Your experience and advice is all fascinating to me. I will speak to the
Rheumatologist about Methotrexate. The vioxx has returned me, temporarily, to
"normal", though I recognize that this is still an early stage in the disease
("only" 8 years) and, as your examples suggest, there is a limited period in
which the Vioxx works. I teach on monday evenings, so I was up late last night,
and I could not help but think of all of you and your struggles. It is an
amazing thing to be in contact with all of you, as far as Australia is to Kansas
City, MO, USA (my current abode). It is hardly a nice thing to say, but your
aweful experiences really help me put this all in perspective. I would hardly
want lots of people to have this stinking disease. But it would be nice to have
people closer who shared it. For me, it is the isolation that htis disease
creates that is so very hard: the inability to control ones environment, for
without hands or feet that function, it is so very hard to do anything. My heart
goes out to those of you who are in that kind of constant pain that cripples
body and soul from which I have only an temporary respite. I would love to chat
online if anyone is interested. Evenings would be best for me.

yours

Drew Bergerson