Advice for Son with Mononucleosis

The long term side affects of mono can be a challenge. Doing things to help build his immune system will help him recover quickly and be able to get back to normal activity. Taking a good quality nutritional supplement will help do that. Let me know if you need help finding one....I have experience in that.

I had it at 16. It almost killed me.
Let him rest. No physical activity.
I ate frozen grapes and jello for a while, I was so swollen.
He'll feel better if in the afternoons he gets up and showers, if he can.

No one else in my family got it. We were at our summer home and a string of cousins were visiting. Make sure you wash everything he touches and wash hands. It's spread by drinking after someone, kissing, through direct contact with saliva.

Change his sheets often, I remember being really sweaty and since I couldn't breathe well I drooled.

I had it in 1982. I still feel my lymph nodes swell up at times . I believe it is one of those that once you have it you can't get it again, but I did relapse during the school year.
I would rather have all four come down with strep (which they have) than one have mono.

Good luck. I was in bed for a good three weeks then really weak for another 8 months, my whole junior year.

I had it in college...ugh. If I remember correctly...the spleen (or something) gets swollen and part of the reason for abstaining from physical activity is because you don't want it to rupture. As far as what to do...rest, rest, rest! I just remember being exhausted and feeling like I woke up just as tired as I was when I'd fall asleep for naps :p. To make sure your other son doesn't get it - don't let them share food (I say that because I got it when I was in a college dorm and sharing cup-o-noodles with half a dozen other people). I 'believe' it's transmitted via saliva...you can probably google it...I'm just going off what I remember from...13 years ago? So as long as they're not swapping spit, I think your'e ok :). Giving him his own toothpaste might be a good idea...sometimes the germs get on the toothbrush...then on the toothpaste that everybody shares. Hope he feels better soon! I've heard the more you take it easy, the quicker you recover. Maybe? Your Dr. might have some other suggestions. Good luck!

I had it at 16 too around this time of they year. My sister had it as well. Don't drink after each other and no kissing! Other than that you just treat the symptoms. Lots of fluids, rest, ibuprofen for headaches, more rest, more fluids...I was out of school for 2 weeks, and then just school and home for another 2 weeks. My sister only missed a couple days. It just depends on the person. Don't push him to go back too soon, it is a truly exhausting virus. Just let him go at his own pace. In my case, the boy that sat in front of me in chemistry tutored me after I got back over what I missed. We ended up getting married 7 years later. So, you never know, mono can be a good thing. Good luck!

I remember I had it at 18 years old. I had to have a doctor's note for my work, that I couldn't do anything strenuous, and that I could only work for 5 hours. I had to have a minimun of 8 hours sleep, and to rest as much as possible. I didn't have it quite as bad as some, but I just remember how tired I was all the time, and that I needed to eat and drink alot to stay hydrated.

Rest is terribly important! And sleep. What does his doctor say? Make sure he doesn't do any sports.

To be honest, I was lucky enough to have it in summer. I was in bed for weeks. I hope your son will have it better than me.

Good luck to you both!

just try to make sure hes eating something.. and he needs to be careful of his spleen
a friend of mine had it in highschool and was out of school for weeks.. he lost a ton of weight and he was pretty skinny to start with.. he also had to be very careful of the way he got out of bed or moved.. he said when u have mono your spleen swells and could be ruptured

One of the boys on my 10 year old's soccer team is recovering from mono. Lots of rest, let his energy level dictate what he does. Definitely see a dr for clearance to return to sports. Our friend was out of soccer for 6 weeks; 3 weeks out of all soccer activities, then another 3 weeks out of anything with contact (games, scrimmage, 1v1 or 2v2 in practice). The reason was because of the spleen, it swells with mono and there is a risk of rupture with contact sports. His dr did ultrasounds/xrays to monitor swelling and gave him clearance once it returned to normal.

My sister had it for most of the 2nd grade.
She'd rest up, then relapse and it went on like that for almost a year.
My Mom had to work out bringing homework back and forth to school for her.
He's got to avoid exerting himself.
It might be the only time being a total couch potato is a good thing.
When he starts feeling better he needs to very slowly get back to his normal routine.
The minute he starts feeling tired again, he's heading for a relapse.