Hey darlin', Kevin here. Your words ring true, resonate through, and permeate into, my joints. I know you understand the depth of that little rhyme, but it was not meant in anyway to belittle your suffering. I am 55 now, I was diagnosed at 25, it was a matter of elimination back then. You see they had no test at the time and didn't really know much about it. They considered Ankylosing Spondilytis an old persons disease then, starting in your late sixties and it wasn't really of importance since once it got severe you would have other issues that would be much more problematic. Even now well known authorities like the Mayo Clinic: "Ankylosing spondylitis is an inflammatory disease that, over time, can cause some of the vertebrae in your spine to fuse. This fusing makes the spine less flexible and can result in a hunched-forward posture. If ribs are affected, it can be difficult to breathe deeply. Ankylosing spondylitis affects men more often than women. Signs and symptoms typically begin in early adulthood. Inflammation also can occur in other parts of your body — most commonly, your eyes. There is no cure for ankylosing spondylitis, but treatments can lessen your symptoms and possibly slow progression of the disease." That is how they overview AS. Sounds as if you wouldn't mind having it! Take a few Advils and you wouldn't even notice it. That is how the medical field treats patients with it also in America. All, but for a handful of specialists even know what it is without looking it up. "Oh it is that arthritis thing that causes some old people to have a hump." Well Liane, you and me and millions of others worldwide know better. The problem their just isn't money in developing treatments for us in the pharmaceutical industry so we just get whatever the last generation rheumatoid arthritis medication was and they see if it will help stop or slow down the progression of AS. And still yet they do not address the loss of flexibility, pain, and lack of sleep that it causes. You are not alone Liane, we are suffering with you dear. I will hope for you, but you can only fight for yourself like you have been. Fight with the doctors to get the best treatments that you deserve, have nerves burnt off, (that helped me gain flex), have spine blockers, keep trying meds to ease the pain, and keep loving and holding that beautiful son of yours. I just hope you and the researchers will figure out something so you and your family can enjoy many years to come.