Scarleteen

About two or three months ago I borrowed a pair of underwear from a male friend of mine. I'm still wearing it, but its been through the washing machine several times by now. Is it possible to get some sort of sexually transmitted infection through sharing underwear (like HIV)? Should I trash it? I recently also took a STI test and it came back negative.

Hi Bobbie!

It sounds like you have a lot of anxiety about getting an STD. I want to ask first, does your male friend have an STI that you know of or is this mainly your anxiety making you concerned that they might?

Sharing underwear carries veryyyy little to NO risk of STI transmission; especially if you've washed them (as you mention you have). If your STI test came back negative, you're in the clear; no need to trash the underwear unless you feel like keeping them will continue to trigger your anxiety. I also want to direct you to this article that may help you in the future:

Can I Get Pregnant, or Get or Pass On an STI From That?

i'm not aware of any STI, although i don't remember if initially it was washed or not

Hi Bobbie!

Did you get a chance to read the article that Caitlin linked? Sharing underwear would be in the "low risk" category, and the fact that you've had a negative STI test confirms that you don't have an STI. Do you have any symptoms that are worrying you? Or do you think there might be something else about this situation that's making you feel anxious?

The article does not specifically mention this activity. I am concerned about the possibility of transmission via bodily fluids. What if there was something like still-wet ejaculate on the underwear? Is this a feasible method of transmission?

Hi Bobbie,

Even if there was wet ejaculate on the underwear, it would still be a low risk situation that would not last after you washing the clothes. You can trust your negative STI test result — as Hannah said, it confirms that you don't have an infection.

Does this information help you feel better? It does sound like you've been worried about STIs — would you like to talk some more about these concerns?