- CRPS Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
- Interviews
Thea's interview
How did all start?
After a workplace accident which resulted in a bone contusion and three nerves in my arm being crushed.
Do you already have a diagnosis? How long did it take you to get it?
I received my official diagnosis 8 months after my accident, in August 2016, but it was suspected in May 2016. My occupational therapist attended a conference on CRPS and realized it was all of the symptoms I had been complaining about. From May, I began receiving treatment which included graded motor imagery exercises.
For what medical specialties have you been treated? What has been the most useful specialty for your?
I have received physiotherapy with graded motor imagery, occupational therapy, psychotherapy, hydrotherapy, family therapy and vocational training.
All of the above. My pain management clinic treats the whole person because CRPS affects your entire life.
What has been the most useful thing for you so far?
Graded motor imagery exercises have helped the most. It's helped me learn how to control my reaction to the pain and to lower my pain levels.
What have been your biggest difficulties?
Allodynia. Desensitization has not been as successful as I had hoped.
How has your social and family environment reacted? Have your social or family relationships changed?
CRPS has affected every aspect of my life. Ì am still coming to terms with the changes and working on accepting my diagnosis. It's not all negative, definitely not positive either. My life is a work in progress.
What things have you stopped doing?
Sports. I am starting to run again, weather permitting, but any contact sports like soccer or cycling I have given up. For now.
What do you think about the future?
I am still figuring that out.
What would you like to do if you didn’t have your condition?
Everything that I used to take for granted.
If you had to describe your life in a sentence, what would it be?
A work in progress.
Finally, what advice would you give to a person in a similar situation?
CRPS only takes what we let it. Fight it. Use meds if you must, but don't forget to use your body.
