JCK88

Some might have wondered why I haven't been posting or writing here in this forum. It was all part of my grand experiment. So, you will be seeing less of me, as the experiment showed me that not being in this forum makes me happier and I accomplish more and feel better. This place does not build me up. It's sick and dysfunctional and censored. It's crippling to be here, like walking on eggs with crutches. I love many people, but I don't love being here anymore. I tried, and prayed, and really honestly put my heart into posting for a couple of years. So...it's been "nice" but I've moved past the hurt of being here and will no longer post to the blog and will only post occasionally to the boards. The experiment, by the way, was a grand success. I found out who my real friends were, LOL

The radish soup is made from the greens part..... I don't know if that would have the same effect. Here is a recipe that I have not tried yet. RADISH SOUP 2 bunches red radishes, washed 1 sm. onion, minced 1 tbsp. butter 3/4 c. yogurt, plain 1 1/2 c. chicken stock (broth)Separate the radishes from the greens, reserving both. Cook the onion in the butter until translucent, then add the radish greens. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until wilted. Puree in a blender or food processor along with half the yogurt and half the chicken stock. In a separate pan sautee the sliced radishes, then puree in a blender with the other half of the yogurt and stock. Heat each until heated through. Pour the green soup into the bowl. Take the pink soup and add some to it, then swirl it for a pretty effect. (If I made this I'd have to use soy yogurt and turkey broth due to allergies)

I read that radishes lower blood sugar. I am diabetic but in control with diet and meds. So , I decided to see just how much radishes lower your blood sugar by testing my blood sugar before and after eating them. After eating three radishes, my blood sugar was lowered 10 points in half an hour and 15 points in an hour. The next day, after eating four large radishes, blood sugar went down 20 points within half an hour. I'm going to try making radish soup and see if that does the same things. I'm lucky I love radishes, LOL I'm thinking of dehydrating radishes and see if that works. In winter, radishes are good with roasted vegetables or sliced and baked with a little butter spray. But I thought that others with high blood sugar might like to know radishes really do work.

I told my daughter about this and she remarked, "Wow, God must seriously love Angela!"

I did a little search on how to make stevia extract and came up with these instructions. Harvest your stevia in the morning when the essential oils peak. You must use stevia grown without pesticides, as the extract-making process concentrates undesirable chemicals. Wash the leaves and stems and remove any brown plant parts. Step 2 Chop the leaves and stems coarsely. You must prepare enough fresh stevia to fill two lightly packed measuring cups. Step 3 Combine the stevia with one cup of clear grain alcohol or vodka. You can use flavor-infused vodkas for variety, such as pear or citrus. Step 4 Leave the stevia mixture steeping overnight in a covered container, but not more than 48 hours. Excessive steeping increases bitterness. Stir or gently shake the mixture several times while it steeps. Step 5 Strain the alcohol and stevia mixture through cheesecloth or coffee filter to remove the plant matter. The mixture should appear greenish. Step 6 Bring the stevia extract to a simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes. This evaporates the alcohol and concentrates the extract. Step 7 Store the extract in the refrigerator up to three months. You must dilute the extract to taste before using with water. I read that using extract is very sweet...much sweeter than just the green leaves dried and powdered. I'm thinking this is what you want...but don't know for sure.

I make them, stick them in the fridge right away, then use within a couple days. We make them usually for an event, and often I don't bother sticking the lid on because we are usually going to cut them up and put them on a party platter..... This same recipe can be baked in tube pans or in tin cans, by the way. You don't have to use canning jars. This is why I was hesitant to post the recipes. Because I don't want people thinking they are safe to use like they are "canned." I was horrified to learn later from Violet that these were not safe because a few years back when these were all the rage, we made these for teacher gifts. Everyone loved them....but thank goodness they ate them right away. Yikes. I have edited the recipe above to take out references to using lids to seal the jars. Thanks for telling us about the lids!!!!!! I won't do THAT anymore. We do like the cakes and we will simply bake and use immediately.

