For those who actually care, Mono is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus, a type of Herpes virus just like Chicken pox, cold sores and what not. But this virus infects the cells of your immune system. It causes them to stay alive longer than usual and cause anemia and fatigue. How you handle the virus greatly depends on how strong your immune system is. If you have a strong immune system, you might not have very many symptoms at all (like I did), or you could be severely tired for up to a month and might have trouble swallowing or need steroids to help you breathe. This is from all of the glands in your throat swelling up from the immune reaction.
You primarly treat mono with what we call supportive care, meaning lots of rest and fluids, and occasionally steriods as mentioned if it's a really bad case. The symptoms usually go away by themselves, but yes you will carry the virus for the rest of your life. The virus remains dormant, but can become active again at any time in your life, and you can "shed" it and become infectious to other people, although most people never become symptomatic again. However, this again depends on your immune system. If you're immunocompromized, malnourished, or have any other reason for your immune system to be out of wack you could become symptomatic again. In these cases, there's the possibility it could be worse than your initial case, but usually not with Mono. Most people have actual "mono" only once and then never have the symptoms again despite the virus being around for life.
You primarly treat mono with what we call supportive care, meaning lots of rest and fluids, and occasionally steriods as mentioned if it's a really bad case. The symptoms usually go away by themselves, but yes you will carry the virus for the rest of your life. The virus remains dormant, but can become active again at any time in your life, and you can "shed" it and become infectious to other people, although most people never become symptomatic again. However, this again depends on your immune system. If you're immunocompromized, malnourished, or have any other reason for your immune system to be out of wack you could become symptomatic again. In these cases, there's the possibility it could be worse than your initial case, but usually not with Mono. Most people have actual "mono" only once and then never have the symptoms again despite the virus being around for life.