Unfortunately, I don't have any wonderful advice for you. I have not been diagnosed with RSD, but my family doctor wants me to ask the pain management doctor I see next week if he thinks I may have it. I do have 5 different things wrong with my back as well as peripheral neuropathy (which causes the majority of my pain) and a bunch of other medical problems. I have had chronic pain since I was 8 years old and am now 24. I've been bedridden for 4 1/2 months now. I am on tizandine and that is the only medicine that has done any good for me--it doesn't take away any pain or spasms, but it does help me sleep. I've been on a whole bunch of different pain medicines, from tylenol with codeine 3 and 4 to vicodin to oxycodone... just yesterday I started the 72 hour fentanyl patch. I haven't responded to any pain medicine (it doesn't touch the pain at all), so I can't work at all. Right now I'm just being bounced from doctor to doctor... I've been told by countless doctors "we can't do anything for you"... they have all given up. So like I said--I don't have any advice, because I'm kind of in a similar situation. But, I just felt like I needed to reply because we sound like we are in similar situations, and I wanted to let you know that I am always up for talking if you want to chat. I haven't found many yet on this site who are bedridden or seem to have the amount of pain I have (theirs seems to be much less or much worse)... so it is always nice to find someone that seems to be able to relate a bit. Feel free to message me any time. I do hope you are able to either study some more or work soon--it is hard to not be able to do either! I am also living with my mom right now and missing my friends, and while it is hard, it's nice to have mothers who care so much and are willing to take care of us, right? =) I don't know what I'd do without my mom right now!