Susan
First off, I know how painful the FMS is, and how sad it is that more Dr.s are not educated in it, but they are coming around. I had to go on Calif Disability and was on it for one yr. It was almost as much as my salary at the Dr.s office because no taxes are taken out. After disability ran out, my SSD kicked in. The closer you are to 50, the better your chances of getting it early on. DON'T GIVE UP. YOU WILL GET IT. IT USUALLY TAKES ABOUT A YR. ATTORNEY'S ARE VERY HANDY WITH THIS SORT OF THING BECAUSE THEY DO THE WORK AND GET PAID ONLY AFTER YOU HAVE STARTED RECEIVING SSD. THE MOST THEY USUALLY GET IS 25% OF BACK PAY ONLY. DR.DEVIN STARLANYL HAS SEVERAL BOOKS, HER 2ND ONE HAS LOTS OF INFORMATION ABOUT THIS VERY THING. THE INFO IS OUT THERE. ALSO, JOING FIBROM-L IS VERY HELPFUL BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE IN THE SAME BOAT, AND THERE ARE PROFESSIONALS THAT COME ON AND TELL YOU EXACTLY HOW TO DO IT. GOOD LUCK!