Member Profile Deb Vose Our February "Air Your Feelings" contest winner was Deb Vose from Ohio! She is the new owner of a Ionic Breeze(TM) Quadra Silent Air Purifier from The Sharper Image. In her winning letter, she wrote: What a difference your newsletter has made for me! I am a 44 year old female who thought she was the only middle-age person who had this problem. I really had the mistaken notion that only elderly people got arthritis. How wrong I was!!! Reading information on young people and how they cope with illness really made a difference in my life. Before my joint gave out, I was very active and didn't know what to do once the arthritis hit. Now I can see hope and I now know I am not the only one who has good and bad days. I also liked the "straight talk about arthritis" in the articles. Arthritis doesn't mean you life has to end and it is nice to know other people don't like having it either! Keep up the good work and new information. With so much false information floating around out there, I am happy to have a place I can go that I truly trust! Like so many other "young arthritics," it wasn't easy for Deb Vose to be diagnosed with osteroarthritis and fibromyalgia. "I think because of my age--I am in my 40's now and have suffered from this for many years--doctors didn't take my symptoms seriously," she says. "My doctor sent me to various treatments thinking it was a ruptured disk in my back. Each doctor would only treat the one area that hurt most at that time. I have had various surgeries over the years at different locations yet no one could put a name to it. What a relief when I finally found a doctor who put a name on it (osteroarthritis and Fibromyalgia) and took me seriously. "I have joined a arthritis water class at my local Y and that has helped and my doctor and I have a good plan to work on to help manage this disease," she adds. "Your newsletter has helped tremendously as it shows I am not alone. Most importantly, I benefit from the hope that I receive from you and my doctor." Thanks for those kind words.   Back to Profile Homepage   Send us your profile Entries become the property of CreakyJoints and may be edited by the CreakyJoints staff. Your name: Your email address: Write (or cut-and-paste) your story:   If selected, we will contact you before posting your story. Unfortunately, due to the volume of email we receive, we may not be able to acknowledge receipt of your story.