MoNOOOOOO

So ironically, in my quest to document what 20-somethings think, I got sidetracked by the typical 20-something distractions like boys, friends, Netflix and…wait for it. Mono! YAY!

Yeah so, reason that I’ve been MIA and neglectful about my blog is because I was being a distracted 20-something and I was also apparently becoming infected with THE disease for 20-somethings. 

And for your information, no, I wasn’t just going around kissing random people. I’ve literally asked everyone I’ve had any kind of remote mono-transferring contact with about it and no one has it or has had it in about 3 years.

So, this brings me to the topic of this post: health assumptions about 20-somethings vis-à-vis communicable diseases and illnesses.

I’m a pretty healthy individual in terms of making sure I don’t get sick. I wash my hands, exercise five times a week, get at least seven hours of sleep most nights, eat fairly well, take my vitamins, and take various preventative measures  like downing mass quantities of Emergen-C when I start to feel a bit under the weather and drink tons of water.

Knowing all this, imagine my surprise upon waking up last Wednesday feeling dizzy and faint with a terrible sore throat and headache.

After trying and failing a number of times to just power through what I assumed was a particularly bad day for allergies and the by-product of a wee bit of a late night the evening prior, I emailed my boss and told her that I was sick and proceeded to try and sleep for the next few hours while I waited to go to the Clinic’s Express Care.

By the time I woke up to go to the Clinic, I was convinced that I had to have Strep throat. I couldn’t remember the last time I had felt anything so painful. So I hustled my way over the Clinic and asked to see a doctor about my supposed Strep.

I explained to the nurse and the doctor about my symptoms and my allergies and told them that I was fairly certain I had Strep. They gave me the rapid Strep test, which was negative and then the doctor came in to talk to me.

“So, you have a sore throat and some feelings of lightheadedness?”

Cue me nodding pathetically.

“Well, your Strep test was negative and after looking at your symptoms it looks like you probably have Mono. Does that sound right? Are you tired? Have you been seeing anyone new or kissing random people?”

She asked this semi-condescendingly as if to imply, ‘well, you are at that age.’

I was very much taken aback. Not by her actual question, but in the manner in which she asked it. As if to say: “Obviously any 20-something that comes in here complaining of a wicked sore throat, some vertigo, and a little exhaustion must have mono. It’s like their disease after all.”

I tried to counter.

“Well…yes. I have been seeing someone new, but he doesn’t have Mono to my knowledge and regardless I’m not sure where I would’ve gotten it from besides him. And like, yes, I’m tired. But I also have been adjusting to being a new graduate and being out in the real world so I’ve been tired, but I think that’s normal.”

She looked at me smiling and said, “I’m still going to order a Mono test for you. So just go over to the lab and we’ll have that done. In the meantime here’s some prednisone for the swelling.”

So like a good patient, I went to go get my blood taken and went home to pass out for the rest of the day.

Moral of the story: Yes, I have Mono. No, I don’t know where I got it. And yes, I did spend the next four days in tons of pain and fitful baby sleeps. But, that’s not the issue here.

As painful as Mono is and as much as it sucks, my main problem was with how I was treated by the doctor.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love the Cleveland Clinic. They do great and amazing work, but I did not like being treated like just another stupid 20-something who probably got Mono from a random hook-up. The reality of the situation is that I was a very sick girl who was alone and dealing with actually being truly sick and alone for the first time ever. It was like the first time I got sick at college times 20. And on top of that, the doctor treated me like I was an idiot.

It may be breaking news to some of you, but not all 20-somethings are irresponsible, crazy people who spread communicable diseases like wildfire. Some, like me and most of my friends, take our health very seriously.

We don’t have time to get sick.

There is far too much to do in a day and being sick just isn’t an option for us. Especially for people like me who have to work to pay the rent and other bills. Taking a day off is basically saying “Okay. Guess I won’t eat real food this week…or next week...”

Pardon me for getting up in arms about this and please, if you are a healthcare provider don’t take this as a personal attack, but please please please for the love of everything don’t just assume that we, as 20-somethings, don’t know how to take care of our health. Trust me, we do. We just fall victim to viruses and stuff like everyone else.

We do take care of ourselves contrary to popular belief and we really don’t like getting sick so next time a 20-something sneezes on you, don’t assume you’re going to catch the next, career-ending, lifestyle changing, 20-something disease.

After all, we know how to use Kleenex and Purell too…