My name is David and I was diagnosed with MS in 2007, 10 year anniversary this April lol, its real pain in the ass isn’t it.
Anyway I’ve had a virus now for just over 3 weeks, I’ve no energy, I just want to lay down and fall asleep, I can barely move I’m so weak, each day I feel worse than the day before, I’m way behind on all my 3rd university work and I couldn’t care less, I just feel so bad. The antibiotics didn’t help (didn’t think they would but had to try). I know if I do back to the doctors they’ll just say “go to bed and drink plenty of fluids” the usual.
Anyway has anyone had or knows of someone with a very long lasting virus?
If so how long did you have it for or do you still have it?
How did you get through it?
Any info would be welcome, uni coursework deadlines are coming up fast (not any of it yet started any of it), thinking about walking away from it.
Please don’t walk away from it.I know that it’s more than likely that it’s the “virus”
Making you feel this way.having m s is hard enough without havingg any further complications.as for time it really does run its coarse .as g p says rest,painkillers,plenty of fluids sorry that’s my only answer.
David, don’t walk away. A virus is debilitating and can cause you to become depressed; or at least negative…
Have you seen your GP and could they give you a sick note you could present to the powers that be at university? Don’t beat yourself up about your lethargy. You need time to recover. With the beast, it takes longer. Perhaps you could do some reading and note taking as a way of alerting yourself to the task in hand. Even doing a little bit would be encouraging.
Hi, yes your university should be able to give you extensions on your coursework.
The other option is if you feel you need to take a break from university there should be the option to intermit (also known as intercalate) and take some time off. Then resume your studies again. If you intermit you will still be a student during this time (can borrow library books, log on to university email etc) but you will have no coursework to do or lectures to attend. This would need to be agreed with the uni - speak to your Personal Tutor or the student union adviser.
Like others say, you will almost certainly be entitled to a deadline extension as a reasonable adjustment under the Equality Act. I guess that MS tends not to get better and so now might be as good a time as any to complete the course. Id kind of given up on finishing my course because the visual intrusions, tinnitus, etc were making it seem impossible. That and my brain simply doesnt seem to be working well anymore. But Im now thinking maybe I got to try and finish it. At least it will be something positive under my belt amongst what feels like a ruined life.
So for whats its worth I really hope that u get the uni course finished. To get it in these circs might feel and (certainly would be) a particular achievement.
Viruses are the very devil to chase away. Antibiotics won’t help (as you know) but it’s so tempting to try them. Get an extension on your coursework, get some decent rest, try not to get too stressed by it and it will eventually go. They do.
Thanks for all your replies of support and encouragement they are must appreciated. I wasn’t really talking about walking away completely from Uni just maybe this term then return to fight another day.
The university and all their wisdom have brought forward all exams compared to last year by 1 month to the start of April instead of May, it just adds to the stress and worry which I don’t have the energy to care about, I just can’t be bothered with it giving the way I feel with this never ending virus. Think I might need to go back to the doctors, its heading for 4 weeks now and no sign of going away anytime soon.
all my family have had this awful virus and it lasts weeks and now i have i started with it saturday night and felt worse each day with it,i started with mild cold symptoms then they got worse to the point my nose was completely blocked,its such a nasty one.and if you have MS like us it will take some getting over too.hope we start to feel better soon.
I had a cold. It went away in a week, only to come back a week later as the kind of virus that just waltzed merrily into my CNS, made my brain even more scrambled than usual, wiped my legs out completely, sent me to A&E and caused me to hit the floor twice. Each time we had to call the paramedics as we (OH & me) couldn’t get me up off the floor.
My blood oxygen level was low, my temperature was high and my lymphocytes had hit an all time low of 0.2. (Normal is 1.0 to 3.5.) I felt like sh*t and couldn’t stay awake.
Two weeks later, I was much better. The lymphocytes had returned to a low normal of 1.0 and I was back to my shaky crumbling ‘normal’.
