positive ways to cope with pain

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does anyone know any positive ways to cope with enduring pain.

I have ankylosing spodylitus which is arthritis of the back and joints. It is getting worse everyday and hurts so much. I am being kept awake half the night and can only sit for a few minutes before it hurts too much to cope with. Its releved with moving/exersice so is ok when I am walking or doing chores, but as soon as I sit still Im in pain.

I have had to stop painting which is really hurting me psychologically as I love painting and it meant so much to me, I just find it hard to see a point in life with out painting.

I can only go on the computer for a few minutes before it hurts too bad so I have had trouble keeping up with online friends. And I am really worried about my next course starting and how I will be able to concentrate on the books and read.

I change position which helps a lot and I am going to try and get some better chairs. I am moving to a flat as well so it will be easier to care for.

I find this very frightening and I hate being in pain. I am scared about where it will end as a lot of people end up in wheel chairs. It is also associated with getting lumps in the heart, lungs and kidneys so I worry about that too.

The medication of anti inflamatories I dont want to take as they have side effects especially long term and I am funny about chemicals and medicine so I dont want to take them. The other medications such as remicade is genetically modified mouse blood so Im definately not taking that!

I just dont know what to do and I dont know how to handel this in a postive way. Pain can just be so overwhelming and really gets me down.

I'm so sorry to hear you're having so much pain. I wish I knew a way to help, but I don't. I'm just responding so you don't get x number of views and no responses at all - I'm afraid I have nothing to offer you but sympathy.

I hope the rest of WP can come through for you.

i suffer from pain in my joints aswel and for me being in warmer climate really helps...too bad i live in Scandinavia:P

Dell was just offering their low-end one for $299 on Black Friday.
It'll probably be available again at a low price just after Xmas. But, if you just want to keep in touch with friends and surf the net, you could always go IPhone.

Stretching, I guess. It seems people with your condition need to constantly limber up. If your lower back is a bit off, what I like to do is keep my shoulders on the floor with hands out, bend 90 at the waist with bent knees and just slowly twist my knees over and touch the floor, back and forth. It usually illicits some popping and feels great afterwards. Although, some normally beneficial chiropractic therapies are apparently dangerous for people with ankylosing spoydilitus, so ask a therapist before you try, maybe. And I guess research the condition on your own, too.

Unfortunately, for the present the best thing you can probably do is just focus on getting used to the idea until it becomes a background aspect of your life, since therapies are all that's available at the moment. Now that I think about it, there's a girl in my martial arts class who might have this. She says her spine is fused, (it's most of her neck) and her wrists are always hurting, it seems like. She spends all day at a desk typing and always needs chiropractic sessions; otherwise she seems to be getting along fine in school, work, etc. She just takes it for granted, I think.

I don't have ankylosing spodylitus, but I have a lot of similar problems with my Lyme disease. Chronic pain in my joints and back with no real treatment that helps. Sitting still, laying down, standing in one position are all horrible. But I also have problems with my muscles and skin that respond poorly to movement and heat so I am in a weird position with all this.

For the joint problems I make sure to have lots of pillows and things so I can shift as much as possible in my chair when I am at my desk and on my computer.

I found that MBT shoes (http://www.swissmasaius.com/Default.aspx?lang=en-US) have helped a lot for walking. Whenever I would go shopping and have to stand still for periods of time my lower back and tail bone would kill me. I was walking with a cane at that point and these really helped. They take the pressure off your lower back and knees and they let me rock when standing which is comforting for me physically and mentally.

It is really scary, especially when you see yourself getting worse or loosing the ability to do the things you like. Even if it's more limited than I'm used to, just getting to do those things is helpful.

Maybe for the times you can't get out to a sauna you could try some sort of heating thing/device that covers a larger area. An electric blanket is all I can think of at the moment, but there must be better options out there.