Hi all, 

   Just to introduce myself, my name is Nicole, I'm 32, will be 33 in January, I am married and have an 8 yr old daughter. I saw a rheumatologist a couple of years ago and he told me I had MCTD. At the time, I thought he was saying what all the other doctors I had seen said...he didn't really have a name for what I was going through. It wasn't until recently that I discovered that MCTD is a recognized disease. I started to read up on it and found that a lot of the symptoms fit me to a T. I have had joint pain, muscle pain, fatigue and sores in my mouth since I was around 8 yrs old. I now also experience Raynaud's, hair loss, rashes on my neck and chest, low grade fevers, severe headaches that make me vomit, and my joint pain has progressed in knees and feet and neck to be debilitating (at times). My labs show a postitive ANA with a speckled pattern but the titer is not high enough for SLE. My sed rate is always high (40 being the highest) and I'm always anemic to some degree. It is very hard to loose weight but very easy to gain it, probably a thyroid issue, but those tests came back normal. I gave up on doctors after that rheumatologist offered me steroids (because they make me unable to function) so I have been trying to manage on my own for the past 6 or 7 years now. I wonder about those antimalarials though.... Anyway, I am kind of dumbfounded to find this group and reading about you guys having most of these same symptoms. It feels good, in a way, to be validated, that I'm really not "crazy/depressed and just looking for attention." And I find it hilarious that some of you said loud music helps! It totally does. My headphones and electronic dance music get me through every day at work. :) Other things that I have found to help: Eating mostly veggies and fruit. No Dairy. Very little meat and never the processed kind. Drinking nothing but water. Vitamin D, Vitamin B12. Staying as active as you can. I have horses and though it takes a lot of physical effort to care for them, it's been worth it so far. But I know there may come a day when I have to throw in that towel. I decided a long time ago that since sitting or laying down hurts anyway, I would do what I wanted to and if I paid with pain later, it was okay because at least I hurt from doing something I love. Horses are like loud music, they distract the brain while you are with them and you don't feel the pain for a little bit. Also, CBD suckers that my aunt makes help with getting good sleep. Good sleep is essential. My mom also has problems, but we don't know what she has. Doctors always told her fibromyalgia. Her labs don't come back positive like mine. But she has some problems that I don't have. She has a ton of stomach issues and she gets bad headaches from chemicals and scents from things like shampoos and candles. She also has a ton of neuropathy that I don't have. But that could be the diabetes. Anyway, I'm so glad I found this group. Hope to get to know you all better!