This was excellent Don.  Thanks for sharing.  It is interesting to discover
the different kinds of pain.  I started off with RA pain and since my RA has
never really been under control the pain has been chronic most of the time.
I could however control it using ice, heat, exercise, relaxation etc.  After
my enbrel reaction I got the neuropathic pain and the RA pain is nothing
compared to that.  It is peripheral in my foot and leg and is ever ending.
Only meds sort of control it and the neurologist figures we will do well to
get control to a 6/10 pain level.  I found that quite fascinating.
Narcotics don't touch it, heat and ice makes it worse.  The seizure meds
work best.  We are also hoping the rituxan treatments will work on this pain
a bit - with luck (finished treatment yesterday so we reassess if it works
in 4 months and then 6 months).

In March I got shingles and the post pain from it.  If ever a pain level
topped the other 2 it was that.  No relief anywhere from it and now in June
I still get pain from that if I get hot at night (and menopausal woman tend
to do that occasionally) or cold.  A different pain again and the doctor's
agree there is not much they can do for it - gabapentin which I already take
for the neurological pain does dull it a bit.  The cure is time - again up
to a year.  Boy if ever I were to recommend a vaccine that is it (although
it is a live vaccine so is hard for so many on biologics as we are most
likely to get shingles but can't take the live vaccines.)

I find this an incredible topic.  We fight for answers and sometimes there
just are none.  Would be nice to have it nicely packaged up for us (and bet
our doctor's would like that too.)

Thanks for sharing.

Kelly