just diagnosis with-mono

Steely

Active Member
I was just diagnosis with mono-which explains the unbelievable fatigue and malaise I have had for the last 6 weeks.:sick:
Any personal suggestions or stories to get myself better faster?
My work load is too much & I know I need to try and take some time off. But other than that there doesn't seem to be much I can do to "cure" it, which stinks.
 

jal

Member
Steely,

I've had a form of mono, years ago. You HAVE to rest. I'm familiar with-your story so I know that things have been very, very trying for you, personally and work wise. I won't go into my mono story, but it does take a while to recover. I was "lucky" as I had a form of it, but had 2 classmates have it full blown. They were out of school for ages, so you must rest as much as you can and take care of YOU.

Sending hugs...
 

susiestar

Roll With It
Be SUPER careful to NOT lift anything heavy. You can end up damaging your spleen if you do any lifting. Take some time off. You should have some sick time, and if it is more than 4 days you should be able to get it classified as FMLA time, or even short term disability.

I hope you feel better soon.
 

Lothlorien

Active Member
Stress will do a number on you. You HAVE to rest. If you've had it this long, then it is essential that you just rest.

I had mono about 12 years ago. Now, I get Epstein Barr (recurrence) if I get overstressed. As soon as my glands start swelling, it is absolutely essential that I just rest as much as possible or I will be in bed for a month or two.

Though this is a virus, this is your body telling you that you have to slow down and rest. If you don't, you'll end up in the hospital.
 

BusynMember

Well-Known Member
I had mono twice...once very badly when I was seventeen and then walking mono in my 40's. The second time I'd go to work, come home, and go to sleep. Period.

Both time I was told to rest. That was kind of a lol the second time as I was divorced with kids and a job. But I did try to lay down whenever I could and let the kids do things themselves (two were teens). Basically both times I gradually recovered with a lot of rest. It takes time. You have to make sure you eat well (I know another lol).

The first time I was too sick to even get out of bed. I'm lucky I was only seventeen. Every time I lifted my head it killed me and I grew dizzy. If I tried to get up I felt like the floor was hitting me in the face so I couldn't do anything. The second time I could drag myself through the day. It took a long time before I was back up to speed. Don't let yourself do too much or you could end up in the hospital. My friend's mono turned into hepatitis, so please take care!!
 

klmno

Active Member
I've never had it so I have no advice. I hope you get paid sick time off work though- I don't see how you could get through this without taking some time off. I hope you get it turned around soon.
 

flutterby

Fly away!
I came down with it 5 years ago this month. It took me 6 months to fully recover, but I wasn't taking it easy. It probably would have been much shorter had I slowed down and did what I was supposed to.
 

Steely

Active Member
Ahhh.....you guys know me too well. Slowing down is the operative difficult word for me. I get so depressed when I just sit around - so it is tough to chose whether to battle the depression or the mono at this point. Sigh. I have some vacation time, so I will take that as well as some sick time. Probably 10 days total? But that includes a trip to see Matt in that time frame.
 

flutterby

Fly away!
Even if you can't take more time off than that, let some things slide...around the house, etc. You really need a lot of rest.
 

Shari

IsItFridayYet?
I had mono this time last year. Wee difficult child was kicked out of his private school and we had to go thru all the bs to get him enrolled in the public school, which, of course, is where they started using the closet as a form of dealing with him...
But I "toughed it out" at work and the school, making all the meetings and working extra at work to keep up there, too...and I paid dearly. When I finally got down, I couldn't get up. 16 hours of sleep a day wasn't enough.
Take the time NOW to rest. Let your body be your guide - when it says stop - STOP. Don't get that far down...it took me 6 months before I felt better.
 

Steely

Active Member
So what exactly is mono? What is your body fighting against when it is battling this viral infection?

Shari, I am scared my situation will be yours. I cannot go completely down. It is just me, supporting me. Can't happen.
 

