<p>I agree with sly and the other posters. You need to get a real diagnosis and start--and stay on--treatment. And get sleep and eat and drink enough water. Can one of your parents come to be with you and get this straightened out?</p>
<p>If you used Zithromax you could get nausea and vomiting from that. My oldest can't take the stuff because it does that to her. Get another opinion Hon.</p>
<p>I was on Amoxicillin. I'd rather not get my parents involved, as it would only give them more opportunities than they already have to rant endlessly about the state of the American health care system and why couldn't I just have gone to school in Sweden where none of this would ever happen (er, we've had this conversation before).</p>
<p>yeah sounds like mono. Contact your dean of students if you have not and get him or her to be your advocate for classes. YOu can get a medical withdrawal which for most colleges just wipes the class/es off your transcript. DOn't let yourself fail or get a bad grade. Some people have a hard time adjusting to communal living. check out the parents forum top where it shows other members who live nearby and get some help....SLY_vt or others would help you out. Many colleges have funds available to help students who end up with hospital bills from such an event...copays or whatever. Just get to the right medical provider and get healthy. We will be pulling for you.</p>
<p>It's good that you took the antibiotic properly. Amoxicillin probably didn't cause any of your symptoms (except perhaps for a loss of appetite while you were taking it). But it doesn't seem to have helped.</p>
<p>I would suggest one more visit to the campus health center, and specifically asking the doctor there "Could this be mono? Can you test me for that?" If that doesn't work out, you need to go elsewhere, as soon as possible. </p>
<p>When a person your age has been sick for a month with what appears to be some sort of infectious disease and has not been tested for mono, something's not right. </p>
<p>If it is mono, that diagnosis would probably help you get all the extensions you need for class work (such as the opportunity to take an incomplete in studio art and finish your projects over the break between the fall and winter quarters, if necessary).</p>
<p>And if you do have to get your parents involved, remind them that even if you had gone to college in Sweden, this illness could just as easily have occurred during the breaks from school, when you would have been in NYC with them, dealing with the (admittedly sucky) U.S. health care system.</p>
<p>Camelia, go back to Dick's house and agitate for a Monospot. If they can't do it, get someone to drive you to DHMC. Talk up the tiredness and sore throat, as in "this is the worst sore throat".
Do you have enlarged lymph nodes in your neck? Or tender lymph nodes in your neck? Particularly the back of your neck, the nodes back there rarely enlarge, and if you can feel them, that's a real sign of mono.</p>
<p>My guess, though, is that you are having typical "freshpersonitis". A whole barrage of regular cold viruses that you have never been exposed to - from all over the country - combined with not enough sleep. My D made many trips to Dick's House her first year, and lost weight, rather than putting on the freshman 15.</p>
<p>You can't be treated for mono, but you'll get some automatic consideration for exams and such, and you need to know.</p>
<p>Keep us posted.</p>
<p>cameliasinensis - sounds like you have done what they told you to do. They gave you a broad spectrum antibiotic, but I still wonder if you don't have something that just requires a longer course. As mentioned earlier, when I've had sinus infections (which can include all the symptoms you've mentioned), I've had docs prescribe for 10 days and some docs feel strongly that for a sinus infection, you need to take the antibiotics for a full two weeks to a month. I understood your original post to read that on the last three-four days of the original course of antibiotics, you started to feel back to normal, then relapsed within a day of being off them. Had you had a longer course, you might have beaten this the first time around. Just a possibility.</p>
<p>Dick's House can do better that this - try going back and push for a mono test. If that fails, there is free transit service from Hanover to Dartmouth Hitchcock Med Center and back. It runs frequently, as I recall. Find a real doctor at the medical center and go get yourself thoroughly checked out. I would think if Dick's House can't help you they would have to refer you to a doc at DHMC anyway and your student insurance should be good there, especially if you can get a referral.</p>
<p>(And it does sound like mono)</p>
<p>Er, I don't actually know what lymph nodes are, so it's hard to tell whether there's anything wrong with them... :o</p>
<p>I just remembered that my boyfriend's uncle works at DHMC; he might be able to drive me there. I'll let you know what happens.</p>
<p>Whoa, your op sounded exactly like the phone call I recieved from my D today - says she's been sick the entire time at school (2+ months), falls asleep in class, had a culture taken (negative). She says she has heard that mono is going around, so I urged her to get a blood test. Mother's intuition agrees with coureur - staying up until 2:00 every night is a new experience for her ("but I get almost 8 hours of sleep!" she protests). It sounds to me like a low-grade viral/bacterial infection she cannot kick due to lack of sleep. </p>
<p>I'd definitely recommend a mono blood test, then go for extra sleep. Good luck to you.</p>
<p>cameliasinensis</p>
<p>I hope it's at least clear that we care about you. Do keep us posted. I was thinking how hard it is to go to a Dr. and keep focused and ask the right questions. Even at my age (55) and being a RN and a PhD psychologist. I forget what I was going to ask or start feeling better in the office. Writing down the history might help--this has been going on WAY too long and you need to let a Dr. know that.</p>
<p>Camellia:</p>
<p>There are separate issues here. 1. the health issue. You've received good advice. You also need to keep both the college health center and your family health plan in the loop if you do decide to go a doctor, so that the health insurance covers your visits, blood work, etc... You don't want to be billed hundreds or thousands of dollars because the visits and treatments were not pre-approved.
