I am so frustrated. I have severe arthritis that the doctors can't define so they call it osteoarthritis but it comes with severe crippling fatigue, a host of endocrine failures, a worthless immune system, very slow healing or recovery from illness, etc. Anyway, at age 51, I am barely able to walk and have to use a cane. I am on pain management with large narcotic doses that is basically worthless. I've had one knee replaced 4 years ago now. I've had surgery on my ankle that made it miserably worse. At this point, my other knee is so painful I really can't stand it without the cane. The ankle is so bad, again, I need the cane. I have braces for both, but they really give very minimal help at this point. The foot on my other leg broke last November when I stepped on a nail and ultimately had to have surgery. It broke again this month just walking on it and is not healing. My spine is a disaster area - the low back disks are all dry and useless. The neck is so full of spurs and narrowing of the nerve openings that if my head gets off center at all my arms go numb and tingle and eventually become dead. I am really worried that I will not be able to keep working any day now and our whole life depends on my income. I have already gone back to school and gotten a new degree to change my job so that it is not physically demanding - at least as much so as it used to be. I have done all the different injections for the knees/ankles - steroids and synvisc etc. I have done all the different pain management drugs, therapies, etc. except accupuncture which is on my list of things to do. The doctors say the other knee needs replacement, the ankle needs to be fused or replaced, the neck probably needs to be fused. I cannot afford to take time off work for surgery after surgery. The ankle and knee would each require probably at least 1 month, more likely 2-3 months off work. I can't lose that income! And I doubt my job would tolerate such shenanigans. I keep trying to keep working through it and muddle along, but I'm beginning to feel desperate. I really like my job, really need my income. As it is though, I can't exercise, can't even walk my dogs and my life has become severely limited. I'm putting on weight like crazy. I don't know what to do .. .. . . how to get this 'fixed' so that I can go on living productively. I'm not ready to sit in a rocker and call it done. Do I put my job in jeopardy and go for the surgeries, hoping to get well enough to be able to walk and function again at an adequate level to work, exercise, etc? Or am I asking for disaster - having surgery and not healing, not ever getting functional again? Gawd I just dont know what to do. So, I'm ranting here........ sorry. Thanks for listening.

Vanyel