Hey folks,

My name is Andy, I'm a 21 year old medical student from the UK. I was diagnosed with AS quite recently following 2 years of symptoms.

Basically, I was wondering if anyone has any advice on how to plan for the future regarding careers;

Within our medical training, there comes a point when we choose to specialise in a certain area. However, I am becoming more and more aware that my condition will probably progress and some tasks will become difficult, if not impossible.
For example, surgeons must stand still for long periods of time, which is already impossible and thus I cannot be a surgeon. I would love to work on the emergency ward, but I am concerned that I will be working until I'm 65 (or older) and I do not know whether such an active, physically demanding job would be suitable.


To sum up, if anyone has any advice on how much AS will affect my work life and whether I need to start thinking ahead to a less intensive career choice, that'd be really useful. I have a while before I have to decide, but right now I feel a little lost.

Thank you very much

UK Med Student,
AS 2013, symptoms since 2010
Etanercept 2013