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The first two were right after my block. The third one was actually Christmas Eve......this is what happens when I'm on my foot for too long (i.e. a few hours). I haven't made that mistake since. I hope this goes through!!!

Hey.....you can click on each one and enlarge it (or at least I can on my computer).

I see them just fine and it does enlarge when I click on them! I remember when I'd swell like that too. I feel soooo lucky I only have minor swelling in my ankles. It's always there but doesn't interfere with anything. In the start my knee/lower leg/foot would get to be three times the size it should be.

Hugs,

Karen

How long after your symptoms started before the swelling would start going down??? Did your RSD start after surgery??? You're right, it is primarily the SWELLING that is causing the pain and probably most of the nerve sensations (I think). I've tried to wear a compression stocking but it just swells in response to THAT pressure as well (plus, I get this lovely "ribbed" effect all up my leg.....looks like a big condom).

If the darn swelling would go away and stay away, I think I could be ok. It makes me stiff when I try to walk, which throws off my balance, makes me limp, then makes other parts of my body hurt (back, hips, knees), and I get tired from the extra effort (and on and on and on).

Anyway, I am convinced that the nerve block helped some. I'm game for the second one. I'll take baby steps if I have to in order to gain back my tolerance for mobility. I just didn't know if it was supposed to swell like that as a direct result of the block.

Thanks for replying!!! I am so bored!!!

Thank you for posting the pictures - I can see them just fine also!

Your leg looks sooo much like mine with the swelling and colour changes however my foot is rotated out to the side due to a condition called 'Dystonia' which is thought to be a complication of the RSD. The swelling in my case didn't start straight away but all of the other symptoms started immediately ... it took about 16 weeks for the swelling to appear and it hasn't gone down in over a year unfortunately. When my leg first swelt up, my doctor thought it was a blood clot so sent me for an emergency scan - thankfully it turned out to "just" be RSD but it REALLY scared me and my mum!!

I hope you find something that works for you soon and please know that I am thinking of you and if you need anything, I am here for you!

Oh dear.....so you've had your swelling for a year??? I am so sorry you've got dystonia as well. I try so hard to keep moving my ankle around to maintain flexibility. Are you on any muscle relaxants??? I have been on them for over a year for another medical condition. I wonder if it hasn't helped keep my ankle pliable just having had it on board all this time???

The odd thing is that the color changes (for the most part) ONLY occur when I stand.....they are not present when I'm lying down. I'm hoping that is a good sign of this being a "mild" case. My foot still has the other symptoms (tingling, jabbing, electric shocks, getting hot) regardless of my position....it just only turns red when I stand (and stays that way the whole time I'm up......I can feel it and tell when it's getting worse). This disease is so mysterious......

I'm kind of weird anyway so take it when I tell you what happened. It was bad for the first 5 months. I learned to walk on my own again and one day......gone!! :O Just gone. I don't know why or how, it just did. Lots of rsd'ers have swelling and it stays with them, unfortunately.

As for the color change only being there when your foot is down is due to blood flow. When it's down the blood rushes down as well and because we have a lack of proper circulation that's when it shows. When you lay down your legs and feet are now elevated and thus look "normal" again. The first doc I saw hiked my leg and foot in the air and says "See, it's looking better already!" Well DUH!! You just elevated my leg and foot dumb butt!!!!! *rolls eyes* Geez..... So that's they "why" of why it only turns colors when the leg and foot are down.

My rsd started after I broke my kneecap on a broken handle at work. Unfortunately the ER had said my knee was only "badly bruised". Pffttt. I found out 8 months later after my first bone scan that it had been broken. It showed up on it plain as day! There shines like a beacon a healing fracture in the knee. *sigh* If I'd known that I sure as heck wouldn't have been walking on it a week and a half after I got hurt!!

I think most of us take a muscle relaxer. I've been on baclofen for about 3 years now. I think it has probably helped you. I started taking it because my jerking arms and legs got to the point I couldn't stand it anymore. You know how when you jerk a puppet's string it's arm or leg does that movement? That's why mine would do anytime, except it wouldn't stop for sometimes an hour or more. That was so aggravating! It rarely does it now but if I'm in a lot of pain or try to stand or walk too long, my left leg especially will start jerking and won't stop.

Hugs,

Karen

Thank you for your kind words, I really appreciate them ! Yes, my leg has been swollen for over a year now which is really frustrating as sometimes it feels like i've got a cast on my affected limb and I can't walk very well because of it. The swelling varies from day to day and to what I have been doing - if I have been doing more, the swelling seems to get worse and when the pain is worse, the swelling is worse - it's so frustrating!!!

I am not on any medications at the moment because non of them worked for me at all and the side-effects often outweighed the benefits so my doctor thought I was better off them. I have been on several muscle relaxants including Baclofen, Diazepam, Kenadrin, Propranolol etc but they didn't work and my doctor felt that they were making me way too "floppy" as I couldn't stay upright very well so I had to come off them almost straight away.

The Dystonia started almost straight away for me so I think that is what made it hard for me to move my leg ... the Dystonia didn't happen because I didn't move my leg but rather because I couldn't move my leg according to my Neurologist if that makes any sense! My doctors aren't sure whether the Dystonia started first or whether the RSD did - I think they both started at the same time to be honest but i'm not sure and don't think we ever will be!!

I really hope you get some much-needed pain relief real soon and I am keeping you in my thoughts and prayers! I'm glad to hear that the colour changes only happen when you have done too much at the moment - my leg seems as though it is forever blue or red so my mum calls it the "Rainbow Leg" lol.

If you need anything, please know that I am here for you and you can always PM me - i'm happy to help you if I can because I know how scary it is dealing with RSD!