I am so sorry to hear this. It is something many of us have dealt with...docs who don't know what to do or who don't care (or both). It is incredibly frustrating when you go in to discuss one thing and the doctor takes you off track, won't answer your questions, has no answers, etc. One suggestion would be to take someone with you to the appointment who will be in the room with you. I have found that even the worst doctors will generally be on their best behavior when they have an audience.

I was put on Lyrica in the beginning and it did help with the pain. Not a lot but it was one of the meds that was the most helpful in the beginning. I was switched to neurontin and that didn't help me at all but for some people it helps a lot. I think for me it was mostly that I was on the right combination of meds at the time I was taking the lyrica that made it as effective as it was.

But the meds were only part of the picture. Physical therapy is also important because the less you move, the more it hurts. It can get you into a terrible cycle of pain if you don't get enough pain relief to DO the physical therapy because the situation just gets worse and worse. Seeing a pain management doctor is probably a really good idea to help you juggle the different meds and treatments.

Unfortunately with RSD there is no set program for what works in every case. We all seem to respond to different treatments and meds. The important thing is to find what works best for you. You need to find a way to deal with the daily pain and then also have plans in place for flares and how you will cope with the pain in those moments.

I no longer take any pain meds and only use lidoderm patches and clonidine patches as far as medications go. This was after some severe interactions among the meds I was taking last year. I am very concerned now about the long term affects of medications and if I can find alternative treatments for my pain (TENS, ultrasound, tDCS, hot baths with epsom salts, etc) then those are what I want to go with. It means I have to push through a lot of pain on a regular basis but I am much happier with my treatment program now than I was when I was on all those meds. So as much as we are here to offer suggestions and share our own experiences, remember that it is up to you to decide what route is best for YOU.