Hi Bobber,
I just wanted to thank you for your response. I have a question for you---I had rsd in my right ankle 7 years ago, then it spread to my back & now I have c.r.p.s in my left leg. I was wondering if you knew what the difference was between r.s.d & c.r.p.s? I had an injury to my left knee back in 07 when my 200 lb husky hit my knee. I heard it "pop" instantly & its gone down hill from there. I had to wait exactly 429 days before any doc would really do anything for me. The ortho "talked" me in a tkr with the hopes of getting 5 % pain relief. He told me that if I didnt get any relief that he would "amputate"---but then he changed his mind when I saw him 5 months after the surgery. There is so much wrong with that knee that I think that surgery was a waste of his time & mine. He told me that the bones are so thin that he could squeeze them between his thumb & first finger. I had a dexa scan a couple of weeks ago & it shows that Im at high risk for fracture in both my left leg & my spine & the right leg isnt far behind. Ive done some research on amputation but I cant get any doc to listen to me. Its not as though I went to them & said---hmm I dont have anything to do next what ever day & say---take my leg. I know that it says that amputation is the worst thing that you can do for a crps patient---& I understand that---its just the pain is so bad every single day & I just sit in either my hospital bed or my wheelchair. I havent been able to sit in my big tub that I have in over 2 years. Like I said---I know that crps cant be cured---all I want is some kind of a life that doesnt include this much pain every day. I could handle it if it were only on rainy days--but its every day. Hubby & I used to do everything together---now I sit & watch him do all the things that we once enjoyed together. I would love to be able to work beside him again--but Ive come to realize that its not going to happen. I hate that I cry all the time, I just want a change---I even told the doctor that I need a change whether its for the good or the bad---something needs to be different. All they do is dismiss me like I dont matter. All I do all day is take pills for the crps & my other health problems. Im going to research it more, but I just wanted someone elses opinion on it. Sometimes I just feel like Im going crazy with all this pain. Most of the time I just want to scream--but I know that it wont take the pain away or change anything. Thanks again for your words, its just so nice to talk to someone else about this, someone who's gone thru the same things as I have. Its really nice to know that Im not alone. For a long time, I was alone. family & friends dont want to hear that you hurt. I guess they take the attitude--well you dont look like you hurt so why do you??? Thats one thing that I still after all this time just cant understand. My left leg is a completely different color than the right, its always swollen. Theres only one artery in that leg & theres no pulse. Anyway thanks for listening, sorry for rambling on so much.
Janet