I read the following story in my morning paper and I was stunned. It is so hard to read about someone who felt there was no other way. I know what rsd is, what it does, and stories like this make me so sad.

I do not know what all was going through his mind, but I do know the pain, and maybe we can reach out and help someone else get over the crisis moments.

I wish the article had some information about support groups or internet forums like this one. It does help. There were days when I was in crazy pain and came here, and thoughtful, caring people responded and helped me through those hard times.

I am planning to write a letter to the editor about how rsd sufferers can find others who really, really, know what they are going through and how they can find us here in these forums or in local support groups.

If there is anything you would like for me to put into the letter or if you think there is something else I need to mention please contact me.

I hope you are painfree each & every day,
KathyWP

Georgetown man who appeared on Supernanny dies
By Jillian Ogawa
jogawa@herald-leader.com
GEORGETOWN — A Georgetown man struggled for years, battling a painful spine injury and fighting to obtain Social Security benefits. He even reached out to a television reality show, hoping to be a better dad to his two sons.


Friday night, his struggle ended in a Georgetown cemetery. Scott Terrill died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest after a 90-minute standoff with police.


Terrill carried ”a lot of emotional baggage from the past,“ said Dwayne Russell, pastor of Safe Harbor Baptist Fellowship in Georgetown, who will officiate at his funeral.


Despite those trials, Terrill was a dedicated father, Russell said. His appearance on a Supernanny episode that first aired in January showed his ”desire to be a better dad.“


Terrill, 37, suffered from reflex sympathetic dystrophy since an accident about five years ago, said his mother, Margaret Ng.


The disorder causes sufferers to feel continuous, intense pain out of proportion to the severity of the injury, which gets worse rather than better over time. There is no cure.


Terrill had tried getting a job to work from home, but he could only sit up only a certain amount of hours of the day, Ng said.


”It might not have looked like it on the TV, but he could not get up for more than a couple hours a day because of the RSD,“ she said.


The Supernanny episode featuring Terrill first aired on Jan. 23. Terrill said he had struggled to set boundaries for his sons, Lane and Tate, who were 11 and 5 at the time, because of his own harsh childhood.


In an attempt to avoid repeating the past, Terrill went to the other extreme, where he could not set discipline in his home.


Terrill later became the mascot for the show's ”Foxy Dad of the Year“ competition.


Ng said Terrill went camping with his sons and was also involved with his eldest son's soccer and his children's schooling.


”He was a loving father with a big heart,“ Ng said.


On Friday, Terrill called Georgetown police about 6:50 p.m., Capt. Scott Starns said Monday. He told police he was thinking of killing himself and had a gun.


Terrill asked to speak to Police Chief Greg Reeves, and told him he was at his father's grave at the Georgetown Cemetery.


Officers went to the cemetery, blocking off the scene and evacuating some of the houses nearby.


As he talked to officers, Terrill had a .38-caliber handgun pressed to his chest the whole time, Starns said.


”About an hour and a half into this whole scenario, they thought progress was being made, and he just abruptly squeezed the trigger,“ Starns said.


Scott County Coroner John Goble pronounced Terrill dead at Georgetown Community Hospital about 9 p.m.


Terrill grew up in Georgetown and attended Lexington Catholic High School, where he played basketball. He obtained his GED and went to one year of college at Morehead State University, Ng said.


In 2002 he ran in the Republican primary for a state House seat against Charlie Hoffman, but lost.


At Safe Harbor Baptist Fellowship, Russell said he had not seen or spoken to Terrill in six or seven months. But he said Terrill, a likeable guy who had been active in the church, had remained in contact with other church members.


Terrill's death has greatly affected his congregation, Russell said. Many watched Terrill grow up, and church members have helped take care of his children.


”People who are struggling with those emotional struggles, they need to get connected with other people,“ he said. ”Not one of us as human beings could handle the stresses and struggles of life by ourselves.“