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My name is Brittani, and I was diagnosed with CRPS when I was 11 following a fall down the stairs that caused me to break my left heel. Four years later, I got it in my right hand, and two years after that I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia to explain the full-body pain (though I still think full-body CRPS makes more sense.) I've never encountered anyone else who developed CRPS as a child! I'm so sorry that happened to you, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy, but it's nice to know I'm not alone!

I'm new to Reddit (I literally signed up just so I could comment back to you after my friend sent me the thread), is there a way to private message or anything? I'd love to exchange contact info so we can swap war stories and discuss treatment options! Like I said, I've never found anyone else who was diagnosed as a child, and I rarely encounter anyone near my age who is dealing with it. (I'm 27.) Want to be friends? Lol

I was diagnosed with CRPS when I was in 5th grade. The impact on my education was devastating. I barely made it through high school. I missed more than 30 days of school my freshman and sophomore years. My junior year I missed 6 months of school, during which time I had teachers come to my house to tutor me so I could try to keep up. My senior year I missed 3 months of school, but somehow I still managed to graduate on time with a 4.0 GPA. But the most devastating aspect of dealing with chronic pain in grade school was the bullying. Kids are mean, and they could not understand how I could be fine one day and need a wheelchair the next. I was constantly accused of faking for attention. All I wanted in the world was to be normal, and I tried so hard to at least appear normal... but it was never enough. I didn't "look" sick. My coping mechanism of cracking jokes when I hurt most did more damage to my credibility. My senior year, there was a boy who waited in the lobby for my to come in every day and he'd shout things like "look there's the cripple girl" and "where's your wheelchair, cripple girl?" and "you should just kill yourself, cripple girl. No one likes you, no one wants you here, why don't you do us all a favor and die." It was horrible. I had no friends, my teachers never stepped in to stop it, it was hell.

College presented a whole different set of obstacles. Getting around, especially in Winter, when you can't wheel yourself where you need to go and everyone else is too busy to help you... it was hard. I never completed a semester without dropping a minimum of one class. I had to get special permission to miss more classes that allowed and complete assignments from home. After 4 years, I only had enough credits to be a sophomore. I ended up dropping out. Within the year, I was forced to apply for social security disability because I couldn't keep a job to support myself. That was four years ago, and I'm still fighting for approval, which is a whole other can of worms.

There is no aspect of my life that is not impacted by this disease. But its influence on my education, and subsequent employment, has by far been the most devastating.