Article on 'Wellness on the Web' site,
authored by Allen Lawrence, M.A., M.D., Ph.D. and
Lisa Lawrence, M.S., Ph.D., states:
"One of the most controversial areas in medicine today is
the issue of Epstein-Barr Virus Disease. While some medical
doctors and researches believe that Chronic Epstein-Barr
Virus Disease (CEBV) not only exists but is at epidemic
proportions here in the U.S. others believe and are adamant
that CEBV is just a hoax, a fad, 'the disease of the month,'
an excuse to rationalize fatigue and depression. Large
numbers on non-medical 'sufferers' of CEBV, however, are
coming forward to tell their stories of the problems that
they have been suffering, some for years. With or without
a name for it, they see their symptoms fitting those that
are most frequently used to define CEBV."
"Those experts who believe in CEBV, often claim that both
children and adults may suffer for many years, from one
or more combinations of often debilitating symptoms which
can include:"
"Fever, fatigue, sore throat, swollen glands, joint pains,
ear and muscle aches, breathing pains, heat, cold and light
sensitivity, diarrhea, nausea/vomiting, chills, stomach pain
weight loss, rashes, sleep problems, dizziness, hair loss,
night sweats, alcohol intolerance, bladder dysfunction, lack
of physical or speech coordination, swelling of eyelids or
hands and fingers, odd sensations in the nerves or skin,
confusion, inability, to concentrate, impaired reasoning,
memory loss, depression, anxiety and mood swings."
and...
"Often patients come to doctors with long lists of symptoms,
symptoms having long durations and often significant severity.
The physician may not even think about CEBV. Most doctors are
taught that "mononucleosis" is that of a short term,
non-reoccurring illness. CEBV infection, they say, is different
from mononucleosis, it is a separate disease entity own. Some
people who later develop CEBV have had full blown "mono"
initially, while others have much milder symptoms with their
initial infection."
and, most importantly:
"Does CEBV Really Exist?"
"While many people do believe that CEBV is a real disease
entity others believe that it is not. In fact, many
physicians believe that CEBV doesn't exist. Some physicians
believe that it occurs as a secondary problem to chronic
yeast infection. Still others believe that Epstein-Barr
virus does not cause the problems listed above but rather,
that it is secondary to another process entirely."
"I, myself believe that the primary process is a kind of
depression, wherein the immune system is depressed along
with other biologic processes of the body."
"In this conceptualization the cause of the symptoms is
the kind of depression where faulty beliefs, lies, guilt
and shame have been suppressed for many years. When this
happens the body/mind does not allow these conflicts into
our conscious awareness. This causes a constant state of
stress, Fight or Flight, which over a long period of time
undermines the immune system and leaves the body vulnerable
to infection, especially yeast and CEBV. This process while
regulated through the stress mechanism is in itself not
part of the stress mechanism, but rather an affect of its
overwhelm and long term over stimulation. In order to cure
this process, the depression must be tackled and resolved.
In this sense Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is one of a long
list of conditions known as Stress-Related Disorders."
More on the page, including recommendations for treatment:
http://www.well-net.com/prevent/cebv1.html
MedicineNet.com has this to say:
"Infectious mononucleosis, "mono," and "kissing disease" are
all terms popularly used for the very common illness caused
by the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). By the time most people
reach adulthood, an antibody against EBV can be detected in
their blood. This means that most people, sometime in their
lives, have been infected with EBV. (The body's immune
system produces antibodies to attack and help destroy
invading viruses and bacteria. These specific antibodies
can be detected in the blood of patients who have been
infected.) "Mono" is most often diagnosed in adolescents
and young adults. However, it is also seen in children.
Generally, the illness is less severe in young children,
which may explain why it is less commonly diagnosed in this
younger age group. While there are other illnesses falling
under the broad classification of "mononucleosis," the one
caused by the EBV is by far the most common."
http://www.medicinenet.com/Infectious_Mononucleosis/
page1.htm#1whatis
The American Academy of Family Physicians site has a page
on sore throats, which includes a link to the question
"What is mononucleosis?"
http://familydoctor.org/healthfacts/163/index.html
If you click on the link to that question, the frame states:
"Mononucleosis (mono) is an infection caused by the
Epstein-Barr virus. One of the main signs of mono is
a sore throat. Other signs include swollen glands in
your neck, armpits and groin, fever and chills,
headache, and feeling tired."
So there seems to be a considerable amount of agreement
as to the cause of mononucleosis being the Epstein-Barr
virus, while there is some controversy over the existence
of the Chronic Epstein-Barr Syndrome.
Having worked in the field of mental health for over 20
years, I'm inclined to agree with the Drs. Lawrence in
the quote about the effect of depression on the immune
system. This can result in a vicious cycle in which
illness feeds depression, which weakens the immune system,
which leaves one more susceptible to illness and so on.
I would personally recommend finding resources which
offer the best of both conventional and alternative
medicine, as well as bulletin boards for contact with
others who have similar symptoms.
One such site is the website of Walt Stoll, M.D., author
of the book 'Saving Yourself from the Disease-Care Crisis'.
The site is searchable from the main page:
http://askwaltstollmd.com/index.html
There are 5 years worth of archives on Epstein-Barr/CFS
(Chronic Fatigue Syndrome):
http://askwaltstollmd.com/archives/ebv.html
He states:
"Any one who practices the 3 legs of the "wellness" stool
will have none of these conditions within 6 months. See
the glossary and the link at Wellness archive."
The Wellness archives are here:
http://askwaltstollmd.com/archives/wellness.html
The tree-legged stool is described here:
"Three-Legged Health Stool that Walt advocates: (1) Whole
Foods Diet (NO refined Carbs!), (2) Aerobic Exercise
(20 mins 3 times a week), and (3) Skilled Relaxation
(20 minutes, twice a day), with (1) being the most
important."
http://www.askwaltstollmd.com/archives/wellness/2381.html
