‘Tis the season!
Picture it. Salem, Massachusetts. It’s 1692 and suddenly, things have gone horribly, horribly wrong for you. In the middle of the night, a small band of angry men storm into your cottage!
You’re violently dragged out of bed!
They whip your body to a pulp!
Moments later, racked in pain, they toss your body into a wagon and haul you off to jail!
Could it get any worse?! Oh, yeah…!
Two days later, you’ve been found guilty of practicing witchcraft by a judge and jury thanks to the “testimony” of two hysterical little girls!
Now what?! You must spend the remainder of your days in jail, bound to the wall in shackles. And no matter how hard you try, you can NOT escape the pain. It’s excruciating.
Alone in the dark, you sob uncontrollably for help, but no one comes to your rescue.
Okay. Okay, forgive me, Halloween just passed and I felt compelled to help spread awareness about a rare disorder called: complex regional pain syndrome and reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome (CRPS/RSD).
Now do you follow me? Get the connection to the alleged “witch” and her pain?
From what I’ve learned, RSD is basically an outdated term to describe a type of CRPS, which is a chronic condition where patients experience excruciating pain—often in the form of a SEVERE burning sensation in their arm, leg, hand, or foot. A more appropriate term for RSD is called Type l CRPS and is usually the result of physical trauma to tissue, but it’s not connected to actual nerve injury. But with Type ll CRPS, it happens as a result from a physical injury that does involve nerve damage.
I can only imagine how difficult it must be to live in chronic pain, and my heart goes out to anyone who lives with CRPS/RSD. And based on what I’ve learned just recently, the condition varies; sometimes the symptoms are mild-to-moderate, and they improve over time. Others as we know, aren’t quite so lucky and could face a lifetime of disability, a lifetime of physical and emotional pain.
That’s why I’m a supporter of anyone who attended the 2nd Annual Central New Jersey RSD/CRPS Walk of Hope for a Cure, which took place, Sunday, November 1st, 2015. The RSDSA is helping to raise awareness, hope, education, and inspiration for a good cause!
