Complex Regional Pain Syndrome

Our guest this week is Christine James.  Christine is a mother to two daughters, 19 and 23, a nurse of 8 ½ years and now a chronic pain patient.  She was happy to take the time to speak with us in order to bring awareness to a rare and largely unknown disease: CRPS or Complex Regional Pain Syndrome. As a nurse she worked in the fields of home health, acute medical, psych, long term care, dialysis; and has floated to many other units within hospitals. She has worked at the bedside and have also held supervisory positions. Passionate about her career as a nurse, she hopes to get well enough to work again. In her 20’s she was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease and osteoarthritis of the spine. Over the course of many years she went through many procedures and treatments due to lumbar disc herniations to include six back surgeries- one of which resulted in permanent damage to her L-5/S-1 nerve root resulting in permanent right foot drop, and one of which was a fusion of L-5/S-1 using four screws and two rods. After walking 10 years with foot drop and working as a nurse the instability and condition in her right ankle caused constant swelling and pain which led her to seek further treatment. It was found that her joint was arthritic and the bones were collapsing out of position. Her Achilles tendon was also found to be too tight. On March 11, 2024 she underwent a right Achilles tendon release, tendon transfer to improve foot drop.  Three weeks later the symptoms of CRPS were recognized by her surgeon and she was diagnosed on April 8, 2024. Due to her foundation of knowledge as a nurse and due to her drive to get better, she joined multiple social media platforms in search of how to find the treatment she needed and through that process she also began helping others learn about this disease. When she is feeling healthy, she enjoys many creative hobbies, gardening, and is an avid concertgoer. She has two cats, & lives with her boyfriend in Michigan.  They are currently struggling to make it through this difficult time with her health. Financial issues have become bad enough that she sold personal items, used food pantries, and started a gofundme. She is currently active in Facebook groups and has a TikTok account that she uses to network with others that have CRPS, chronic pain, and chronic illness. ​She is grateful to participate in the online community in any way to bring awareness and understanding to CRPS sufferers.