Thursday, August 19, 2010

I have (finally) been diagnosed with CRPS and am looking for advice on safe, effective ways of exercising?

I have CRPS which causes severe pain in my right lower leg. I have mostly lost use of my right foot. I do physical therapy exercises, however I'm looking for exercises I can do to help me lose weight as the decreased mobility has caused me to gain. I do a lot of walking still, however I need something very low impact that will give me results. Any advice would be much appreciated.I have (finally) been diagnosed with CRPS and am looking for advice on safe, effective ways of exercising?
I would suggest swimming. Swimming was the only thing I could do while I had my RSD/CRPS. Keeping off the weight with RSD/CRPS can be very challenging because the pain is so severe, and most of the medications that most of us are on cause you to gain weight. I would also talk to your doctor to see what they suggest, but depending on how severe your pain is you may be limited as to what you can do. With my pain I had to limit my intake, and exercise as much as possible. I was able to swim with my pain (and now that I'm in remission I still swim) so that would be my suggestion to you. Good luck!I have (finally) been diagnosed with CRPS and am looking for advice on safe, effective ways of exercising?
I had a spinal cord stimulator implanted in for my CRPS/RSD and am scheduled to begin trials for a pump in a couple of months time. I have had success for my right hand.. Source(s):


8 years of CRPS/RSD

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Complex regional pain syndrome can be really painful and you can get really disheartrned about doing anything.





But the good news is you CAN adapt to live your life around this, and occupational/physical therapy is part of the treatment process so you should have been referred to a team by now. They will take you through a lot of the stuff you need to know.





First of all lets concentrate on cardio excercises. Non or low impact is of course a must, swimming is perfect for this. But since you say you can walk normally, I would suggest a cross trainer too, these machines give the same cardio benefits as a treadmill, but there is no impact as you are 'swinging' your arms and legs.





Second of all it is important you strengthen your muscles. Use light weights if you have access to them, or do leg raises, sit ups, etc. Your physio will be able to take you through all the free training excercises that are available, but it is possible.
A water based program...specifically, if you can find a poor that is certified by the national arthritis foundation (I know you don't have arthritis, but these pools are certified to be kept at a warmer temperature, which can be helpful for those with CRPS) would probably be the best.

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