Well said, Brian, and very true about the experience of users with message boards. Awhile back, I was a participant on a message board for quitting smoking. Great site, and great participants -- but I found that the site was actually making it more difficult for me to quit, because it kept smoking in the front of my brain. So I distanced myself, and successfully quit. Now I visit every few months,or on the annual anniversary, and it is fine.

I can get overloaded between the boards here, volunteering at our local CCC and dealing with some other friends and relatives who are going through treatment for various cancers. Some days I just want to find a remote Caribbean island and escape. The feeling passes, and I get back to the drill. By the same token, I no longer participate in the board I visited to help me get through my spinal fusion. Different people, different issues -- it's all good.

Thanks for having the perseverance to keep this going!