Introduction

This book evolved from a diary which I began to write after a crush injury to my right hand. It started out as an exercise in utilising my left hand and teaching it how to write. After developing Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) it became an important daily ritual which kept me somewhat sane during an excruciatingly painful year. 

I felt it important to record the reaction to my plight from those in the medical profession, most of who had not heard of CRPS.  There were some who were very interested and wanted to learn as much as possible. There were others who had neither heard of it, nor showed any interest in finding out about it. 

For this reason I hope my findings will be helpful to anyone with this confusing and extremly painful condition; especially those who may be suffering, not only the terrifying symptoms, but the attitudes of some health professionals due to a lack of awareness. 

The book is in chronological order in the hope that healthcare professionals who are not familiar with CRPS might benefit from my feedback as the condition developed. The fact that I had disproportionate pain symptoms at times seemed to alienate me, which was psychologically quite traumatic.

There is a section at the back of the book which contains definitions, journal articles, and descriptions of various therapies, contact numbers and links. I hope that this section will provide an overview of the history and philosophy of these therapies. I have to admit that until I began my research for this book I knew very little about most of them. What I hope to show is the common quest of all these disciplines, which is to heal the whole person and not just isolated symptoms.

It is important to say that I wanted to stick strictly to my experience and avoid including other methods which have been found to be useful, but of which I have no personal experience. Therefore the articles in the Manual section were chosen because they had particular relevance to me.

I would like to say here and reiterate all the way through the book that this is a record of how I dealt with my CRPS and anyone wishing to act on information in this book should discuss any decisions with a Healthcare Professional.

As far as treatments like Acupuncture are concerned, my suggestion would be to request a referral from their GP, in writing if possible. My hope is that if enough people request these kinds of holistic therapies, they will become more widely adopted and funded.

Sunny Boshoff