Lessa,

Everyone has given some great advise so far. Here is what I can say from my experiences.

What your doctors will prescribe is all up to what they feel comfortable giving. I am with a pm doctor that likes to use different opiates first and work from there. Although I have only been to his office twice, I have not found anything that works better than the Amatriptyline to relieve even the slightest amount of pain. Even that only seems to take me from an 8-9 to a 6 at best, but usually a 7.

Have you tried looking into some local churches, hospitals or even Craigslist for a wheelchair? I bought my wheelchair on Craigslist for $70US a while a go and it was brand new. I purchased it from somebody who bought it for their mother that passed away a couple of days after they bought it. It even had the elevated leg attachments to keep my leg elevated while out. I have not used it yet but it is there in case me and my other half want to try to go do something around town or go shopping together. Churches will often have chairs donated to them to give to those who do not have the finances to purchase their own equipment.

I am sure you are elevating your legs. I do not know if you have seen the picture of my foot on my personal page, but mine has gotten worse as the cooler weather has moved in. It goes to more of a muddy color if I don't keep it elevated. The only thing that seems to help is keeping it elevated. Try to keep higher than your heart. It needs oxygen or the tissues will start dying. Moving the muscles as much as you can will also help with blood flow and hopefully help with the oxygenation as well. Movement as much as tolerable is better than just keeping it elevated all of the time though.

You have to remember, you are dealing with a lot of pain that does not seem to ever want to go away. It is easy to get frustrated. Just the other day, I got so frustrated at my crutches that I threw them to the floor as hard as I could. Realizing that things that were so simple before have become such a burden and so difficult anymore is very frustrating. Not to mention dealing with all of the pain that this monster brings. Just try to keep as calm as you can. If you loose it, go scream into a pillow hit it or try something that won't hurt anything. Releasing a little frustration can help sometimes.

Like Enna said, this monster is horrible, it can spread like wildfire. My first PM doctor was surprised at how aggressively this has spread in me. I had an ankle surgery in January that brought this on and by august, it went from my right ankle to my entire right leg, both arms, shoulders, neck, upper back, and my left leg from the thigh to just below the knee. A recent blood draw has caused my left arm to give me more problems than my ankle.

Yes this does feel like a nightmare. That is why we are all here, to help each other through this nightmare and share our experiences, give our thoughts and vent when needed.