::::::::Thwacking self on head::::::::for not saving the message I sent to Cat.....didn't realize y'all would want it...so typing it out again....LOL Just do not store it like canned food. USE RIGHT AWAY BASIC Cake in a Jar Makes 6 to 7 cakes 2 2/3 cup sugar 1 cup butter 4 eggs 1/2 cup water 2 tsp vanilla 3 1/2 cups flour' 1 tsp baking powder 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt Cream sugar and butter. Add eggs and mix well. Ad water and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Pour one cup batteri n each pint jar. (use the straight sided, wide mouth type) Bake at 325 for 55 to 60 minutes. (When you bake them put the jars on a baking sheet, make sure they don't touch each other. I put mine on a heavy broiler pan so I can lift them all out of the oven at once easily.) Be sure that you don't drip batter onto the top of the jars, if you do, wipe it. I use the canning funnel to avoid this. DO NOT SEAL THE JARS. Cool, cut up, put on platters. Or, store in the fridge. You can use those plastic canning jar lids to keep them fresh once they are cooled. These are not airtight. And, you could give these as a gift that way, but make sure people know to eat the cake right away. Chocolate Amaretto variation: Omit water and vanilla from basic recipe. Add: 1/2 cup almond flavored liqueur 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips 1 cup chopped almonds Mix and bake same as basic cake mix Rum Raisin variation: Omit water and add 1/2 cup dark rum 1 cup raisins Mix and bake same as basic cake Orange or Lemon Poppy seed variation: Omit water and add 1/2 cup of orange OR lemon juice 1 cup white chocolate chips 1/4 cup poppy seeds 1 Tablespoon of grated orange OR lemon peel Mix and bake same as basic mix... And the Banana nut version: To the basic recipe add: 2 cups mashed bananas 1 tsp cinnamon 2/3 cup chopped pecans mix and bake as above... Also, for a nice polka dot cake, add cup of the mini M&Ms candies to the basic mix. These recipes are from an old book called "Jazzy Jars" Glorious gift ideas by Marie Browning. It came out before the canning guidelines were updated. I have edited this to take out references to sealing the jars with canning lids while they are hot. THIS SHOULD NOT BE DONE.

Yikes.. I will hunt it up and pm you with it, k? LOL

Hey Anewme don't feel bad about posting this. I also was canning cakes in jars with recipes from a book I bought until Violet here let me know that although I'd been canning for 25 years, things had changed in that time, LOL! Now, I get all the updated info at the USDA sites, the newest Ball book, etc.... I have a great recipe for amaretto cake in a jar that can't be baked any other way so I do make that, but it only makes about six of them and they are small. I make them for Christmas, remove from the jar, and slice them onto a platter for a lovely party tray. But, I don't give them as gifts because I don't trust that people would actually eat them right away OR that they might decide to store it longer thinking because it was sealed it was safe. Thanks Violet for keeping us all alive around here!

Very, Very cool. Thanks for sharing this. I have not ever seen that kind of container--and not knowing of its existence , would never have looked! I've been using the buckets and gamma lids and like them just fine, but I can see that having clear containers on wheels would be great in the kitchen for the products you have opened and are using.

Congrats to Katy! I just talked to her on the phone, LOL! Hoping for the best on all of your testing--hang in there Angela!

LOL! I also make radish sandwiches but I use butter spray instead of mayo. Radishes are great little veggies. They lower blood sugar and are good for diabetics. Your radishes look great!

