A.S. Face 0006 : Carl E. Stone

A.S. Face 0006 : Carl E. Stone

When I was somewhere around age 8 or 9 (somewhere around 1986) I was playing baseball. When I got a hit while at bat I was running towards first base and out of nowhere a pain went through my lowe back all the way through my right leg and I never made it to first base. I was helped off the field and later taken the E.R. and put trough many tests only to be told must have been growing pains. After that every game I played was the same way until eventually the coaches wouldn’t even play me anymore. I give it up. When I got to high school I decided to play football only t have the same results. My parents took me to doctor after doctor with nothing found to be wrong with me. For a couple of years the pain started going to different parts of my body and became worse. I had been told everything from growing pains to where I kept a wallet in my back pocket.  I started work right out of high school at a dust plant stacking 50lb bags of rock dust and although the pain got bad I toughed it out because I needed the job. It seemed that’s just how it was going to be.  Then on January 24th 1999 (my wife’s birthday) I woke up in so much pain I couldn’t move. I had very bad pain in the past but none like this. My wife helped me to the E.R. where I told the dr on call the whole story waiting on the same response. This dr seemed determined to find out what was going on. He put me thru every test imaginable and after all that he took blood. I had no idea why and didn’t really care I was just frustrated and after he gave me a cortisone shot I was sent home. A couple of weeks later (Feb. 3rd my birthday) I got a call from that dr asking me to come back to the E.R. That’s when he told me I had ankylosing spondylitis. Since then it has been a relief to know what is wrong but frustrating knowing there is no cure. So far I am still able to work even though my Dr.’S suggesting that I don’t but it gets harder everyday. I stay exhausted and that’s what bothers me more than anything. I can tolerate the pain pretty good but the exhaustion is really wearing me down. I hope they soon find a cure and I hope it becomes more recognized.  Also want to say that I know with God I can deal with this.
Thanks Carl Stone
Wise, Virginia United States Of America