I am a truth seeker in all things. I try to learn and live without ego. I'm an information junkie, computer expert, and avid reader. I've been blessed to have traveled often in my life, and to have some truly extraordinary experiences. For the majority of my life I was an athlete and an extremely active person who went sky diving, scuba diving, snow skiing, water skiing, jet skiing, played volleyball, and had teams of my own in softball at the B level. However, I became ill in February 2001 and from that point on I've been a shadow of my former self and could no longer travel or do much of anything else. I have lived in severe pain for more than ten years and I struggle still to get the care I need to achieve adequate pain relief or progress towards healing. It is my hope that patientslikeme.com can be a tool which makes a difference in the quality of my life and others by making it possible to easily report, track, coordinate, share, and analyze all information related to the patient.