Hi there, I was diagnosed with CRPS Type 2 (Causalgia) in August of 2018 although it actually developed after my right TKR in May of 2017. The only reasons I was diagnosed? I knew something was wrong with my body and it wasn't going away and getting "better with physical therapy." It wasn't in my head. I worked in the healthcare field as a pharmacist for 22 years and knew how it operated, especially in the rural state of Wyoming where it is hard to get informed care. I never gave up even after eight healthcare providers told me I was "normal" or the pain would subside with "time and rest," even after fourteen months.
To this day, I still have to do my own research for pain management and treatment and consult my neurologists and primary care before accepting recommendations from my current pain management provider because she isn't versed in the latest therapies for CRPS Treatment especially with someone who has grand-mal seizure disorder and migraines as well as being a recurrent high-risk C difficile infectious colitis patient.
She's made serious treatment errors that I've only managed to stop on my own by calling my other doctors and consulting my PT myself BEFORE taking the medications and I'M a pharmacist! Can you imagine what could have happened to someone who wasn't a healthcare provider?
The point is to do your own research. Be informed and know about your health, medications, conditions, and treatment options before you go to the doctors and definitely before you start them. Consult ALL your providers! Don't assume anything is being done on your behalf.
It can save your life.