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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 12 of 12. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Wayne R. on March 12, 1999, at 8:59:29
My depression started just after recovering from Mononucleosis as a young teen. Many years later, when I finally got professional help, my Dr told me that there was gathering evidence that the Epstein-Barr virus could trigger depression. He ordered a blood test that confirmed antibodies to EBV.
Can anyone elaborate on the current understanding? Has a firm link been established? Can others of you link your clinical depression to Mono? Wayne
Posted by Erin on May 22, 1999, at 22:15:55
In reply to Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Wayne R. on March 12, 1999, at 8:59:29
My depression started just after recovering from Mononucleosis as a young teen.
Wayne,
I had my bout with mono at age 16. I was hospitalization for five days and my doctor said it was the worst case he had ever seen. Since that time I have never felt that I had the same amount of energy that I used to have before mono. I think that my depression falls into the atypical category. I am still looking for an effective med or med combo. I initially responded to Zoloft at 150 mg but it lost its effectiveness after a while. I've read your posts on Naltrexone and I may look into that soon. I'd like to know more about the Epstein-Bar/depression connection- please feel free to email me at nhess11@yahoo.com.
Thanks for your many posts-
Erin
Posted by Wayne R. on May 23, 1999, at 7:34:07
In reply to Re: Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Erin on May 22, 1999, at 22:15:55
Erin, Thanks for the post. As you can see you are the only one that has responded since March. My case was also severe and put me in the hospital for 4 days. The Naltrexone continues to be miraculous for me but nobody knows why it works at all let alone knowing if there might be any connection with the Epstein-Barr. I have no other information to share with you at the moment on the Epstein-Barr connection. Best regards… Wayne
Posted by Lily on May 23, 1999, at 20:50:19
In reply to Re: Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Wayne R. on May 23, 1999, at 7:34:07
>I have been reading this website since February when I "discovered" it. This is the first time I have responded. I had mono as a teen, but didn't experience depression until after my fourth child was born in 1991 when I was 33 years old. I believe my depression was postpartum, however, it was not self-limiting. I continue to require treatment 7 years later. Another daughter of mine, age 17, had mono in the spring of 1998. In the summer of 1998 she began having panic attacks and severe depression. She began having severe PMS symptoms. As soon as she began treatment with zoloft, she responded and is basically symptom free. I strongly feel, and have always felt, there is a direct connection between here mono (Epstein/Barr virus) and the onset of depression. I, too, am interested in further commentary on this topic.
Posted by Cristina on May 25, 1999, at 21:12:42
In reply to Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Wayne R. on March 12, 1999, at 8:59:29
Last year, my junior year of college, I came down with mono. I had actually been sick for two months when I had to be hospitalized. It was at the hospital that I got a doctor to actually pay attention to me. After a test I was diagnosed with Mono. I struggled to get better, the rest of my junior year. I haven't been the same since. I have been depressed for well over a year, finally is wasn't until this year, my senior year, that I completely broke down and had to leave school. I wonder if the mono I had has anything to do with my depression. The thought had crossed my mind, but I blew it off. Until I read this post. Does anyone know if depression is linked to mono? It would be really good to know.
Posted by Erin on May 28, 1999, at 1:50:08
In reply to Re: Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Cristina on May 25, 1999, at 21:12:42
Wayne,
I know that you don't have any additional new info. on the mono/depresssion topic but I was wondering how you came up with the connection in the first place? Thanks on any help you can give- FYI, I'm going to start MAOI Parnate this Monday, have you had any experience with this AD? Erin
Posted by JD on May 28, 1999, at 4:47:18
In reply to Re: Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Erin on May 28, 1999, at 1:50:08
Hey folks,
For anyone interested, there are a number of abstracts available on the medline database (searchable through PubMed on the internet) documenting a connection between depression and infectious mononucleosis, often specifically dealing with the Epstein-Barr virus with which mono is associated. Worth a look perhaps, but from what I see there don't seem to be very firm conclusions about the mechanisms at work...
