I used to get really bad arthritis symptoms. I would wake up with my hands locked into fists, my wrists would swell up so much that I couldn't put my fingers around them (and I've always been a skinny CFer), and my hips would hurt too badly to swing them up into bed. I guess it isn't so uncommon-the last number I heard was that cf-related arthritis affects around 10% of CFers to some degree. The way it was explained to me (although they were still figuring it out at the time, the theory might have changed) was that my body was sending dead bacteria and white blood cells to my joints instead of my lymph nodes. In theory that would mean that I should hurt more when I'm sick, but it definitely doesn't always work that way. On the upside, by the time I was 20 I grew out of the worst of it. Now my hands might get achy or I might hobble around when I walk on occasion, but it's manageable with ibuprofin (so much better than tylenol). When I was really bad, they prescribed me Vioxx which was amazing (I literally cried when they took it off the market). I'm sure they have something new now if you continue to have major problems.