The other night as we ate dinner, our daughter called frantically on the cell phone. "Mommy!! is our house on fire? I had to pull over to let fire trucks by and I can see black smoke filling the sky. Are you okay?" "Nothing's wrong here," I assured her. Just then, I heard fire trucks go by and saw three ambulances follow. We had been about to eat fresh strawberries and whipped cream for dessert but all of us at the table jumped up as one and ran out the front door. We found indeed that black smoke was filling the sky at the house up the street--a house built the same year as ours was, by the same builder. Police wouldn't let me pass to check on the family--a young mom and four kids who are at home during the day while the Dad is at work. I could see them though, standing on the other side of the rescue trucks and the police officer assured us everyone got out. But I could see her standing there barefoot holding her sleeping baby while the other three kids were comforted by neighbors. I walked through other yards and up and around to bypass police so I could go ask if she needed anything. "I'm fine," she insisted. "We are all safe,that's all that matters. If a neighbor hadn't seen the smoke, I wouldn't have known what was going on." Another neighbor had seen the smoke pouring from the attic and called 911 but then went and banged on the door. She was cooking dinner, the kids were picking up toys in the living room and the baby was asleep in his crib. She and the neighbor got all the kids out and were standing there watching the firemen knock a hole in the roof so they could pour water in. They ran a huge hose from the frog pond at the end of the street and three towns sent tanker trucks. They also filled the attic with some kind of foam to stop the fire from spreading. Many neighbors lined the street to watch. Only a few went over to talk to the family. Our friend Tom, who is a prepared and practical man, turned out wearing leather gloves and heavy boots and started helping the fire department lay the hose to the frog pond. I ran back home, grabbed an empty backpack and filled it with beanie babies, fleece blankets, a pack of toothbrushes, toothpaste, soaps and hand wipes, and shampoo and conditioner and put in my phone number. I took a pair of flip-flops too--and gave these to the mom as she was barefoot. My feet are two sizes larger and I figured flip flops would be easier to manage than too-large sneakers. By this time, the fire was under control and the firemen told her she would be able to retrieve some valuables. Her husband then came running up the road. He saw me, and hugged me as I yelled "Your family is OK--they are over there with the firemen!" This family is from New York and have lived in New Hampshire just a few years. They do have neighbors they are close to, who are their age with same-age children so they made plans to stay there for the night. We were to leave at 3:00 am on a road trip to North Carolina so we offered them our house while we are gone, but they decided being with close friends would help the kids cope. The fire department left at 10:pm and we had to pack, and get some sleep. I had canned strawberry jam and strawberry lemonade earlier in the day and had to wash the floor! At about 1:30 a.m., I heard something and tried to see if anything was up at the house where the fire was. The trees are thick, though, and I couldn't see anything. It's also a bit far up the road, around the bend. Well, something was wrong--and an hour later, I saw red flashing lights and firemen once more laying hoses. They had had left a thermal imaging camera at the house and this had detected that the fire had started again. By the time they arrived, flames were shooting up. The house essentially is totally gone. The fire started in wiring above the kitchen. We learned later that the cold foam designed to suppress hot spots from reigniting the fire fooled a thermal imaging camera the fire department had left on site. Thus, they did not know when the fire reignited until neighbors across the street called them. We couldn't leave at 3:am. as planned because fire trucks blocked our driveway. One of them told me that he was glad the family got some of their valuables out before the second fire. He also said that he wished people would make sure smoke detectors work--and that they would have bug-out bags. He started to explain what a bug-out bag is but I told him I had them ready to go--and he looked at me and said "Oh..of COURSE! You're the neighbor who brought them a backpack full of supplies!" Finally, the fire truck was moved. I hated to leave, not knowing how this family will cope. But in between packing and leaving, I got an email from Edy's ice cream saying that I once again was a winner in their ice cream party for 100 contest. In that essay I said that I would have the fire department over to thank them for their hard work during the ice storm last winter. My buddy Angela gave me a great idea. We'll let our neighbors be honorary hosts so they can thank the fire department for helping them--but we will ask the neighborhood to make donations and help this young family rebuild.

Yeah, it's a good thing I'm a girl. All the men in our family on Dad's side are BALD! LOL

Get the pool passes out, Angela...and he's right! Doing exercise in the water will help you a lot. I did this the summer I wrecked my ankle and managed to lose weight. Go for it!

