I think I put most of my introductory information in when I registered, so please forgive any repetitions. I am a retired professional -- well, semi-retired really -- who had to cut back on work when I was stricken with interstitial cystitis. Not many people were aware of the disease when I was diagnosed but that was years ago and since then, doctors have become more knowledgeable.

My major profession, the one for which I went to grad school, is in a teaching/helping/counseling field -- but I have secondary professions, as well. One of them is writing. I'm lucky. I get published often enough that I can tell the family I'm busy, close the study door, and do what I love best.

Another thing I do is buy rare books. I would love to keep all of them, but I have to sell some in order to go to more book fairs, book sales and auctions and buy more books -- and wish again that I didn't have to sell so many. Once in awhile, I keep something that's really special to me. We have 10,000 books in the house so I probably keep more than I should. I collect fine art as well, but less of that than books.

Here are some more of my major interest, things I do, or love, or both: reading, gardening, my dogs, my grandchildren, travelilng, beachcombing, and drawing and painting, both of which I do badly but love anyway. In addition, I stay busy in a group that is attempting to stop the harmful elements of the War on Drugs. Many patients who suffere from constant pain die from exhaustion or suicide, and many doctors lose their professions, their homes, all their cash assets, and even their families and their freedom for treating pain patients.

I have read the boards here for some time, but I joined today because I wished to answer a letter from a woman who seems to be in a great deal of pain, needed help, and did not know what to do. Though I am not a physician, I belong to an activist group made up of pain specialists and other professionals, all of whom are attempting to make things better for pain sufferers and those who treat them.

I look forward to being a member of the community

Abigail