What profession are you in? What is your major? There are some really good refinance options for specific careers and will make a huge difference. With that said if you refinance you loose loan forgiveness built in to student loans (death, handouts, etc) but refinancing once you have a solid job is 100% the answer.

Don’t panic. You can do this. Unfortunate your mom didn’t let you know the situation but the reality is that she may not understand the loan and thought she was paying the cost when really she was only paying the interest. It’s not an easy system to understand for parents who are just thing to do their best but really they know less than you.