I'm not sure how to react to this. Saddness surely, but.....I have some experience with chronic pain, always there, always coloring everthing I do. I'm not disabled, not yet. But when I work, or push myself too hard, my blood pressure shoots up, the pain spikes and I end up fighting off the urge to vomit. I had a compression fracture of three thoracic vertebre about 14 years ago. My discs are going, six are damaged, and the rest are breaking down. I have arthritis in the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar.

Advanced osteoarthritis of the spine ain't fun, but it's not the worst thing either. There are so many that suffer so much more. I walk fine, others don't. I have pain thats immune to anything less than vicadin, others have worse. I never sleep more than 3 hrs. at a time, others don't get that. There are some days when I hate myself for being weak, for others there's a lot more than some. I take meds daily, some can't afford theirs.

I have something though that the sad young woman didn't, I have a loving spouse, and two children under 4. Responsibility and devotion to someone else is the key sometimes. That poor girl was alone in her pain, loved, but not needed if you see what I mean. You fight a pitched battle against yourself to do what you have to because you love someone too much to give in. I'm needed, I will not give up, I will not be a cripple, I have a family to feed.

More information than anyone wanted I know. But I do have a point. I'm 43, I could have another 50 years of this. I understand what she felt, I won't make the choice she did, but I feel like I knew her a little. It's hard I believe, for someone as young as her to have prospective, and that is why she chose to rest. I'm sorry that she's gone, she only wanted some peace...... I wish someone could have helped her.

Rest Colleen, sleep well.

I'm so sorry. You've said it better than anyone else could have.