One day, you're a teenager telling Mom to quit bugging you. Then one day, you're over 30 and something happens. You look in the mirror and see Mom's face in yours. Pausing with the hairbrush in your hand, you suddenly see why everyone says you have her eyes, why her friends stop you in the supermarket and do double-takes. For them, it' s a time warp. "You're Hazel all over again!" they exclaim. But they don't say much else. It used to bother me, but looking in the mirror the other day, I felt suddenly glad. I understand now why my old botany professor kept looking at me strangely. He and my mom grew up together, swam in Stevie's pond, stole apples from Barker's orchard. He was sweet on my Aunt Ginny one summer. He never married. I must have reminded him of that. When I was 30, mom was twice my age, a grandmother of two. Now, I'm over 50 and she's in her 80's--and even though her hair is white, we still have the same eyes and the same things get us heated up. She could have been anything. Once she dreamed of writing short stories and won a contest. She dreamed of joining the Air Force during WW II but girls didn't do that then. Instead, she joined the Civil Air Patrol and could quickly identify any aircraft. She was just 16 when she graduated from high school and got a scholarship for nursing. She was proud of her new uniforms, and excited to go to school. Only when she got there, they learned she was not yet 17 and sent her home, took away the scholarship. In those days, kids just out of school didn't stay home and wait to turn the right age for an opportunity. She had to find work. There was no father at home. Her Dad had gone west during the Depression seeking a job. He never came home until 25 years later. "He never found work and couldn't send for us like he promised and he was ashamed," Mom said. "He missed us growing up." "I hunted for him and finally found him through social security. He was in Connecticut. He said he was afraid to come home but he did and my mother just asked him where he'd been like he was out on the town for a night and came home late." I remember that night. I was four. I suddenly had a Grandpa. My Grandma waited nervously on the couch and my mother returned with her father, and Grandma, after asking where he'd been quietly said, "Roy, let's go home." and a whole flood of forgiveness from the family encompassed him just like that. My mother always was the kind of person who made good things happen, even during bad times. As she grew up, her older brother helped her and her other five siblings finish high school. They survived by inventiveness and growing their own food on the farm. Mom used to trap muskrats and sell the pelts for fifty cents each to help pay the oil heating bill. During the war, she dug graves for two dollars. There were no men home to do the job and she welcomed the extra work. She used to unravel sweaters and re-knit the yarn into new ones. "We'd embroider roses or flowers over anything with moth-holes in it," she said. "The thrift shop always had sweaters cheap." Her prom dress did double duty, once covered with nylon netting, another time adorned with tiny bows sewed on. Years later, she found it in an old trunk and angrily tossed it out. "Got so I hated that dress," she said, grimly. She also ventured into snow plowing once. "The truck lights went out and it was during the war when parts were hard to get. I was small enough to sit on the hood and hold a lantern so we could see where to plow." Mom got a hairdresser's license and went to work at a place called Justine's, a place I remember form my childhood, where mom would still go to get her own hair done. When she and my Dad got married, she helped him build a house with $300 down and a Grossman's house kit. The foundation was a foot out of square. My father had dug it by hand. Thirty-five years later, that house sold for $70,000. If they'd hung onto it a little longer, they would have gotten $200,000 a scant decade after. But she and Dad wanted to live where it never snows, so they went to Florida and grew grapefruit and oranges in the back yard. They had paper routes, and every so often she would threaten to quit and become a reporter. When I was divorced and went to live down there, I was a reporter for the Sarasota Herald Tribune. My father still was a newspaper carrier then and I would hear about it from the circulation folks when one of my stories made front page. My folks would let everyone know! On a slow news day, we'd call my mom and she'd have a story idea. They needed photos of Florida Jays so they called my mom. Her hand with the jay eatiing peanuts out of it was a staple at the paper for decades. It was hard when Mom had a massive stroke and Dad couldn't care for her. It was hard to see her in the nursing home, harder to see Dad struggling alone. Still, they wouldn't move to New England with me. Dad died in 2005 and Mom came back to New England. She said, "I missed new fallen snow--but not shoveling. I can come back now. I don't have to shovel." I get to see her every day now. We never run out of things to talk about. That thought makes me smile as I dig out the old family album. Squinting at old photos taken when Mom was just my age, I'm struck by how pretty she was and I really want to believe I look like her a little. The last time I went to Wal-mart, I saw a teenage girl shopping with her mother, impatient with her Mom's lack of fashion savvy. I wasn't surprised when she said, "Ma, quit bugging me!" I wanted to say something, but I knew better. She looked like her Mom, too.

