You are not a pain at all, RSD is! All of us here understand where you are coming from. Yes it all does makes sense. It is good that you are doing lots of PT this early. Just keep doing what you can to try to reduce the hypersensitivity. As far as massage goes, you may have to work up to be able to touch the area in a light manner. That is one reason why my therapist offered me the soft bristles of a large paint brush, I could control the intensity of the movement on my skin from hard to light and back again. It is important part of the therapy to desensitize the area if you can, especially since you are still in a brace and immobile. Are you with a PT experienced with RSD?

RSD requires lots of attention, I call my foot "Princess" because she is so demanding. When I first got RSD my orthopedic surgeon didn't explain to me what was happening. Even though he knew I had RSD he did not send me for any therapy or pain management. He kept telling me to put ice on it and to do contrast baths, even when he saw that my foot was swollen, big, shinny and deep purple. I couldn't stand to have the ice on my skin and when I stopped doing it my surgeon made me feel like I was a bad noncompliant patient. It was very hard for me to touch my foot for a long time. I didn't get any help until about 6 months after I was diagnosed. Some say that that is still early but for me it was too late. Still in consideration of everything overall I'm doing OK now, it just requires daily management. I'm too sensitive to most of the drugs having had sever reactions so I've had to learn how to manage without most of the meds that are prescribed for our condition.

MsL