Trudy,

Scheduling specialty appointments out a while is definitely a sign of our "challenged" health care system. One suggestion that I ALWAYS implement is this. Ask them if they would call your mother in the event of a cancellation. Many clinics will do this, but most won't tell you about this service UNLESS you ask. If your mother has some flexibility and can accommodate making it to the clinic on somewhat short notice, this can really be helpful in keeping the process moving along.

As for neurologists, I have mixed feelings for the following reason. If you see one, be sure it is one that specializes in conditions like CRPS. Seeing a neurologist that knows little or nothing about CRPS (yup, they are OUT THERE!) can just keep you from getting to the bottom of this. But see the right one and you may make quicker progress and have a better understanding of what truly is going on. Know this. Neurology is a specialty, but within that specialty are "subspecialists" who have more experience within the broad definition of neurology. The first neurologist I saw knew literally nothing about CRPS. Seriously. So you really have to do your homework before making an appointment. And again, ASK about their experience with CRPS.

As they say in the financial industry.....your results may vary. It goes for doctors and therapists as well.

Good luck!