6 weeks and counting....

Avatar for kel7col4
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
6 weeks and counting....
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Fri, 03-09-2007 - 11:50am

Dd is finishing up her 6th week with mono and no end in sight. She made it to school Monday and she had her mono recheck that afternoon. That night her fever hit again and it has been continuous ever since. She's been wicked weak and dizzy. She is going in to the drs. this afternoon again. And wow she showed me her spleen last night and that was the freakiest thing I have ever seen in my life! When we went Monday for her recheck they checked her iron levels again and of course that has plummetted as well. Dd talked them out of doing a full cbc (she passes out everytime) so they made her promise to take her vitamins and up her iron intake and come in for a retest the beginning of April. Another thing that freaked me out is her toenails are turning yellow. I know the liver can be affected and jaundice can occur but the whites of her eyes are still really white so I am hoping the yellow toe nails are from nail polish.

Since January 29th, she has been in school 5 full days and 2 half days - she has missed, including today, 15 days. Thankfully they had 3 snow days and 1 full week of vacation or that number would be even higher.

Just got an email from her English teacher - it looks like they will be dropping her from the honors english program. They are only allowed to miss one seminar before they are dropped from the program - she has missed 3 thus far and they have bent the rules up until now for her.

Ha, Great now I just got a phone call from the guidance counselor - a meeting is in my future with the school. This can't be good :(




Edited 3/9/2007 11:52 am ET by kel7col4



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iVillage Member
Registered: 10-25-2006
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 12:41pm
Hugs and prayers to you. It hurts so much to see our kids suffer, doesn't it? And we just have to try to stay strong ourselves to help them recover, because a positive mental attitude is part of the cure. A friend's daughter got mono in December, and she said her DD is still weak, too. I hope both of them are soon doing better.

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Registered: 02-14-2000
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 12:43pm
Oh the poor thing!
Pam
iVillage Member
Registered: 12-20-2005
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 12:43pm

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This is unfair, and I would fight it vehemently. If she truly is an honors student, she should not be dropped from a program because of illness.

Rules are made to encourage people not to break them - she's not breaking the rules - she's genuinely ill. There are accommodations that can be made - someone can tape the missing seminars, home instruction, etc. - it's not fair that she should be dropped from an honors program for missing several days of school due to a debiliating illness the same as if you'd just kept her home cause her "tummy hurt."

Just a thought.

Hugs to DD!!!

Avatar for kel7col4
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 3:53pm

Thanks guys - I don't know what's going on. She didn't see her regular doc today. This doc seems to think this week was a virus - I don't see how!! Her spleen is huge, she is running the same exact temp she was running when the mono first started. Idk - I think I will take her in next week to her regular doc...she didn't do any bloodwork or anything.

The school I am really worried about. I think they think she is takng advantage of the situation and omg she isn't. This kid can't stand being stuck at home all day and she was so looking forward to trying lacrosse and doing the competition cheering. IDK this is a mess.....I KNOW she's not milking it... how the heck do I convince the school of this? I haven't taken her to the docs each time she missed school...ughhhhhhh




iVillage Member
Registered: 06-17-2003
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 4:21pm
You need to get a letter from the doctor informing the school that she has mono and will be out of school for whatever period of time it will be and that the school needs to provide home instruction. Also, I would not allow them to drop her from honors english. If they're that worried that she's deliberately not coming to school, let them send out a truant officer. Also, you need to really be careful with an enlarged spleen. Since it no longer has the protection of the rib cage, a large enough bump could cause severe internal bleeding. I had mono in college and even though I felt well enough to return to school, my doctor wouldn't ok it because both my spleen and liver were enlarged.
Avatar for kel7col4
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 4:43pm

Thanks, I do have a letter from the doctor when she first tested positive from mono. The school was awesome then - said she should take it easy, come when she can, they gave her the 504 plan etc. When I talked to the school nurse about it the first week and I asked how long kids w/ mono were normally out, she said normally home for a week and then the next week back they usually have problems and need to go take naps or go home. When dd returned the 2nd week, they were all shocked to see her and saw how bad she was (she gets really dark circles around her eyes and glassy eyes when she is tired).