Canned ham salad, canned turkey salad...we make this a lot for lunches. Also cheese sandwiches and a cup of soup is favorite lunch here. I've had to make "sandwiches" without bread for myself and have used lettuce leaves instead. Another favorite is to stuff thin-walled green peppers with tuna salad and just eat it like an ice cream cone. Some of us have to think outside the bread, too! LOL

Yes there IS good news! (You made it home! You still have your sense of humor! You still have ME--well that could be construed by some as bad news but...there it is, LOL ) HUGZ

Hey sweetie..I am thinking of you today. I hope all goes well. Please have your friends call me and tell me how things go.

Vinegar + Hydrogen Peroxide does nothing to kill a virus. It is meant as a surface disinfectant against bacteria both for food and hard surfaces. . Do not mix them in the same spray bottle, keep each separate and the order in which they're applied doesn't matter. Remember that the pharmaceutical grade hydrogen peroxide used by drug companies or hospitals as disinfectants is NOT the same at the 3 percent one sold in drug stores for home use. If you are sanitizing your kitchen to protect against bacteria, use the vinegar and hydrogen peroxide. If you are disinfecting to protect against flu virus use Lysol, Pinesol or bleach. DO NOT BE FOOLED into thinking ALL you need is vinegar and peroxide to fight the flu virus.

Awww...Sweetie. I sure wish I could be there while you have your surgery and help. I'm glad though that your church sisters are pitching in. I hope to meet them all one day and thank them for taking care of my best bud!!

