The tens unit might be inexpensive but I find the little pads that you stick on really expensive. The batteries mine take are just slightly different than a 9 volt so you have to buy them from Empi. And, the wires don't last forever. The little pads wear out and start to give you little shocks so you have to replace them regularly. I have trouble with them sticking, so I had to buy bottles of stuff to put on the skin to get them to stick. PT gave me sheets to show where to put them. I tried all kinds of things with it. On an hour off an hour up to wearing up to 20 hours. Low settings, high settings. Just didn't do anything for RSD. However, when I pull a muscle or my back is acting up, it's great.

Topamax has done as much for me as "pain" meds - but that's maybe taking me from an 8/9 to a 6/7. But, I have to take pretty high does to get much relief. I have a constant terrible headache from my RSD now being in my upper back, shoulders, neck, head, jaw.... and it has calmed that to a dull roar. My new neurologist is taking my dose up higher than I have ever been and its helping a bit more. For the last week, I have been on 200mg twice a day and I am sleeping 5 hours straight at night which I have not done in years and years. I have very few side effects - which I had a lot of them with other meds. Dry mouth, dry eyes, dry skin. Soda, like Mt. Dew or Pepsi (I drank diet) taste terrible and I crave water.... not a bad thing as I normally don't like drinking water.

I also have peripheral neuropathy, which Topamax has helped.

I get the messed up word side effect, but I don't work, ,so it doesn't matter. I had it when I wasn't on it to - I think it comes from being in a large amount of pain with no relief for so long. I've had RSD for 10 years and no pain med has helped me enough to warrent taking it.