Originally Posted by PurpleFoot721

Yes I do. I started out with the usual Neurontin, and Elavil, along with Norco for breakthrough pain. The Neurontin and Elavil did not help me enough to continue taking them. My previous PM doctor moved me through a several different medications and ended up over medicating me. My current PM has me on a relatively low dose of MS Contin, along with Effexor and Terazosin. I also take Norco for breakthrough pain, but I try to limit that to the days that I travel back and forth from my doctor appointments to where I am currently living which is just under a 3 hour ride each way. We drive down one day, go to an appointment the following day and drive home on the third day. I am usually flared rather badly those days from all the traveling but there are not many doctors that now much about CRPS where I live, plus I did not want to switch doctors again. This current combination of medication does help some, particularly the Terazosin which helps with vasodilation to improve blood flow to my foot, but they do not help enough with the pain. I would really like to get off of the opiates all together, and go back to something more like Tramadol when I feel I really need something.

Biobased, my PM does not believe that LDN does any good for CRPS so he will not prescribe it. I did ask though in case you are wondering.

I also see a pain psychologist. We started biofeedback about a month ago. So far, I have not seen this doing much for me and no longer do this at her office, but I do still use it at home. I figure that it does not hurt anything continuing on at home, but I did not see enough improvement to continue paying for it when it is something I could easily do at home.

I am taking things one step at a time, quite literally. I don't expect to get rid of the pain entirely, but as I told my sister the other day, I just want to be a little more comfortable where I can start trying to use my leg again.

Originally Posted by PurpleFoot721

Well, things are not going so good. After trying to place some weight on my foot Saturday night in to Sunday afternoon, my pain levels went back up. I do not know if I over did it one of these days, or if it was just a coincidence that my pain levels were down for these two days.

My representative does not seem to know what to do as a result of the increase in pain. I find it kind of strange that I go for a week long trial with a device that has three programs and seven levels for each program, but my representative does not want to move past program one, level six, which is one step above where I started. Here it is, day five of a week long trial and my PM, who finally called me back last night, told me to turn the unit off entirely. I do not feel that only trying two settings on a unit that has many more settings is a proper trial, but maybe they have their reasons.

Originally Posted by CRPSbe

Is it totally implanted yet? I gather not. Be wary of infections in that case. Slightest raise in temperature, or it going red at the site: be at your doctor!

Originally Posted by PurpleFoot721

This is only the 7 day trial. They have not implanted a permanent device, and since I did not respond well, they will not be implanting one. The temporary comes out tomorrow.

They did caution both me and my mom, who I am living with at the moment, to watch for a rise in temperature and other signs of infection. My mom happens to be an RN who specialized in pain management before she retired. All of her patients were terminal hospice patients, so she does not have any experience with CRPS or anyone with a SCS. She has had a number of patients with long term epidurals, which have similar dressings from my understanding. She has been checking my back daily for any sign of infection, and I have been taking my temperature twice a day. So far, I have not had any problems. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I continue to not have any problems while the incisions for the leads heal up.