Woman left wheelchair-bound after 'suicide disease' led to her hand and leg being amputated

Daily Mail​

21-04-2025

A woman chose to have her right hand amputated after a simple inch-long dog scratch left her battling the 'suicide disease'.
Gill Haddington, 48, had her right leg amputated below the knee on May 11, 2017, after dropping a perfume bottle on her foot.
The accident, which most would shrug off, triggered complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), an agonising and debilitating condition which would not go away.
Four years later, on May 11, 2021, Gill elected to have her right hand amputated—after her dog, springer spaniel-pug-beagle crossbreed Bella, seven, gave her a one-inch scratch, triggering another flare-up of CRPS.
Despite the traumatic events, Gill says she feels like her 'normal self' again, and is preparing to swim one mile across Lake Windermere, Cumbria.
Gill, who is unemployed due to her disabilities, from Morecambe, Lancashire, said: 'The pain of CRPS is excruciating - I've had so many ups and downs.
'I'm incredibly lucky things have turned out the way they did, though.
'Once I was fully awake after my first amputation—I'd gone from quiet and in pain to laughing and joking.
'My partner looked at me, and said: 'We've got the old Gill back.'
'And I feel like I am - as normal as I can be with this condition, anyway.'
Gill had her first accident in September 2015—in which she dropped a perfume bottle on the top of her right foot.
Having suffered from back pain for 16 years prior, Gill had started to walk on crutches for the first time that year - after being in a wheelchair since July.
Thinking she'd broken her foot, her partner, salesman Pete, 67, drove her to A&E at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary, Lancaster.
An X-ray confirmed there was no fracture and she was reassured her foot was 'fine' being being sent home.
'Over the next six-to-nine months, my foot began to twist at a 90-degree angle,' Gill recalled.
'It got to the point where you could actually see bone coming through. I was getting a lot of blisters and ulcers which started to spread up to my ankle.
'I was on 30 different pain medications a day—but they didn't even touch the sides.'
Gill was eventually diagnosed with CRPS in 2016, after undergoing scans at the Westmorland General Hospital, Morecambe.
The poorly understood condition, which causes persistent severe and disabling pain, affects roughly 16,000 people in the UK.
Most cases are triggered by an injury, but the resulting pain is much more severe and long-lasting than normal.
The pain typically affects one limb, but it can sometimes spread to other parts of the body.
The skin of the affected body part can become so sensitive that a slight touch, bump or even a change in temperature can cause intense pain.
Affected areas can also become swollen, stiff or undergo fluctuating changes in colour or temperature.
CRPS often gradually improves over time but some sufferers experience pain for many years.
It is sometimes referred to as the 'suicide disease' due to the psychological distress it can cause, which leads some to consider ending their lives.
On May 11, 2017, Gill elected to have her right leg amputated below the knee - at the Royal Preston Hospital, Lancashire.
She now walks with a prosthetic leg, and occasionally uses a wheelchair.
But just three years later, in March 2020, her CRPS flared up again - after her dog, Bella, gave her a mild, 1in scratch on her right hand.
'She just got excited to see me, bless her,' Gill added. 'It was the tiniest scratch, literally an inch long.
'But I knew, as soon as the blisters started, it was going to be the same as my leg.'
Despite undergoing physiotherapy for eight months, Gill became unable to open her right hand beyond a fist.
She says the pain was so bad, she couldn't focus on anything, and she was in constant agony.
On May 11, 2021, exactly four years after her first amputation, Gill opted to get her right hand amputated as well.
She said: 'I felt immediately afterwards like I got my life back.
'I just feel sorry for people having to live through this pain, who haven't had the opportunity to undergo an elective amputation yet.'
Throughout her recovery journey, Gill credits her support group, Enable, with 'saving her life.'
She's been able to make friends with like-minded people with limb differences and other disabilities, and the group meets five days a week.
On June 14, 2025, she's aiming to complete the one mile Great North Swim, in Lake Windermere, in order to raise money for the group.
She added: 'I love being in the water, it makes me feel good. It's going to be very challenging, but worth it.'
WHAT IS COMPLEX REGIONAL PAIN SYNDROME?
Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a condition that causes extreme discomfort that does not ease.
It usually affects just one arm or leg following an earlier injury, such as a fracture or sprain with no nerve damage, or nerve damage to a limb.
The body's reaction is much stronger than usual and often causes pain worse than the original injury.
CRPS' exact prevalence is unclear, however, a study claimed up to one in 3,800 people in the UK develop the condition each year.
And in the US, between 5.5 and 26.2 people suffer from CRPS per 100,000 every year.
What are the symptoms?
Pain is the main symptom, which may be burning, stabbing, stinging or throbbing.
The affected limb is usually sensitive to touch, with even clothing causing agony.
CRPS also causes swelling that can lead to stiffness, limb weakness and jerky movements. Joints may also appear redder or warmer than usual.
Many CRPS patients become anxious or depressed.
What causes CRPS?
CRPS' cause is unclear but is thought to be due to the nerves in the affected area becoming more sensitive, which may change the pain pathways between the limb and the brain.
Rarely, stroke or multiple operations to the limb can be to blame.
In one out of 10 cases there is no obvious cause.
What are patients' treatment options?
There is no one treatment. Therapies aim to maintain movement through rehabilitation and pain relief.
This may include physio and occupational therapies, coping strategies and medications.