2. studies: you need to discuss with your profs and your Freshman dean (or whoever is in charge at D) what you can do to make up for work while you take care of your health, which is your first priority. Colleges are used to having students who get mono or some other kind of health issues that interfere with their studies. But it is a good idea to have proper documentation (e.g. your fever, your nausea). An advocated within the administration can not only explain your situation to the profs but also cooperate with them to come up with a plan of action. Such make-ups could be deferred for quite a while.</p>
<p>bethievt - excellent advice. To take that even further, if the OP is comfortable with this, take a friend along for support. When you don't feel well, sometimes it's hard to remember the exact details of any instructions they give you (although they should give them in writing). Having someone along as an extra set of ears can be helpful.</p>
<p>I called DHMC and was told to call back after eight tomorrow morning to set up an appointment. I'll keep you updated.</p>
<p>Thanks for all your help,
E.</p>
<p>Excellent, Camelia.</p>
<p>Please be assertive about this. You are not "bothering" anybody. What you are experiencing is not normal and it requires competent medical assessment and treatment. Push for an appointment as soon as possible.</p>
<p>Write down your symptoms, the dates of onset, tests, meds, etc. Be calmly emphatic that you have followed all medical directions to date, are still very sick, and you need a diagnosis and treatment. Important: do not downplay your symptoms (hysteria isn't helpful, either, but you do not sound the least bit hysterical).</p>
<p>Please keep us posted.</p>
<p>~mafool</p>
<p>Here's your transportation:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.advancetransit.com/%5B/url%5D">http://www.advancetransit.com/</a></p>
<p>You would want the Blue Route.</p>
<p>Agree with mafool re the need to assert yourself. Have the Dr. check for both mono and especially a sinus infection. If the Dr thinks it's sinuses, insist on 3 weeks worth of Biaxin or generic clarithromyocin, with 2 refills, as sinus inections can take a LONG time to clear up. A short course of antibiotics, like Zithromax, is simply not long enough- the bacteria just come roaring back when the medication is discontinued, as you found out. After dealing with sinus infections every year from Nov-March, I finally discovered Biaxin 15 years ago. I was on a low dose of Biaxin for a long time-I discovered it also cleared up my zits as well as my sinuses, so I had my dermotologist prescribe it for me for a couple of years. I know-some MD's will be horrified and say I shouldn't have taken antibiotics for so long but , hey it worked! I haven't had a sinus infection in years.</p>
<p>I think you should go back to the FREE health center, and be more assertive about asking and suggesting for further testing. Exhaust the free treatment before seeking outside medical treatment. (JMHO!)</p>
<p>menloparkmom - that reminds me, I meant to ask the OP about new allergies since she's arrived at school. Many times when kids attend school in a different region of the country, they develop new allergies due to new exposures. This in turn can lead to sinus infections. </p>
<p>The timing for the OP would be about right, as this time of the year can be brutal with the falling leaves, etc. This may have all started out with allergies (although I don't think allergies can cause a fever), then progressed to a sinus infection.</p>
<p>I just thought of something from another thread last year. A student became sick from MOLD found in his dorm room ceiling. Mold can be very dangerous for those who are more sensitive- such as those with allergies. Camelia, Dartmouth usually is very good about taking care of the dorm rooms- but are you in one of the new buildings or an older one? Have you or any one else noticed a musky, "old" smell in the building, especially in or near your room?</p>