My diagnosis: 2005. The background: My daughter had arranged a private adoption of a newborn, and went through the pregnancy and birth of the baby. She was in the room when the baby was born, and the birth mother handed the baby over to my daughter, who had a room in the hospital. 14 hours later, the birth mother took the baby back. My daughter, who has only ever wanted to be a mom, was overwhelmed and I became concerned that she may do something drastic, so I flew from NJ to OK to be with her for a week. On the way to the airport to come home, I cut my right heel on a piece of metal in the back seat of my daughter-in-law's older vehicle. When I noticed it a few hours later, I washed it and put a bandaid on it and didn't give it another thought.

About 2 weeks later, my right foot got cold and over the course of the evening spent in the ER, I couldn't stand air, touch, blankets, etc. on my skin. It took about 2 weeks to get a diagnosis, and the rest, as they say, is history.

My 2nd doctor explained that he'd seen several instances of a minor metal-related injury sustained while under extreme emotional stress leading to RSD. Other docs have remarked that it's unusual. I'd be interested to know if there are others who have the same history.