Anyone Have Experience with Mono?

No treatment for mono since its a virus but steroid shots for me really helped the swelling. I've had it twice unfortuntaley. Rest up and no crazy activity, I probably would not exercise for a while. Feel better soon!

I got mono for the first time at the age of 31 y/o. It was severe lethargy, malaise, extreme body soreness, headache and fevers. I got a basic Epstein Barr lab done to confirm.

No real treatment for it... just rest, don't do any strenuous activities due to enlarged spleen, and eat well.

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One of my daughters had mono a few years ago. She also had strep & that was treated, but the mono, no. Bed rest- lots and lots and lots of it, drink lots, take some vitamin c & whatever else to boost your immune system & maybe energy levels. You have to be careful not to overexert yourself & be careful not to rupture your spleen (it enlarges with mono.) It takes months, up to a year to go away. I think the biggest thing is fatigue. Its pretty contagious, so be careful about kisses, sharing drinks or anytthing that saliva or mucous can pass between you & kids or anyone else.

Rest-don't even think of stopping the antibiotic-no heavy lifting or vigorous exercise-take care!

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/mononucleosis-000109.htm

This is not at all a dumb question! My daughter had Mono in February, so I am familiar with the process that you are going through. Mono is a viral infection, so the antibiotics you are on will not help it if you do have it. Mono will make you very tired and usually is accompanied by a sore throat at the beginning, but it isn't necessarily strep. It's symptoms vary from person to person, but it can take 2-8 weeks to fully recover; sometimes even longer.

You do not need to be tested for mono if you pay out of pocket. It is treated with lots of rest, fluids and making sure any secondary infections are treated and monitored. It sounds like you are doing these things already. It is very contagious at the beginning, so take extra precautions so that your children don't get it. Mono can be really serious in kids and seniors, as well as a compromised immune system. Of course, it's best to be monitored under a doctor's care, but if you are not able to do so, I recommend going to www.webmd.com. You will be able to find valuable info on symptoms and treatment for Mono and EBV, which is similar to Mono.

I hope this helps, and feel free to PM me with any specific questions. Having just gone through the process, I am very familiar with everything:).

I had mono in college, and strep along with it. I got antibiotics for the strep, but the mono you just have to ride out. The thing is, sometimes mono can be quite severe and require hospitalization. Drink plenty of fluids, get lots of rest, and take it easy - no sports or strenuous exercise. If you have young kids make sure they aren't rough-housing around you so they don't accidently kick you in the side and rupture your spleen. If you start to feel worse, or aren't better after a few weeks, then get to your doctor and get the work up done.

Here's a dumb answer. I used to go to doctors. SInce age 24 I was anemic with terrible bouts of anemia for years on end. I'd recover and back it would come.
Well after 29 years with asthma I found a GREAT homeopath. I put myself in his hands and have been asthma free for five fantastic years. Two years ago I called him since no matter how much meat I ate I could not come out of anemia. Again he saved me from an extremely serious illness. Last December I had the first normal red blood cell count of my entire life.
You find yourself a homeopath. And believe me you won't need tests or anything else to return yourself to fantastic good health.
Washington State has oodles of well trained homeopaths. If you friend me I'll tell you how to interview one so you have the best of the best.

I had mono (misdiagnosed as strep, also, at first) a couple of years ago. Thankfully, I was going to a naturopath and she had an awesome treatment. She had me come in to her office and spend two hours relaxing with a cup of hot tea while receiving an IV drip full of B vitamins, herbs and a HUGE amount of Vitamin C. The NEXT DAY I felt SO much better!! I, too, had been on antibiotics and we were wondering why they weren't working until she realized it might be mono and tested for that. No wonder they weren't working! Mono is viral, not bacterial. Anyway, that was my experience. Hope you're able to get better soon! Mono was AWFUL! Oh, and make sure to take lots of probiotics after all the antibiotics. Blessings!

