I'd like to take this opportunity to tell others a little about RSD - Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy. It's a terrible nerve disease of the sympathetic nervous system for which there is no cure & very little treatment. What treatment is

I'd like to take this opportunity to tell others a little about RSD - Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy. It's a terrible nerve disease of the sympathetic nervous system for which there is no cure & very little treatment. What treatment is available is very, very painful!! Trust me, I know.... I've got RSD. I got it from a work injury in '99 when my right leg was severely cut; my ham-string tendon was completely severed. RSD also spreads through out your body. It's in both my legs now, my right arm & trying to spread into my left arm now,too. The pain associated with RSD is higher than that of a terminally ill cancer patient on the McGill Pain Scale. RSD affects children as young as 3 yrs. old. You can get it from a simple sprain, surgery, a broken bone, a cast that's too tight, & from lacerations.
Most people don't know that it even exists, let alone understand it. The name of it has recently been changed to CRPS types 1 & 2 (Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome). It was first called Causalgia because of the burning pain associated with it & they used to amputate the affected limb but found that amputation caused it to spread worse. This horrificly painful nerve disease has been around since the Civil War. I didn't know about it until I found out that I had it. There's not one single area of my life that's not affected by it.....not one.
There are several websites available with info about RSD. Two that I try to help with funding & get pamplets & brochures from to help promote awareness are:
www.rsdsa.org & www.rsdHope.org
Most people who get this are left with deformaties. I don't personally know any children who have RSD/CRPS, but I've seen some pictures and it's so awful!!! I can't imagine a young child going through what I have. Statisticly, most RSD victims are women. ( Just when ya thought monthly cycles were the worst!!)
Please, if you know someone who's suffering chronic ,burning pain, skin discoloration & sensitivity, tell them about this & have them talk to their Doctor about being evaluated for RSD/CRPS. It's not easy to diagnose & some Doctors don't want to admit it's existance, but it does exist!!
Alot of people in pain are told that the pain is in their heads or it's not as bad as they say it is; even family members & friends often times don't believe the person suffering this horrifically high pain level. Trust me,..... it exists!! It doesn't kill you but it'll make you wish you were dead. The number one cause of death with RSD victims is suicide. Please, educate yourself & others about RSD.