Good morning everyone. My name is Jane, also known as Mamacita over on the Spectrummy page here on Mayo Clinic Connect. I felt like I needed to re-introduce myself due to my somewhat long absence from Connect.

I try to manage the kinds and amount of work that I do everyday so as to conserve the strength that I do have. DDD, Spinal Stenosis, Osteoarthritis, and Fibromyalgia try to slow me down with their flares and pain.

They had actually done quite a number on me, before I realised that I desperately needed to make changes. Now I am on generic Lyrica at night, along with Flexeril, as needed. The Fibro pain is gone, only the Arhritis to deal with. PT and warm pool therapy to follow.

My confidence level sank to an all time low during this time. I hesitated to write anything here. Took me a long time to realize that it was important that I reach out to the very people who had listened to me and encouraged me before.

Pain is a thief. Instilled in us all is a need for community to help one another, in large and small ways. This is my community. Thankful to be back.

Mamacita Jane