((Yep... simple blood test))

Bad news first: It usually takes 2-6 months to recover from, and it's super contagious via bodily fluids/ saliva. So if you've "tasted" anything (cooking, temp for kids/baby), any 'mommy thumb' (the lick and clean), shared a drink or food, used your fork in anyone else's food... they'll need to get tested as well.

Here's a mostly plain english description http://www.medicinenet.com/infectious_mononucleosis/artic...

There's no specific treatment (antivirals aren't very effective against it) HOWEVER

- Knowing the diagnosis is pretty key because your liver or spleen can have some pretty major problems in some cases. Also, if your kids come down with it (although it's usually mildest in younger children), they'll know to test first so they aren't misdiagnosed and sent to school during the most infectious period (which they would be if it's mistaken for a cold or flu) or given the wrong meds.

- Also, certain medications (certain sterioids to assist in breathing for example) are given with mono that aren't given with short term colds or bacterial infections that are pretty vital in not being miserable for 6mo. &/or having to become hospitalized.

Here's to hoping you just have a nasty case of strep!!

My daughter's had mono. There's no treatment other than rest and treat the symptoms. It's a blood test to see if the antibodies are elevated - if they are they know that you had mono and are getting over it. It's an imperfect science...!

But it;s good to find out if yo uhave it so you can avoid sharing drinks, etc with others - esp your kids.

My daughter had mon in 2009 and was very sick for months. I do not remember there being a specific rx for the mono exactly, it is really that your system is so run down, you are susceptible to all the germs out there and cannot fight them off.
You can find more info online as well, but I think as well as resting as much as possible and limiting the stress in your life... you also need to get on a super vitamin and really eat healthy, as well as drinking lots of fluids to be hydrated.
Sorry I am not more specific than this, it just has been a couple years since it was all fresh!
Be Healthy!!

Not a dumb question.
Mono will affect the spleen, so go to the doctor.
You would use Penicillin for strep, Amoxicillin will give most patients a rash if taken while with mono. SO if you are on an amoxicillin or penicillin you need talk to your doctor about that. Mono is a viral infection, so nothing is really going to help, Tylenol maybe or Motrin to relieve symptoms.

I had a severe case of mono at 16. I can still feel my glands swell if I have any infection and I am now 45. It took me 2 years to "get over" all the residual effects, swollen spleen, swollen lymph nodes, the extreme fatiigue. It is not a disease I would fool around with. It put me in the hospital and I lost 20 pounds. I was 5'6" and started my junior year at 98#. I ate ice chips.

PLease be seen by the doctor.

I had it abut 20 years ago in college. I had an enlarged liver and they kept checking my liver functions (I'm not sure everyone gets this symptom). It took a long time to get over (4-6 weeks) but that symptom did eventually go away without treatment, with no lasting problems. I had to cut down on fatty foods in the meantime because they bothered me. Also tylenol is hard on the liver but Advil or Motrin is not. Get whatever help you can in the meantime since being tired is such a big part of the illness. Sometimes the test for mono is negative at the beginning of the illness and then positive later on.

Mono requires lots of rest-but you still need to be monitored closely, cuz it can get really serious. I ended up in the hospital with it.

Also-the first dr I saw diagnosed me with something else (I don't remember what), and prescribed amoxicillan. Well, turns out that Amox when given to someone with mono usually results in a severe body rash. Full Body.

Nice. Cuz what you want is a full body rash on top of mono. :) So be ware of anyone prescribing you amox! :)

Rest as much as you can as everyone has told you and don't do any lifting or exercise.......... for a very long time. My son had mono his freshman year in college. They checked his blood after 10 weeks to see if he could exercise.... he had to wait a couple of more weeks. He slept as much as he could but only missed like one class! I had mono my senior year in high school and was in bed 3 weeks! In todays world they don't do that, but you do need much rest........ I'd also take a handful of vitamins daily, drink, drink, drink water.