What is this?

Okay, so I should preface by saying that when I was eighteen (I'm currently twenty-one, female) I had a very strange experience with what everyone assumed was mono.  It started as a massive headache and a week in I was incredibly sick (104 fever) but with no lymph node swelling for a couple of weeks, and then to a lesser degree for the next few weeks before having my urine tested.  I had a kidney infection of some sort, so they admitted me to the hospital for IV antibiotics.  They never worked, and the infection fizzles out on its own.

By this point I actually began to exhibit symptoms of mono--swollen lymphs, inflamed liver and spleen, jaundice--and between my two-week stays at two hospitals (one being Vanderbilt) I was tested for Epstein-Barr and CMV at least six times.  Not until the very end did one come up positive.  As is typical of mono I was exhausted and prone to sweating for the next few months.  One peculiar thing: apparently I had Hepatitis B as a child.

So over the next few years I was diagnosed with stuff I've never dealt with before: Barrett's Esophagus, internal hemorrhoids, other gastro stuff.  Every few months I dealt with a chronic fatigue.  It was weird, but we all just kinda accepted it as mono stuff.

Since this past January, however, it's been much more severe.  The fatigue leaves me debilitatingly exhausted just from going to a couple of classes--sometimes to the point of passing out.  Sometimes I will be lying or sitting down and the room will begin to spin wildly for no reason at all.  My body temp fluctuates irregularly and leaves me overheated or freezing.  I've had my thyroid and all that jazz tested, and while I'm a little anemic, no dice.

This is destroying my schoolwork; I need an answer.  HELP?

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Thanks for writing to the forum!
Post viral fatigue syndrome is probably what you have and this is a very common disorder. Also there are no magic pills for it. This can be treated patiently with exercise, good diet, work out plans and multivitamins. A diet rich in fruits, vegetables and proteins should be taken along with a multi vitamin supplement. Eat 5-7 small regular meals every day. Ask a nutritionist what diet will be best for you with your condition. Drink plenty of water. Do deep breathing exercises. Join a good trainer and start an exercise program that will help you build up stamina. Try doing an activity a day that interests you. Try to remain calm.
There is a possibility that now you suffer from irritable bowel disease. Tuberculosis is another possibility that should be looked into.
Hope this helps. Do discuss this with your doctor and get yourself examined. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!