiv helpline and sexual health helpline numerous times and they got frustrated with me and said it’s not transmitted like that. I’m terrified I’ll ruin my partner’s life

Hi! I think you know that you’re being irrational here. The helplines both told you it isn’t transmitted like that so that’s fact. You don’t have HIV. Take your mind off this somehow and relax, you’re safe & it’s just your ocd talking x

Thankyou xxx

Just for context: I stuck my hand into a bush to turn on the hose and got poked by something. I straight up convinced myself that there was an hiv covered needle in the bush outside my house sticking straight up???? <—- this is and not rational LOL and similar to the spiral you just described. Im hoping my spiral is distanced enough from your own to see the irrational aspect of it. No shade or shame at all to your story, im hoping this is helpful to examine. All the best xx

I’m scared the blood wasn’t mine and it got in my cut and infected me

Do you genuinely see my situation as irrational yeah? I actually HOPE I’m being irrational so I can put it to bed haha ? thanks for replying xx

Can’t believe I called again ? Guy on the hiv helpline said “no risk, no need to test, it would have to be a deep open wound requiring stitches and hiv doesn’t survive outside the body, try not to worry” Also it was probably my own blood ? The sexual health helpline said pretty much the same fucking thing too what’s my PROBLEM ?

I called him again just to reiterate He said the fact the blood was liquid form doesn’t matter I’m STILL not at risk and my partner isn’t either He was so lovely and when I apologised for being frustrating he said not to worry and think about getting help for the anxiety. He said I was a picnic compared to some people He tried to talk me through various reasons why I’m not at risk: my cracked bleeding hand isn’t an entry point. There’s no way it would survive outside the body. I’d need to have a gaping wound requiring stitches and the blood would have to be essentially poured in. Statistically I’m more likely to win the lottery than even come into contact with that kind of blood He just told me to take care then

I just felt immense relief - remember this when ocd attacks again