Where Did My Energy Go?

by Perry Gretton
^{(creative writers at www.morewriting.co.uk)}
At first, Julie thought the long flight from Sydney to London must have been the cause of her listlessness. When two days passed and she still felt exhausted, she began to have second thoughts, especially after turning down an offer to go shopping with her mother. She’d looked forward to coming home for a short break and shopping with her mother was high on her itinerary.

“Maybe tomorrow, Mum. I should have my strength back by then.”

“It’s certainly not like you to lie around all day.”

“I just feel so drained of energy. I was fine before I left, apart from a sore throat. I think the journey took a lot out of me.”

The next day, however, Julie felt even more lethargic. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so tired.

“Right,” said her mother, “It can’t be jet lag after all this time. I’ll drive you to the doctor’s.”

When Doctor Hanesh felt the swollen lymph glands in Julie’s neck, she winced. He looked in her mouth and saw her tonsils were enlarged, too. As he pressed on her spleen - located on her left side just below her ribcage - she winced again.

He arranged for Julie to have a blood test and received the results a few days later. Together with her symptoms, they pointed to a diagnosis of glandular fever.

“It’s also known as the kissing disease,” he told her on her next appointment. “The proper name is infectious mononucleosis, caused by the Epstein-Barr virus. A large percentage of the population get infected by the virus but only some get symptoms from it.”

“I don’t remember kissing anyone recently,” Julie said. “At least, not on the lips.”

The doctor smiled. “It’s called the kissing disease because it usually affects younger people, but the virus can be spread by other means, such as sharing personal items.”

“Is there anything you can give me for it?”

He shook his head. “There’s no medicine for the illness itself, I’m afraid. I’d recommend you get plenty to drink. Fortunately, almost everyone who gets it makes a full recovery, although it may take a few weeks to get back to normal.”

“A few weeks!” Julie felt even more wretched. Her plans for the four-week holiday were now in jeopardy.

“It varies. Some people recover quickly, others take much longer.”

“So I just have to wait and see?”

“You could get lucky. Rest up until you start feeling better. If you’re in pain or feel feverish, I suggest you take paracetamol or ibuprofen. Whatever you do, though, don’t play contact sports for a couple of months.”

“What are contact sports?”

“Any activity where you could receive a blow to your body. You might damage your spleen because it’s swollen and that could be dangerous.”

“Don’t worry. I hardly have enough energy to play snakes and ladders, let alone physical sports.”

A thought occurred to her. “Am I still infectious? I don’t want to pass it on to my brother. He’s never had it before.”

“Avoid kissing and close body contact with other people while you’re ill. Don't share cups, towels, etc. By the way, if you develop any unusual symptoms, let me know straight away.”

Julie wondered if she’d get to meet up with her friends before she left. Talking to them on the phone wasn’t quite the same as seeing them in the flesh. As each day passed and her weakness continued, her frustration grew.

Then, on the second weekend, much to her surprise her friends came round unannounced.

One of them, Emily, was particularly sympathetic.

“I had a really bad reaction,” she said. “My throat felt like it was on fire. I came out in a rash and I got jaundice. I looked like old parchment. I was really low for weeks and had no idea what was wrong. It was only later, after the doctor had had viral tests done, that I found out I had glandular fever. Seems my case was quite rare.”

“I’m glad I’m not that bad,” Julie said. “Still, I never want to catch it again.”

“You shouldn’t. My doctor said that once you’ve had it, normally that’s it – lifetime immunity.”

Having her friends around raised Julie’s spirits. By the middle of the following week she felt strong enough to go for a walk; by the weekend she managed a shopping trip and bought herself a silk evening dress.

Although her energy didn’t completely return, during the final week she squeezed in most of the remaining items on her itinerary.

On the way to the airport, her mother commiserated with Julie. “You came all this way to be laid up with glandular fever.”

Julie shrugged it off. “Look at it like this, Mum. The illness will never return, but at least I’ll be coming back next year.”