Is this true "in many cases it's just a matter of time till things either get better or it goes away altogether"? I've heard of people getting better and in some total remission, however, I'm hesitant to say I've read anywhere the numbers are in the "many", quite the opposite. Am I wrong in this? I hope I am.
My wife has had RSD since 2002 and is crippled from the desease. Her broken right arm has been in a brace for 6 years and has spread into her legs and back. She's been denied SSDI for 3 years, attorneys and a Congressman on board and still rejections here in Virginia. This was not a WC case, no lawsuits etc., just a simple fall and broken wrist. She's a college grad with a 25 year continuous work history.

Very few people achieve remission. There are few I've known who had lidocaine infusions and it beat back the rsd enough that they're working again full time but not in remission. They are still taking pain meds and other meds just not as many. Keith Orsini at RSD Hope had a round of HBOT that beat back his pain but I don't know how he's doing now. He quit posting to the blog he began on his HBOT treatments. Don't know whether the effects stayed with him or went away and he ended up as bad as he was to begin with.

As to the SSDI, I can't believe she can't get it! That's utter BS! RSD is on the list of "approved" disabilities and has been for a few years now. I don't understand why she isn't being approved. It's not like she can still walk around freely and they can look at her and say, "Oh, she can still walk and move fine so therefore she can work." *rolls eyes* They would say that about me if I even qualified but since I don't it doesn't matter. I look quite "normal." lol I'll keep her and you in my thoughts that you get "justice" soon!!

Hugs,

Karen

I think it is because of a few reasons. One, my wife has not been in front of a judge yet. This is our goal to get a hearing in front of a judge, not a kid who is on auto pilot and rejects out of hand, this is how my wife's lawyer put it. Two, I think Virginia is one state that it is more difficult to receive because it is in a region loaded with folks trying to receive SSDI, mid atlantic issue. Three, I'm not sure what records these SS people are viewing. My fear is that these records are incomplete and harken back to those 4 years my wife worked everyday in severe pain until she was fired, because of a lack of treatment from her doctors at the time using four different insurance companies over those many years. It was her doctor's refusal to sign a two year disability paper that clinched her termination. It was only after she was fired from her job at a very large company and when I picked up insurance at my employment to cover her that she received immediate, good treatment overnight using different doctors. There is no doubt that this company wanted her gone. She worked for them nearly 15 years, she told them she was diagnosed with RSD and when she did they increased her work load both administratively and volunteered her to help move office equipment and or anything that would put her thru pain. Complaints to HR made things worse.
All the letters of rejection from SS state that they realize she has RSD but that should not stop her from working. So my hunch is something is in those records and most likely from bad doctors from the past. Her next appeal is going to be in front of a judge in the next year. Our lawyer has stated that she will receive those records for us to view several months before the hearing.

I sounds as if that may be the root of the problem Jimking. The wc docs were writing idiotic stuff in my records because wc told them to and if I had qualified for SSDI I think it would have prevented me from getting it too. You won't know until you read those records but I believe you are right in thinking there is something there.

Hugs,

Karen