Spondylitis Association of America Forums General Discussion Men Only Message Board Just Diagnosed!

I would ask them to preform the blood test. Its hard to say what they might see. This could have started several years earlier and you just now started having pain. I've had xrays taken for over 20 years and until someone who knew what to look for actually looked I didn't have a diagnosis. My pain started when I was 19 and I only had occasional pain and then all the sudden my body went crazy. I would ask my doctor to show me on the xray what he saw and why he thought that you had AS. Bobby

Thanks BobbyB for replying.
So here are a few things I'm wondering:

If I stretch and feel a crack..like cracking your knuckles...is this bad?...
Can stretching break anything? When I wake up in hte mornings, I normally stretch, but now in the last 5 months this pain wakes me up before any alarm clock does..can i do damage with a regular waking stretch?

I get that fusing happens regardless of NSAIDs and exercise...So the main goal is to keep posture in check so that fusing, at least happens in a regular posture position - correct?

I've read about a natural plant called AFA Blue Algae...apparently it promotes the release of more stem cells in the body and some AS people swear by it...anyone try it?

another quick note:
all of the research i've looked into said it most commonly starts in the sacroiliac (SI) joint. I've had no issue with this. The more I research, the more it makes me think I've been to a quack.

Zepp, things look pretty slow on the Men's board. You might want to post some of your questions on the main board. I think you might get more answers there.

AS..but i'm no doc, just a nurse with AS