I had mono my senior year in high school and my high school immediately set me up w/ a homebound instructor. This school will only set up homebound instruction if it is documented that the student will, w/out a doubt, miss 2 weeks or more of school. Because mono is so weird no one was willing to state that then.

She was doing pretty good as far as her absences until she got bumped in the spleen area and that was when everything started up again. She missed the week of Jan. 29th (5 whole days), the week of Feb. 5th - she missed Mon, Tues, Wed - went to school Thurs and Fri. The week of 2/13 - she went Mon, missed Tues, Wed and Thurs were snow days, Fri. sick (btw she was sick both snow days too). The week of Feb. 19th was winter vacation (sick). The week Feb. 26th she went Mon, Tues, Wed (got bumped), missed Thurs. and Fri was a snow day. This week she went Mon. - went to the docs Mon. afternoon and has been running a fever ever since.

I KNOW this kid - she can not stand sitting home and not having a social life. I have told her she can do the cheering thing when she can go to school for a week straight and omg she tried. Same with lacrosse - she has someone all set up on teaching her the basics before try-outs and she needs the stick for it and again, I've said not until she can go to school for a complete week.

This doc said her spleen was irritated but not so much enlarged, but omg, dd showed me it last night and I could literally see it (like when you are pregnant and you can see the baby moving?) It was freaky.

The school wants documentation now on top of the original note from the doctor - this note just said she had mono and would possibly need a modified schedule. I don't know how this is gonna go....




Avatar for kel7col4
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 4:51pm

I'm really not sure what I am going to do about this whole honors thing. She really isn't a true honor student in the true sense of the word. It was just something she did to challenge herself. I flat out asked the teacher if she was out of the program as of now and he said no, but if she misses one more seminar she is..... I'm really confused, because with the 504 plan they gave her she can turn her work in anytime before the end of the quarter. This just doesn't apply to the honors class, her teacher made that really clear.

My meeting with the school is Wednesday at 7am - it should be quite interesting!




iVillage Member
Registered: 12-20-2005
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 5:02pm

There is no reason her 504 shouldn't apply to the honors class - it should apply to all her classes. And she should only be dropped if she's not doing work up to par.

Bring her back to the doctor, and explain the situation to him - ask him to write a note that details everything she's been going through (while you're at it, you might want to have the doctor run some more tests). When I was young, people with mono were out for six weeks MINIMUM - maybe it's changed, but it really drains you (I had it as an adult and actually worked through it-cause I had no idea what it was and had to go to work-and then it knocked me out).

Make sure you have a note from her doctor, a copy of her 504, AND either her guidance counselor, school social worker, child advocate, or child study team leader in that meeting with you. Don't let them bamboozle you.

Avatar for kel7col4
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 03-09-2007 - 5:27pm

Thanks again - we just got back from the doctor because of the fever that had returned. Unfortunately her regular doctor wasn't in today. This doctor was convinced that this current illness is unrelated to the mono - didn't take her temp, no blood work (when she was in on Mon. her iron levels had dropped considerably in a month.) This doc talked virus and ovarian cysts (?).......

I am gonna talk to her regular doctor when she is back and go from there. The school never gave me a copy of her 504 they just told me they were making those provisions for her. Apparently this meeting is with dd's guidance counselor, the school nurse, her teachers and the school administrator. Should be interesting as I tend to get intimidated and bamboozled easily!




iVillage Member
Registered: 10-24-2006
Sun, 03-11-2007 - 11:24am
Can you take someone with you to the meeting? I get intimidated easily too so I would want to have someone else with me dh, friend, family member, etc. Also one thing I have learned is not to agree to anything or sign anything right away. I say I'd like a little time to think about this or that and I'll get back to you so I have plenty of time to think through the whole scenario. I hope your dd is feeling better soon!! (((HUGS))) to both of you!!

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