April was Sjogren's Syndrome Awareness month and I didn't write about it as I thought I would. I guess that's because I'm already all too aware of this disease. I have it. Believe me, I'm aware. But I didn't write about it because I was angry at the community here. I've cooled down now and I know the anger wasn't really about anyone here. It was all mine. And the disease I have was part of it. Around four million Americans have this autoimmune disease. More than 90 percent of them are female. More people in this country have Sjogren's Syndrome than Multiple Sclerosis. So why all the ignorance about it? My theory is that because it mainly attacks middle age women, it hasn't gotten its share of research dollars or attention from the media. Or maybe it's because the description doesn't sound so bad. The main symptoms are dry eyes and dry mouth and aching joints. It doesn't sound too terribly bad, right? Be that as it may, Sjogren's Syndrome was recently added to the Social Security Administration's list of diseases that make one eligible for disability. And, if you go to websites with support message boards, you can read the stories of people who can hardly get out of bed some days, people who have to ration their energy like it's gasoline during WWII. "Sjogren's syndrome is an autoimmune disease. Autoimmune diseases are characterized by the abnormal production of extra antibodies in the blood that are directed against various tissues of the body. This particular autoimmune illness features inflammation in certain glands of the body. Inflammation of the glands that produce tears (lacrimal glands) leads to decreased water production for tears and eye dryness. Inflammation of the glands that produce the saliva in the mouth (salivary glands, including the parotid glands) leads to dry mouth and lips." says the Medicinet website at http://www.medicinenet.com/sjogrens_syndrome/article.htm#1whatis ://http://www.medicinenet.com/sjogrens...e.htm#1whatis ://http://www.medicinenet.com/sjogrens...e.htm#1whatis ://http://www.medicinenet.com/sjogrens...e.htm#1whatis What that means is your eyes feel like Lawrence of Arabia marched through them and that the sand of a thousand camels has clogged your tear ducts. Your eyes feel gritty all the time. It means that your mouth is so dry that water doesn't make it feel better. It means you have a thirst that is never quenched. It means you sometimes choke swallowing dinner. It means that you sometimes feel like you are burning in the core of your body and that you need to cool down or you're going to melt down. It means that you are exhausted some days when the fatigue doesn't go away even with a bit of rest. It means that you wake up tired after a full night's sleep some days. Dry nose, throat, and lungs, vaginal dryness, swollen salivary glands, and fatigue are other hallmarks of the disease. . More severe cases can affect other parts of the body, such as blood vessels, the nervous system, muscles, skin, and other organs. This can lead to muscle weakness, confusion and memory problems, dry skin, and feelings of numbness and tingling. A few cases develop into lymphoma. Oh this is just one lovely disease. It hits you when you are in middle age, and already facing issues about aging and menopause. Then, it ramps up the process, drying your skin, attacking your body. Like all immune diseases, this is a disease where your body turns on itself. Talk about betrayal. One day, you are able to do it all and then slowly, you have to chalk stuff off the list of things you can do until it scares you. What will it be like when you turn 60, or 70 if it is bad now, when you're 50? I wonder that often. I try not to, but I do. There is no cure for this disease that robs you of your self-esteem and energy and steals many of hours of your life that you could really, really put to good use. Still, I'm one of the lucky ones. My disease was diagnosed quickly by a really good doctor. There are stories of people whose disease wracked their bodies but who were not diagnosed for years and years. I had the disease probably about a year before it progressed to the point where I realized it was more than itchy eyes from allergies. I realized it was time to see the doctor when my father died and no tears fell down my face as I cried. Not one single tear. This is unusal for me because I'm the type who tears up just looking at photos of cute kitties. I had been worried about increasing joint pain, too. I just thought it was old age creeping up on me. As for the dry mouth--I feared it was the thirst of diabetes, as that disease runs in my family but I had escaped it up to that point. Sjogren's Syndrome is often diagnosed by rheumatologists. My regular doctor sent me to one. Dr. John explained it all to me. He decided from my lists of symptoms that I do have Sjogren's and determined that I have primary Sjogrens, which is a good thing because secondary Sjogren's is more complicated and goes with diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus ("lupus"), polymyositis, and some forms of scleroderma. Approximately fifty percent of people with Sjogren's syndrome are described as having secondary Sjogren's syndrome. It's complicated to diagnose this disease. It requires extensive medical history, blood tests for antibodies (but often the antibodies don't show up, so this test is not reliable) The gold standard of tests is the lip biopsy where a doctor slices into the lip to take out some salivary glands and examine them to see if they are damaged. My doctor suggested I do this and I went to the place he suggested as this is supposed to be something that can be done on an outpatient basis. The doctor I saw for the biopsy didn't want to do it. I am allergic to corn and wheat and a host of other things. He ridiculed me and said it was stupid to bother with the procedure because even if I have the disease there is no cure. He was a jerk. I walked out and called the reumatologist who had recommended this guy. He sent me to another doctor. Her name was Dr. Troublefield