Hi everyone....i'm the one that broke my left wrist & am 15 mos. out. The RSD has gone 2 my left foot. I have much pain but the swelling, discoloration, etc. has subsided. I'm still taking meds & seeing drs..... have any of u experienced just the pain???

Hi Nancy, I can't say that my swelling and discoloration are gone; they are not. But I can say they are better immediately after stellate blocks. I get one about every 2-3 months when my symptoms degrade. It is then that I will start to get a more pronounced return of the visable swelling and discoloration. The worst was before the blocks, though. It's sort of a blend. Less swelling and discoloration shortly after blocks, worse everything increasingly over the ensuing 2-3 months.

BTW, I think I saw that you are in Santa Monica. I am also in the South Bay!

Take care

thks 4 reply..... i'm in louisiana!

Oops. Well, that's just down the street from Santa Monica, isn't it? RSD must be distorting my memory and sense of geography!

I saw a couple doctors in LA when I was there though none I thought that highly of. I have some swelling but many times none and nothing others would comment on unless I point it out. You don't have to have all the rsd symptoms to have rsd. My pain is very high often times and my foot/calf/ankle looks normal. I still have rsd and pn.

I went many years, over 20, before I got any real swelling, and even now, it's not so major, or occasionally in my feet in the summer...

It's not like you hafto have swelling to have pain, they're not interlocked.
They're both symptoms, and can be independent of each other.
When I did have swelling, it didn't increase the pain (necessarily).
Just my story.

pete

The swelling in my main RSD site (rt ankle) is almost non-existent now, but it's still very painful. I still have a purple/mottled appearance over the whole foot, but no swelling or discoloration in the knee where it spread after my ankle. The secondary spot (my lower spine) still has some swelling, but no discoloration or temp change- lots of pain. I think the issue is that like any disease, people experience some of the symptoms at one time and other symptoms or all of them at others. Stick with oyur treatments and keep your doctor informed so he/she can help you out. Good luck!

My RSD started in my upper right extremity. I have symptoms through my right arm. My injury was in Nov of 2006. It has also spread through my cervical spine into my head (last fall), and I am fairly certain, to my right leg (last couple of months).

My only swelling to date has been in my right leg.

Everybody's RSD is different.

Wishing you the very best, Sandy

I have swelling in my left ankle/foot/lower limb...it really swells up during the day at work at the desk...I can't elevate above my heart as recommended because of the nature of my job...

The swelling recedes in the evening while a watch a couple of Seinfeld re-runs with my feet up. It swells when I walk (can't do that much walking, very little walking) and sometimes when I wake up it's a little swollen...My last MRI said there is atrophy ...so it's weird...sometimes my foot looks so thin and at other times it looks like a balloon. More recently though the swelling has increased because my aqua therapy sessions ran out(warm water pool) and the therapist thinks the (W.C) insurance won't re-authorized.

Warm water aqua therapy is (was) great!
(S)well !!! Enough for now!
Hope4thebest xo

Hi hope4thebest,
How about asking the WC for a small portable spa? It's not impossible. I've heard of it being granted. An attorney could definetly give them a nudge. I wasn't injured on WC, injured by a jerk of a Dr. I didn't sue. Didn't have the emotional energy. I have paid out of pocket tons of money for massage therapy and about to start HBOT-probably $10K
I've been paying $250 an hr. to the best Dr. who has helped me beyond works. Keep me out of a wheel chair. My toes started curling up and didn't touch the floor. He had me in our heated pool every day doing exercises. In about 4 months my toes were touching the ground again. I have decreased different meds and feel my pain from anxiety and stress have decreased by other methods of relaxation.
Hope WC gets you a small spa. They come in 110 electric and do wonders. My girlfriend has one.
Take care, loretta