My name is Lexi and I am 18 years old and a freshman at
Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. I have RSD in my left leg, and I
have had it for about 2 and a half years now. My problems started long
before that though. It all began in 6th grade with a small ski fall.
I did something to my knee, but they aren't sure what it was. I was
on crutches for about a month and then I was back in sports, like I had been
before. I was a competitive swimmer and runner. The summer after
seventh grade, I began having severe knee pain, so I went to an orthopedic
surgeon, and he did arthroscopic surgery on it. I never really recovered
from this surgery. I did get back to track and swimming, but I was never quite
the same. Over the years, my pain worsened severely, whether this was all
RSD, I do not know. I took off the season from track my freshman year of
high school, and then I was determined to run sophomore year. I did run,
but I never competed, the pain was too bad. I took 6 or 7 advil before
every practice, and it did nothing for me. I went to a doctor at home, and
he suggested some radical surgery, so then I went for a second opinion. I
decided to let them do surgery right before I started my junior year of high
school. They once again did arthroscopic surgery, and they also did some
surgery on my IT band. After this surgery, the real RSD symptoms began.
My pain was so severe that I was on crutches for 6 weeks instead of 1-2,
and I couldn't bear to make myself to the recommended PT. My leg was
always purple, and a slight touch had me in tears. My mom kept calling the
docs who did the surgery, and the nurses and PA said that my symptoms were
normal. After two or three months of this, I finally went back to a PT i
trusted. He tried to help me strengthen my leg, and to get me back to
normal, once he began to really suspect that it was RSD he sent me to a
specialist. In March of that year, I had my first epidual block which gave
me the official diagnosis. The road since then has been filled with ups
and downs. I had one more epidual, 6 more LSBs, and every kind of PT and
med imaginable. In the past four months, I have been seeing a doc down
here in Atlanta and he has down 5 bier blocks, and one LSB. I am going to
have a radiofrequency block done in the near future. Throughout this
journey, I have gained a lot and I have lost a lot. I have struggled with
friendships, and yet, I have some of the best friends of my life. It is as
I always believe, that you can find good in every situation. That is my
story, as it stands now, and I am sure it will change on a daily basis, just as
all of your lives change.
