Hi Pixel,
That was a great response you had from Brad who has a talent for looking at things from every angle possible. I agree with him that you have to convey to your family the changes that this disease can do to your body and the pain that is associated with these changes.
If you think that showing them pictures might be overkill, than you must make that decision. You may or may not get as bad as the pictures I will let you use. There are so many ways now to try and keep your body straight but it takes perseverence and a lot of it. I just went with the flow and observed my changes every morning in the mittor when I shaved. I didn't have the knowledge nor the wisdom then and neither did my Doctors.
There is no sense in me re-saying anything that Brad covered. He did a good job of it. So I'll leave you with a choice. Go up to the right side top of the page you are reading this on. Click on KickAS.org that is in the top corner. On the page that appears, scroll down the left hand side of the screen until you get to ASKickers storys, click on this and you come to a list of personal stories by present and recent members of KickAS.
Scroll down to George Ilott's Story Part 1 and Part 2. Click on Part 2 and scroll down to the botton of the page. You will see two picture of me in 1983, just before my back surgery to straighten me. There are two more pictures of me below that which were taken a few months after my surgery and the cast was removed.
Use them if you wish. My only condition is that they not be published anywhere without my permission.
If this helps you get your family to understand what AS can do to one's body, I will be happy.
Best of luck.
George
