Hello everyone! I am new here. I have been having strange problems off and on since I became sick about two weeks ago.
Four weeks ago, I was in Church and almost passed out. I started having panic attacks thinking I was having heart problems (but I'm only 16!). After shrugging these thoughts off, I became sick during the Thanksgiving holiday.
This sickness came along with diarrhea, heartburn/chestpain, moderate/severe fatigue (but at night it became mild), and slight headaches.
I got over this sickness last Wednesday. However, this disease has caused me to have mild depression. I am getting over this depression, but now I have heartburn symptoms again. I have burning chest pain in the middle of my chest, and I occasionally have what seems to be gas buildup because I'll have pains in my lower left (sometimes right) back region. I was taking Prilosec OTC for three days while I was sick previously and my heartburn went away, but now it's come back with these "gas" pains.
I have also been having mild/moderate headaches (especially in my left eye area), and I woke up this morning with a sore throat. The sore throat is almost gone now but I can still barely feel it. My teacher at school said I may have mono because I have the sore throat & fatigue combo, & headaches are also part of having mono. At first when I started feeling the chest pains I thought I may have some kind of lung condition because my breathing felt impaired (but I think I made it up in my mind), but then these mono symptoms started happening.
Please help. I'm not sure at all what's going on with me!!! And I'm very young at 16 years old, almost 17 (Dec. 15). Thank you.
Acid reflux is generally worse at night than in the daytime. At least in my experience. Heartburn is part of it, but also at night you may experience coughing (from the reflux going up into your windpipe) and even a choking feeling.
If you have developed acid reflux, carefully look at your diet as food allergies can be a contributor. I took acid reflux meds for 9 years only to find out I was allergic to dairy. I stopped the dairy, and the pain and discomfort of acid reflux stopped also. Who knows how much damage 9 years of meds did, in the meantime.
Regardless, see your doctor and get tested for mono. It's a simple blood test, and if you have it you need to know. Not only is it contagious but left untreated it can be dangerous. It can also recur, so if you do have it you'll need to keep that in mind in case you have a future recurrence. My 62 year old boss just recently had a recurrence and it took her a while to find out she had mono because it's thought of as a teen disease.
Unfortunately, I do not have health insurance at this time.
I will keep watching my symptoms though. Do you think I have mono?
Is there anything else I could possibly have?
There's a lot of things you could have, ranging from anxiety to a heart disorder, which is why you should see a doctor. At your age, I'd lean more towards thinking it could be mono or anxiety, but heart conditions are not unheard of in your age group although they are rare.
Have you told your parents about this, and if so what did they say?
Do you live in a major metro area where there may be free or low cost clinics you could utilize? Even in my small city there is a place we can go for low cost blood tests. You don't even need to see a doctor, you just go in and tell them what blood test you want and it's fairly inexpensive. Another option might be your local pharmacy. More and more pharmacies are starting to administer vaccines and do routine blood tests. Check around, you may find it's quite affordable.
If it's mono, rest is going to be the most important thing. Seek to sleep 8-10 hours a night - or more. If you really have mono, you might find yourself being "wiped out" on some days and require more rest. Adequate hydration and top notch nutrition will help, also, as they will with any illness. Avoid processed foods, sugary foods and beverages, and drugs and alcohol if you use them. Embrace vegetables and fruits. A multivitamin might not hurt either, to round out any deficiencies you may have.
You could have celiac or gluten intolerance as this causes all the problems you have. Gluten is a protein in wheat so is in all processed foods. The only cure is to go gluten free. Google celiac and acid reflux for more info.