Best,
JD
Posted by Adele on January 23, 2001, at 13:52:59
In reply to Re: Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Erin on May 28, 1999, at 1:50:08
I am very interested to hear about this connection. My 17 year old daughter was diagnosed with MONO in December 2000. She is also ADHD. She states now that she feels like a completely different person to how she was previously, prior to the MONO diagnosis. She is just about to go into hospital for a psychological investigation...whats hard is to see what is influencing what whether "depression/anxiety" triggers the MONO or vice versa. I am also having her immune system checked for gamma globulin (spelling?). I will post the results here in case it rings a bell with anyone..This seems very complex and no doctors seem to jump on making these connections - in fact doctors only seem able to see one thing at a time..Would love to hear from others....since I am in danger of losing my daughter.. she is no longer at school and is just two credits short of graduating..
Posted by mars on January 27, 2001, at 4:22:20
In reply to Re: Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Adele on January 23, 2001, at 13:52:59
Hi Adele ~
I had a bad case of mononucleosis about eight months before the onset of my first really severe depression at age 14. However, I had been mildly depressed for a long time.
I have many other factors, however. Your daughter has barely had time to recover. I wish you well, and please let me know how things are going.
best,
mary
> I am very interested to hear about this connection. My 17 year old daughter was diagnosed with MONO in December 2000. She is also ADHD. She states now that she feels like a completely different person to how she was previously, prior to the MONO diagnosis. She is just about to go into hospital for a psychological investigation...whats hard is to see what is influencing what whether "depression/anxiety" triggers the MONO or vice versa. I am also having her immune system checked for gamma globulin (spelling?). I will post the results here in case it rings a bell with anyone..This seems very complex and no doctors seem to jump on making these connections - in fact doctors only seem able to see one thing at a time..Would love to hear from others....since I am in danger of losing my daughter.. she is no longer at school and is just two credits short of graduating..
Posted by Susan H. on March 11, 2001, at 17:53:10
In reply to Re: Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Wayne R. on May 23, 1999, at 7:34:07
> Erin, Thanks for the post. As you can see you are the only one that has responded since March. My case was also severe and put me in the hospital for 4 days. The Naltrexone continues to be miraculous for me but nobody knows why it works at all let alone knowing if there might be any connection with the Epstein-Barr. I have no other information to share with you at the moment on the Epstein-Barr connection. Best regards… Wayne
Dear Wayne, or anyone that may have knowledge or experience with Naltrexone as a treatment for depression associated with mono--thank you if you
can share this information with me. I have been having extreme depression that is clearly associated with mono. I was diagnosed with mono recently,and have been sick for months, though the infection is no longer in the acute stage. The depression has been severe for several weeks; I'm on Prozac but it isn't helping at all. Susan H.
Posted by Sulpicia on March 12, 2001, at 20:47:03
In reply to Re: Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Susan H. on March 11, 2001, at 17:53:10
> Hey --
check out the thread in psycho-babble about children on mono and depression.
there are some links there that might be of use.S.
Posted by joneden on August 23, 2001, at 12:31:07
In reply to Mononucleosis and Depression, posted by Wayne R. on March 12, 1999, at 8:59:29
My depression began abruptly just a few months after my presumed recovery from Mono during my first year of college in 1960. The depression was severe, untreatable, and unremitting until I had an insight into its origin--more than 10 years later--See EscapeFromDepression.com. I was to never to recover the vitality I had previous to the mono.... There is a research paper decades old in which a physician notes that some small percentage of those with Mono never make a full recovery, and that this group is further characterized--by testing I believe--to be under unusual loads of psychological stress. Cannot remember where I found the paper.... So I too was struck by the proximity of the Mono to the onset of my depression--but understand that such observations are not in and of themselves science...Jon Eden (JonEden@yahoo.com)
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