which cracked me up but she was a dynamic lady, a former discus thrower and when she learned my daughter also throws discus and was in the waiting room, she had the nurses page her and bring her in so she could meet her. We hit it off. Dr. T was ready to do a biopsy in a few weeks but then when she heard about the allergies to corn and wheat, she realized it would be difficult to find pain killers and such that I could take afterward. She reluctantly told me it would be best not to do the test, and just continue on the premise that I have the disease and treat the symptoms. My primary doctor pointed out that it wasn't like I HAD to have the biopsy as I would if cancer were suspected, so why go through the horror. Scary stories on the support boards at a site called Sjogren's World made me glad I didn't do the biopsy. Some folks had horrible scar tissue and swelling. Some got infections. Maybe it was just as well I didn't have to do this gold standard test. But it was still tricky to treat my symptoms. Many eye drops contain corn-derived products. I had tried many OTC types only to discover that they blurred my vision or turned my eyes into swollen, red orbs resembling Halloween mask eyeballs. The ophthalmologist suggested I take flax seed oil supplements and he prescribed Restasis. Both things worked a miracle. Within a month, I found I had a few tears again when I cried. Taken faithfully, this drug has restored my vision and my eyes. I'm grateful. I'll have to take it the rest of my life. But I'm totally willing to do this. I thought I was going blind at one point. I could only read large print. Now, I'm back to reading everything, even the fine print. Most people with Sjogren's can use mouth sprays or suck on sugarless candies to keep their mouth and throat moistened. I can't. All of them contain corn products, corn sweeteners such as xylitol or some other corn-derived sweetener. I can have candies that just contain sugar--but they rot your teeth and people with Sjogren's already are prone to tooth decay from lack of saliva. So, they had to get a compounding pharmacy to make troches, or lozenges that I could suck on to stimulate saliva. They taste awful. They contain a lot of salts. My doctor said that I could suck on small pebbles to stimulate saliva. I decided on another creative method. I would look at glossy cookbooks in the library or at luscious food photos on the internet and discovered that even reading about recipes and imagining how they would taste helped stimulate saliva production. There are drugs, such as Salagen, that can stimulate saliva flow. But guess what? One of its main ingredients is corn. Non-steroid anti inflammatory drugs help lessen the joint pain and keep down the inflammation in eyes and mouth. I don't need to take these every day--and I'm lucky that Aleve caplets contain no corn products. I take Aleve as needed, which means I can sometimes go for a week or two without it but then I have a flare up of Sjogrens. Sjogren's waxes and wanes, with some flare ups lasting just a few days and other times several weeks. I have learned to rest, to pace myself, to be more patient because of this. I used to rejoice during the non-flares and try to do too much. I have since found reasonable pace at all times works best. DMARDS (disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs) are also known as SAARDS (slow acting anti- rheumatic drugs) may be used to treat severe cases of Sjogren's syndrome. As their name might suggest these medications take some time to be effective, up to several months. I don't need these--yet. However, I have had to search out corn-free vaginal lubricants and moisturizers and got recipes from the compounding pharmacy for my own mouth moisturizer spray. And, I go through gallons of skin lotion because the dry skin is worsening. Sjogren's is different for each person who gets it and so far, my disease is slowly progressive, not rapidly progressive. There are stretches when I feel fine and begin to wonder if I really do have it! Just when I have those thoughts, it flares up in earnest--like today. I can feel the slow burn starting in my mouth and going down my throat. I can feel it in my vagina, too. Like I've been burned there. The relief will come when the two Aleves I just took start to work, and when I drink some more. There are days when just sitting in my chair with my cat is enough for me to do. I do more handwork on those days. I cross stitch. I clip and organize coupons, I read. I often joke that this disease doesn't kill you, it just sometimes makes you wish it did. Life is still a gift we don't return--even with this stupid disease I contend with. I'm not in it alone. Nearly four million others have it--and I guess we would like others to be more aware of it, and more understanding. It's not all in our heads. It's a real disabling disease. It's just that sometimes we are okay and sometimes we are far from it. When I don't post on the message boards, it's because I'm having a flare up and I'm scared of sounding stupid--or angry. The component of this disease I don't like to think about or admit is that during severe flare ups, it can cause cognitive difficulties or brain fog. It makes it hard to think. It feels frightening and confusing. I have discovered that when I post to the boards during those times, I am often misunderstanding others' posts and then ticking them off. Or they think I'm angry sounding when I didn't think I was.I have learned that the anger comes from having to make so much extra effort to be "normal." I learned I AM angry I have this disease and I found from the feedback on the boards that I had to admit this to myself and deal with it better or it was going to spill out in ways that would hurt everyone around me. If I'm stuck having this, at least I'm learning from it. Perhaps in some way, I've also helped others gain awareness of Sjogren's Syndrome and to have some understanding for those afflicted with it. If I've donethat, I'm not angry anymore--well okay, I am, but I'm working on it.