Shari

IsItFridayYet?
Its a virus. I think possibly the same family as the herpes virus? Maybe?

The good news is that adults don't generally have it as bad as teens. Not sure why, but that's what they say. That said, it kicked my butt...and I wish I'd have slowed down sooner and maybe I wouldn't have gotten so sick.
 

flutterby

Fly away!
It's the Epstein-Barr virus.

It causes debilitating fatigue, fever, swollen glands, sore throat and can cause enlargement of the spleen; and, rarely, liver issues. People that have mono are instructed to not participate in contact sports or do any heavy lifting because of the spleen issue.
 

timer lady

Queen of Hearts
Ahh, my dear, your body is forcing you to slow down. That doesn't mean you need to shut down. Find your favorite old books & reread them. Get movies in & hang out in your jammies with hot tea & a quilt.

I had mono when I was 16 & missed my whole summer vacation to it. I couldn't believe how weak I became. I had to rest to get better.
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
Cory had mono when he was 15 and it literally took him out. He couldnt eat or hardly drink a thing. His throat was fire red and so sore. He lost 20 pounds in a week and a half. He got on the couch and only moved to go to the bathroom or the doctor. He was on the couch on Sept 11th. We both watched in awe as the towers fell on TV.

He started school that august but caught mono like a week or two in and didnt go back until after Halloween. He was that sick. He was still lethargic then. Didnt get up his normal feisty self until after Xmas break.
 

Abbey

Spork Queen
Had it as a teen...awful. All I can say is SLEEP, SLEEP, SLEEP. Take your normal work load and slow your pace in half. Otherwise, that nasty bugger will hang on much longer.

Abbey
 

KTMom91

Well-Known Member
Never had it...knock on wood...but know you need lots of rest. Sending hugs and a nice soft blankie to curl up with.
 

Steely

Active Member
It really comes and goes for me, and I must have a very mild case because I do not any one symptom severely. However, I am very worried it will get worse given all of the stress I am under, so I need to be proactive and rest. Yet, I still feel restless, and it is hard for me to be still.

It is so weird, because I knew something was wrong Sunday. Everything in my body just felt wrong, and that is when my throat started to hurt. I went to bed, and my cocker spaniel dog Chester got up in my face, and smelled me, and pawed at my mouth. He obviously never does that so that is when I knew something really was off - then the next day my bigger dog Steele got in my face, smelled me, and started trying to lick my nose and mouth. Of course, I thought I must have cancer or something. lol. Fascinating what dogs just know.
 
M

ML

Guest
It's great to finally have a reason to explain why you've been feeling so bad. Now the tough part will be to take the medicine which is REST. It's your body's way of MAKING you heed its warnings to take care of it. I know it will be hard but please take the time to get better and trust that when you're feeling back to yourself you will catch up with everything else. Please, for yourself, do this. Love, ML
 
K

Kjs

Guest
I had mono along with strept when I was a teenager. I swear my neck was bigger than my head.

easy child had mono when he was 16. He was swollen all over his head. Did blood work and nothing. (that was a Friday) By monday he was even more swollen. Took him to the doctor and TOLD him to find out what is wrong. This time the Mono test was positive. Rest, no jumping, running and not even any swimming.

difficult child was only 4. He wasn't feeling well but not swollen up or no complaints. AFter about a week I took him in. Doctor immediately said he had mono, his spleen was swollen. Blood work confirmed it. he was running a very high fever and he was dehydrated. He was hospitalized for 4 days.

To this day, we all test positive to mono. difficult child had it the worst, and I was told he will always be a carrier and always test positive. But he won't get it again.

Then at age 4, he didn't complain at all. Now - he tells us that time was the sickest he had ever been.

So, you need to be careful. Spleen is swollen. Rest, sleep and drink LOTS. This can last up to 6 months. The fatigue just hangs in there. Take it easy as long as you can, and be careful.
 
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