Well I'm hoping to head back to NIH in a few weeks for my annual check up. That is of course depending on the ebola situation. Like many registered users here I was a very active member at first as the members here are a God send to a newbie. It's because of this board that I became a part of the NIH study and had my decompression surgery done there. Mainly I just wanted to check in and say howdy. There are a couple of things that might help the newly diagnosed that I'd like to share. First of all, pay attention to pmaxwell and graybo. These two along with many others have helped more people then they will ever know with their advice and experience. They do it for reasons known only to them but they have changed lives and they don't do it for recognition. I can tell you that graybo's advice on RSO is solid and has helped me a great deal. If anyone is interested in how it helped me I'll post more about it if requested. I will tell you that the first time that I medicated with it was the first night I slept for over 6 hours without once waking up from pain.
The second thing that I feel is important to talk about is depression and how it can affect your life and your sm. I'm not a touchy feely type of guy and discussing issues like this are difficult. It took a couple of years for the darkness to creep up on me and another several months to realize what was happening. Make yourself aware of the symptoms and find out all you can about dealing with it. But expect it. It's much easier to fight something when you know what you're fighting. More later.