Aww TK, I'm so sorry that's completely unfair and mean. You must be devastated, but you've dealt with this disease and all it throws at you, and you are one strong woman. You know the truth of this, and you have to hang on to that, and try not to let his attitude make you doubt yourself.

People can be real jerks, and when those people are the ones you should be able to count on, it hurts so much. My daughter stayed over at my parents house once, and came home a bit distant and cold. Anyway it turned out that my parents and sister had been talking about me and saying I was making too much out of my leg, trying to get sympathy, and it was a bit old now, I should get over myself. Nice. I look at them now, and I know how they really feel, and it hurts every single time - you don't ever forget things like that.

Your story really struck a chord, my sister hasnt worked in a decade, lives with my parents still, and they take her to doctors appointments all the time with one imaginary illness after another. She's deliberately playing the system but they think she is great and she can do no wrong. She got a stick after I got crutches, and now I have a pain specialist she claims to be in constant pain. When she wants to she can do anything she wants, we've seen it too often, it seems she just doesn't want to work, whereas I would love to have a body that worked properly, and I'm working hard to hang on to my life. When I had to give up my job, I started a small self-employed business, and didn't sit around moping, but that means nothing to them. Double standards really are cruel, people can be so blind.

Anyone can be a jerk, sometimes especially the ones closest to you. Print him off the Wikipedia page about CRPS, it's clinical but holds no punches about how nasty this is. Ask him to read it and then to talk to you about how he feels. Sounds like you need to decide whether you want him around, not him deciding to stay with you out of some kind of obligation.

You are worth more than this. Always believe that, and keep your hopes up. Life won't always be so crappy for you.

Bram