Re: pain/advise/disability

[Guest guest]

,

As soon as you can, apply for Social Security Disability and SSI. It takes

5 months to be approved no matter what, so you don't want to wait. Just call

them and they will send you what you need or drop by your local office and

fill out the application. I have been on SSDisability for a couple of years

now and PA is an approved disability.

As far as how do we handle chronic pain? We badger doctors, plead with

anyone we think might have an answer or substance that might help us. I was

lucky in as much as my primary physician put me on prednisone to hold me check

until I could get in to see the Rheumatologist. It took over 6 months because

there was only one in our area where I lived in Oregon. He put me on

methotrexate and after a few months I was able to wean myself off the

prednisone. I

was swelled up like a prehistoric bullfrog, but I was finally able to

maintain on only the MTX and some occaisional Tylenol. I try not to overdo but

if

it happens I'll take a Vicodin and be fine soon. You just have to hang in

there until you find what WORKS for you. Keep reading and writing here, and

also, research and find out all you can about this disease. You will find

there are many web sites out there that are aimed at us who are not medically

schooled. (ha-ha) I wish you luck! God Bless.

Janet