INFECTIOUS DISEASES COMMUNITY
Answers about infectious mononucleosis

Answers about infectious mononucleosis

I’m an 18 year old female and I've been feeling unwell for what feels like forever. It worsened around Christmas last year and after lots of persistence I was diagnosed with glandular fever in the beginning of February. Although I have not been diagnosed for very long (I am well aware people can suffer for very long periods) I am a little confused and would just like to hear some other opinions, I guess for reassurance purposes.
The doctor I was seeing appeared to be very professional; she is not my designated doctor as I went for an emergency appointment, the only means of ever seeing a doctor at my surgery.
She always thoroughly examined any aches and pains she originally did a general blood test, the list made me feel like I was on one of those TV shows. A week later I rang up to make an appointment for the results, the surgery however booked me in with a different doctor as the original one was unavailable, however the doctor who I did manage to see was reluctant to give any diagnosis and just told me that; my calcium levels were too high, my protein levels were too high, CRP too high, my IRON levels were too HIGH but my blood count/haemoglobin levels were far too low but he was not willing to do anymore about this. I then had to make another appointment to see the original doctor. She also went through the results, this time she explained how the CRP was too high, the proteins were too high, (I think she said the iron levels were too high, either way. Someone out of the two told me this) and my haemoglobin levels were extremely low, (making me anaemic but not an iron deficiency therefore would not prescribe supplements) also along with some abnormalities in my livers tests, we recorded my weight this day as I had been losing a lot of weight. She decided to run another test for glandular fever, and rushed the test through that day with the practice nurse; she later rang home that night to confirm the glandular fever diagnosis. She explained she had rushed the tests through as she was worried; this reassured me that my doctor was working in my best interests.
I went in the next afternoon to discuss the results and the action we could take and arranged to monitor my bloods in the next 2 weeks.
2 weeks later I revisited the doctor to get the next set of results. These appeared to have got worse, the proteins and CRP had calmed down but were still far too high and the haemoglobin had decreased even more which appeared worrying so we arranged even more monitoring of my bloods for another 2 weeks this is when I explained about some chest and abdominal pains I had been experiencing.  The doctor suggested this could be some kind of acid reflux due to not having much of an appetite so she prescribed 4 weeks of Omeprazole.
2 weeks on I went back and the results again appeared to be getting better the proteins weren’t a worry anymore, the haemoglobin was back to the original figure there fore getting better (but still only at 9.4) CRP still high but a hell of a lot lower than before. Therefore we felt things were getting on the road to recovery so I maintained resting and taking omeprazole (still waking for them to take affect) and arranged a blood test to check my liver and FBC in 4 weeks as she was due to take some holiday (typical).
I carried on resting and about a week later I was out doing the weekly shop with my mum (the only time out of the house I was getting every week) when it came to leaving the kiosk after completing the shopping I fainted. The staff of the supermarket and my mother slightly worried contemplated shipping me off in an ambulance until I convinced them to take me home and just to visit the doctors after the weekend or call NHS (again typically this was a Saturday). I managed the weekend sleeping the whole time as expected and visited the doctors on the Monday.
As the doctor I was seeing was on holiday, I was booked in to see a third doctor, who at the time I felt was very rude and unprofessional. He seemed completely unable to make any eye contact with either myself or my mum. Which I was uncomfortable about and then to make matters worse he claimed fainting is ‘not a problem, as long as you’re not climbing a mountain, swimming or walking a tightrope, in fact no if you were swimming the water would help you float’. This obviously upset me, as ok it might not be dangerous, but to me it was a problem.
He looked through my notes and exclaimed I had the lowest blood count he had seen, and extremely LOW IRON LEVELS therefore booked me in for a blood test for FBC ferritin and some others he also prescribed me with supplements to take the minute after the test and Motillium to help my nausea.
I was getting used to the blood test by that point I must have had 6 in 7 or 8 weeks. The nurse I saw that time was very good and empathetic; she explained the results would be with the surgery the next day as they were very routine tests. Eager to get some answers we rang up all week hoping the doctor had opened the results so the receptionist could give me the results. Eventually I went in to see the doctor, this time he made perfect eye contact and seemed much more professional. He actually greeted me with ‘Ah, you’re the really pale one’ he explained that my iron levels were as thought very low and my blood count was at  a 9 so still not normal. He provided me a repeat prescription of my iron supplements and asked me to return in 5 weeks.
That’s 2 weeks away now. Over the previous 2 weeks I have felt much better, resting but eager to go back to sixth form and enjoy my last year or education before the exams start. Suddenly last 3-4 days however things I feel have gone completely back to square one, I feel completely tired all day long all over again, and I struggle to sleep due to the pain of feeling unwell. I feel sick all the time again sore throat, fever (a new symptom) and all the original problems. As far as I am aware this is common?

But I have had some worries about being able to see my pulse in my wrists, as far as im aware it’s normal to see it in your chest, but I am not so sure about the veins in your wrists. I feel as though something is wrong in my chest also, I stopped taking omeprazole a long while ago now (when I ran out) as I felt they were making no difference at all to my pain, I tried having yoghurts and milk to see if it was heartburn and moving around to see if it was the position I had been sat in. Along with the pains I can feel a very rapid and heavy heartbeat, not all the time only occasionally and it lasts no more than 2-3 minutes and I believe the rhythm is irregular. Finally for months now I have had nose bleeds, to begin with they were only minor and I believed I’m just run down its normal but they have steadily worsened.
I will tell my doctor this when I go back next to collect even more test results I am due next week, but I was hoping someone could tell me this is all very normal GF symptoms
Sorry if this is very lengthy but I feel like this is my life at the moment and I would like some reassurance as I am getting fed up along with everyone around me and I’d like to discuss it with some one who may have some understanding of how it feels.
Thank you for any comments.
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