Gina, Survival, Medical Harm, and 25 Years of Living With CRPS
Content Note: This story includes discussion of medical trauma, suicide attempt, and long-term chronic pain.
My name is Gina Marie Guerre, and this is my story of living with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome.
My CRPS began after a Harley motorcycle accident in Mammoth, California. My left hand was badly injured and required surgery to remove gravel from the wound. I stayed in the hospital for nearly a week and, on the surface, my hand appeared to heal well. But the pain never went away.
Instead, it intensified. I began experiencing severe nerve pain, electrical sensations, stabbing feelings, and an inability to bend my fingers despite physical therapy, but nothing helped.
During a physical therapy session, my therapist shared that she had recently learned about a condition called Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD), now known as CRPS. That moment changed everything. My doctor located one of the only specialists in California treating CRPS at the time.
I underwent surgery for a spinal cord stimulator, a device intended to interrupt pain signals. Unfortunately, the procedure caused more harm than relief. My pain worsened and began spreading. Later, I learned the device had been improperly placed, as the leads were far too long for my body, and the treatment itself was not appropriate for upper-body CRPS. After two years, I had the device removed.
By that point, my CRPS had spread throughout my left side and began mirroring on the right. I developed additional serious health conditions, including systemic scleroderma. My immune system seemed to break down, and I was placed on extremely heavy medications.
The pain, loss of mobility, and constant confinement to bed became unbearable. I reached a point where I felt I could not continue living under those conditions. I survived a suicide attempt, but the next day, when I woke up, I was hospitalized and later transferred between facilities that did not understand CRPS. I was often treated as though my pain was addiction rather than illness.
Eventually, with the help of my husband and a physician at UCLA, I was able to leave that system and begin rebuilding my life. I slowly got myself off medications that were harming me and found a treatment plan that allowed me to regain some mobility and independence.
Being able to walk again, even with a cane, was a moment of profound joy.
It will be 25 years of living with CRPS on May 9th of this year (2026). Over the years, I have nearly lost my life multiple times due to severe complications, infections, and sepsis. CRPS has affected every part of my body and my immune system, but it has not taken everything from me.
Today, I can enjoy life again. I have five grandchildren, and I pray to live long enough to one day meet great-grandchildren. I am deeply grateful that I survived and that I can share this story with others who may feel hopeless.
CRPS is often called “the suicide disease,” but I am living proof that survival is possible, even after unimaginable pain. If my story helps even one person feel less alone, then sharing it is worth it.
Thank you for the opportunity of sharing my story with you, and hopefully others.
— Gina Marie Guerre