Trying to weed through all the OTC/Self-help stuff here and everywhere. What I have that helps me so far:
A fuzzy sock on my CRPS foot (the kind that's aloe infused seems to feel the best)
I've been trying a heating pad to my foot/ankle/leg for flares but thankfully I haven't had a "bad" flare since getting the heating pad.
Melatonin (3mg) about 30-45 min before bedtime for sleep.
I use a contraption (walker) or my daughter or walls/furniture to get from here to there

I have read a lot about Vitamin C and Epsom salts but I am a bit confused about when/how best to use their healing/helpful properties. I know Vit C before & after procedures, but what about on an every day basis? And the Epsom salts...I don't have anything tall enough to submerge my leg from foot to knee. I do have one of those foot spa's my son got me for Christmas years ago...would just soaking the foot help? And when I'm flaring, any touch is OMG, so how would the lotion help if it hurts so much to put it on?

Ortho visit yesterday was 'meh'. The most helpful thing was when I was explaining my pain, he said "That's the RSD." HE GETS IT!!!! He also said I need to use the walker at all times. He reminded me I need to be aware of increased pain and that it might be associated with compression fractures. He mentioned the possibility of Foreto. He told me he was sorry but he did not have a "magic silver bullet" (which I suppose is a good thing since I'm not a werewolf). When he asked if there was anything else, I asked him for a saw...he said "That's really not funny."
I left with an Rx for Vit D and a referral for pain management. Now to get my PCP to refer me to pain management...

Well some possitive news...love your sense of humor, but maybe the CRPS monster inside us is a werewolf?! No its not funny to ask for a saw but maybe he gets how much PAIN you are in.
Sorry I don't know much about vitamins and creams...someone will come along to help with that....but I can relate to a fuzzy sock....when crps broke my ankle those were all I could tolerate....looking back must have been funny having just one on LOL my muppet friend...
keep up the fight....

I have worn ONE sock (on my left/bad/CRPS foot) since January 2014. At the time, I thought it was psychosomatic...I thought my foot was cold, so if I put a sock on it, I would think it was warmer. It wasn't until January 2015 (yup, a whole year) when I was researching more about SSDI and I bought an infrared thermometer that I discovered it was not in my head but actually 1.5-4 degrees colder than my right. A month later, diagnosed with CRPS. Now I try to color coordinate my fuzzy socks and have TWO sock drawers - one for every day ('good'day) and one for OMG I need a really soft like I can't feel it on there days. I have labels on the drawers in case I need someone to retrieve one for me.

The medical field can make one feel that it isn't physical but mental....that's why I like it here; a safe place to talk about the silly things and the serous ones with out judgement.....

It wasn't the medical field, it was me. I'm the best at judging me.

We could start a one fuzzy sock club. I use a commerical size bucket for soaking to the knee. I bought mine at Home Depot. Even a regular bucket from a dollar store would give you better coverage. I buy a big ole bag of Epsom salts at the grocery since the price is much better that way. A little extra Vit C should be fine, gotta beat those free radicals. I take 500mg chewable daily just because I am entertained by things as simple as chewable vitamins

Sending hugs,
Littlepaw

Fuzzy socks are the best! I have little feet though so I run into the "Do I buy the Women's or the Girl's??" thing. Sometimes the girl's ones tend to be on the 'too small' side but almost all women's (except the aloe infused ones) are too big and I get the 'heel' above my ankle which then leaves this gap that makes me go nutso!


Okay....girl's socks it is

I just realized I slid right over the bucket suggestion!! I know I have some 5 gal buckets I could use. So...the BIG questions:

1) Do you only use the epsom salts when you're having a flare?
2) How exactly do you know it's a flare? Most of the time I am in too much pain to want to even walk - regardless of my previous activity. I wake up hurting. It hurts to stand on my leg/foot to walk to the bathroom. It increases throughout the day even if I'm lying in bed with it elevated/sitting on the recliner with the feet up/moving or going through boxes/driving/walking...
3) Is there any other suggestions? I know to avoid ice, but what do you do when it's a "hot" flare? Most of the time it just feels so cold and nothing I do gets it warm enough.

I am so confused and trying to learn and accept what is and what may always be.

Some people with chronic foot swelling make an everyday thing out of Epsom salts. I use them occasionally depending on the type of pain I'm having and my mood. My repotoire of things to do is pretty big so I seem to cycle things in and out. My foot is set off by overheating so I dissolve the Epsom salts first in hot and then mix the temp where I want it. My best fix for a hot flare has been cooling in plain old, no salts room temperature water in the bucket. I will set the bucket up outside and lounge in a patio chair just soaking after a walk. This makes take down easy since I just knock the bucket over into the Rosemary. Course you need mild outdoor temps for this!

The Dutch treatment guidelines recommend n-acetyl cysteine for "cold" type CRPS. I think it's 600 mg 3x daily but you should check the guidelines if you are interested. It is a free radical scavenger and also encourages vasodilation.
Don't worry about accepting what may always be just yet. You have finally just started the PT process and still need PM! There is still recovery potential. Work on accepting what is right now and try (I know it's hard) not to project too much onto your future.
LP

I also need a patio!

I think what I am looking at with the what may always be is that I have had the signs/symptoms of RSD/CRPS for over a year. I have had zero rehab on my peroneal nerve palsy. All my prior PT was for my knee. And that all failed miserably, most likely due to the RSD. From everything I read, I am nearing the end of the high percentage of remission/recovery and I have a PCP who wants to go slower than molasses running through an Alaskan pipeline. I am looking at what I need to be able to make it alone. How to take care of the pain so the pain doesn't eat me alive (and right now, it's about to). How to get just enough rehab to function. Yes, PM is a must (did I mention the doc my ortho referred me to is the PM group I used to work for?) but with my daughter's wedding next week, there's not much going to get done until maybe Mother's Day. Every day without PM, neuro, PT is a day lost. My ortho so eloquently reminded me on my way out yesterday..."Baby steps"