A virus can last for weeks, can make you feel like crap, can cause your MS symptoms to spiral out of control. And often nothing can help beyond maybe paracetamol to bring your temperature down. And rest.
this virus does come back, it did same with my partner and daughter, they picked up after a week only for it to come back even worse than the first time its awful. For some strange reason, my ms behaves more when i have a virus then wham bam after 6 weeks i have a relapse.I think my immune system gets busy fighting a virus and ignores the MS for a bit.
Hi David, you need to ask uni for a mitigating circumstances form. My uni was brilliant, I was in my 3rd year & last lap. They will give you an extension & help you out. Mine took into account my previous exam results & assignments marks but you need to tell them now. Are you in dissertation year? Dont give up, glad I didnt. A lot of work for a degree to fail at the last hurdle. Tell them, youve done really well to get this far, they will understand. good luck Tracey
Hi David, you should be able to set up a support network within the uni. First go and see the nurse or the student rep or council or whatever they are called now, make sure the head of year and lecturers all know that you can be incapacitated. Inform the special needs support who can burst into action hopefully.
At work we used to support young people with metabolic disease who had times when they were ill. With the help of the uni nurse/special needs support, pursor, head of year etc. when they were ill for days on end and didn’t want to get behind with their work, their ‘mentors’ would step up and pick up and deliver any papers, lecturers would ensure that any deadlines or notes would be passed on by email. The mentors would be someone on their floor or in their year or in a higher year or someone volunteering to help. They would sometimes make sure in the morning that the person was awake (so they had a key) and make sure they were not passed out or anything, make sure they drank orange juice or had a biscuit before they left, then would return again in the evening. That way, if the person didn’t eat all day at least they had not fasted for hours and hours.
They also had discussions with the uni and heads of year/subjects that during exam times particularly, the illness could flare up so a small drink and biscuit was allowed into the exam. Some students were allowed an extra half an hour with arrangements to go to the loo in the middle if urine problems were involved, then also allowing for tiredness during the exam and a little extra time to finish.
These things worked really well with quite a bit of organising in the first place. Don’t know if you have done this already so excuse the comments if you have. Also, taking a big step for many young people that we helped, they told their room mates/house sharers that they had times when they were unwell and asked if the others could look out for them during this time even just making a drink sometimes is a help. This all enabled them to stay in bed for weeks at a time if needed, but having all the work deadlines and relevant things available to catch up if possible. Some lecturers allowed a friend to record the lectures for the person who was unwell. Hope this helps. March in the final year is well known for being the ‘wall’ so go and talk to someone in the uni, my friend walked out in 3rd year march and went to drive lorries. Wouldn’t recommend it unless absolutely necessary. You could do with a student rep aswell to help you talk with energy about what may be offered to help you the last few months.
HI guy’s thanks again for all the advice and support I really appreciate your input.
But listen to this, I went to the doctors yesterday just because this virus was still kicking lumps out me and throat was getting sore, I could barely drive there I was so weak. Anyway I went to the surgery got a random doctor that I’d never seen before and to be fair she did check me over properly as I did have a chest infection along with this virus 2 and a half weeks ago (virus came first). Although she didn’t check my throat.
But when I explained about my 3 week absence from university and that I think I will need a sick line as I got an email from the admin department asking “where I am”? And also “we might have to withdraw you from the course”. I’ve email my lectures every day when I’ve been off sick including my guidance lecturer, think it was just a standard letter but a letter none the less.
So I asked for a hand written sick note explaining my circumstance, her response was infuriating, ridicules and very uncompassionate for someone in her profession, if I had any energy I would have said a lot more than I did. She said “yes I can do that but it will cost you £15” so I went through a couple of insults without swearing or going overboard. I finished by saying “on moral principle I refuse to pay that, its ridicules” took my prescription for paracetamol and ibuprofen and left. She also said that “if the university contact them directly they will write one at no charge to anyone”. I don’t feel comfortable with medical letters relating to me being handed about without my seeing it first, to me that’s not right.
In truth, I think if it was a different doctor, different day I’d get a different response. Over the last 10 years since being diagnosed my contempt for doctors grows larger and larger almost every time I see them.
What’s your opinion on the, oh so wonderful Doctors? I think they forget they work for me, not the other way around.