Hello everyone my name is Heidi, I am a 30 yr old female from Houston, TX. Tonight, is my first time on Neuro Talk website. I was referred from a gal off a MySpace.com website. She told me this website is wonderful, that many ppl are very friendly on here, open theirselves up and talk about anything! Like a family to be exact is what she said...That is what I am looking for! Let me begin by saying that I was diagnosed with RSD in my left lower leg/foot the end of Aug of this yr. July 22, 06 I had an incident where I stood up out of bed, I had this horrific pain shoot from my lower back, to my hip and down my leg! Takes alot to get me to shed a tear, this sure did the trick, in fact I cried like a baby! Make along story short my b/f took me to the ER where they did a MRI scan and said I had a ruptured disc in my L5-S1, and was expierencing severe siatica. I knew that I had a herniated disc in that area for about 4 yrs prior to this incident...Me bad, should have had it taken care of, but I can be stubborn...I would have a siatica flare up here and there..But, nothing some ibuprofen, couple days off from work, and a couple chiopractor appts wouldnt do the trick to make me feel better! I was referred to a top notch Neuro Surgeon, this man is wonderful! I had a lumbar laminectomy for the L5-S1 on Aug 24, 06. Before I was able to see this Dr I went to a chiopractor a few times for some adjustments, she really didnt even want to touch me because I was so swollen in my back and sore...I had a hard time walking and putting weight on my left leg/foot, the foot was swollen, started changing colors, started burning/stinging, muscle spasms...Everyone knows what Im talking about if you have RSD...Thing is I didnt nor did the Drs know at the time before my surgery that is what I had, told I had siatica..The day of my surgery the Dr came in to talk to us about the procedure and examine me one more time...He seen my foot and thought I had a blood clot, did an stat doppler, but that came back negative so the surgery went on...He found 3 ruptured discs and some bone spurs..The surgery was a success though..My back was a little stiff but, didnt hurt much...It was my leg/foot giving me all the problems and pain...4 days after my surgery my foot wasnt getting any better at all, so I called my Dr, he seen me right away the next day...Admitted me to the hospital immediatly after seeing him, thought I might have cellulitis..I was put on a antibiotic and given pain meds...I seen 3 different Drs within the first 2 hrs i was admitted...All the Drs were arguing about possible different diagnoses...In fact even my Neuro Surgeon was!! Along comes this nice lady, a internal medicine Dr..She said straight out to me, "you dont have cellulitis or siatica, I believe you have a rare disorder called RSD, I myself cannot diagnose you, but I know someone that can"..She referred me to a Neuro Pain Medicine Dr, he came in to talk to me, and examined me...I was for sure diagnosed with RSD..I had never heard of this disorder untill he told me about it..He put me on iv steriods, neurontin, lidocane/ketamine compound gel, and pain medication, I was in the hospital for about 7 days..Upon discharge he ordered continue steriods for 5 days, neurontin 300 mg every 6 hrs, physical therapy which includes Fluidotherapy 3 times a wk, and pain medication as needed...I have been feeling so much better since Aug, in fact I did like a 180...Able to walk with full pressure on my leg/foot, swelling went down, burning/stinging subsided, overall I was feeling great! Yeah sure, Id have my days with soreness ect but nothing like I was feeling before and while I was in the hospital! Dr told me that he believed that since the RSD was diagnosed so early that I have a very good chance of going into remission with this! I have been suffering from insomnia have such a hard time sleeping at night its crazy, and mood swings...I get depressed here and there, more so than I ever did in my 30 yrs of life, before my diagnoses...But, Im told this is normal for RSD patients...Anyhow, on Thursday out of no where I started getting kind of a slight burning shockish type sensation in my left wrist/lower arm (below the elbow)..It wasnt anything horrible, very tolerable, but at the same time uncomfortable...It would come and go for about 15 mins...Then it went away..Saturday it happened again, same symptoms, same area...Lasted about the same amount of time, give or take a few mins...I massaged the area, and that seemed to help it give...Sunday night when I was finally able to get to bed and try to sleep, my body felt like it was going haywire!! I had the burning/stinging/shock like sensations all over!! From the back of my neck, shoulder, cheek, right leg/foot, right arm/wrist, middle of my back..Felt like a pinball machine, if that makes any sense?!? The pain subsided after about 15-20 mins...Today (Monday) Ive been alright for the most part, yeah pain here on differnet limbs of my body, kind of like Sunday night, but not as intense!!! So is this something I should be concerned about? What do you all think? Could it possibly be spreading? If so, can it spread that fast, and to so many different places of the body? I am taking my Nerurontin as prescribed and going to my therapy appts as I should....I am new at this RSD, I have done alot of reading on so many different websites, and have talked to ppl with RSD..I still am full of tons of questions ect...I called my Dr today..Orginally, I wasnt suppose to be seen again untill Dec 8, but he is seeing me next Mon instead...I seen him beginning of Oct, and at that time I was doing good, and he was very impressed with how I was doing...Please anyone out there that can help me shed some light on my concerns, Id appreciate any comments back!!! I hate to stress about this, because I know remaining postive is the key with RSD...Just hard not to, and I know for sure that the stress isnt helping my flare ups any at all....Thanks for your time everyone! I look forward to talking with ppl!!!