Personal Stories

Diane Z.

Diane was diagnosed with Central Post-Stroke Pain and shares what it's like trying to communicate what her pain feels like.

Dorothy K.

I’m 73 and retired. I’ve always enjoyed travelling and have called 3 different provinces my home. I stay physically active and enjoy learning and being around other people. I also have Type 2 Diabetes and diabetic neuropathy.

I describe the neuropathic pain as burning cold or freezing hot.  It’s sort of like when you come indoors after being out on a very col...

J. Hawthorne

I am 59 years young and have had Type 2 Diabetes for the past 15 years. But that’s not where my journey began. I first noticed a problem when I developed a very sharp, persistent, pain in the corner of the big toe of my left foot. Slowly, the pain progressed to the top of my foot. Eventually, it spread to my right foot, to my ankles and my lower legs. The pain changed from the feeling of ...

Austyn Brackett

I’m a 28 year old psychology student from Nanaimo, BC. I’ve lived here my whole life. Growing up, I was an elite athlete. I was always into sports. But in 2008, I was injured. It was a brachial plexus nerve avulsion nerve injury, which are the nerves in my shoulder and arm. There was immediately an intense pain and I went into shock. I didn’t know what was going on.

Marisa Gettas’ Story

I was an active, outgoing, sporty kid. At 12, I was diagnosed with scoliosis. I wore a brace for 22 hours a day for 3 years. At the age of 16, when I stopped growing, my brace was able to come off. My curves were not bad enough for surgery so I was in “wait and see mode”. I was able to carry on with normal teenage life and even played competitive basketball at the Ontario level up until I was 1...

'Old Fart' William's Story

I am 72 years old and live alone in a single family bungalow in Peterborough. I eat too much, drink too much, and get too little exercise. I am a retired teacher and have lived alone since my wife died in 2000. I am a fat old fart who lives a fairly circumscribed life - only partly due to my neuropathy. Right now my sciatica is flaring up and is far more debilitating.

John's Story

At 65 years old, I was an active, 6’4” recreational rugby player. I’d always enjoyed good health and lived a healthy lifestyle. Now, 8 years later, I’ve been forced to slow down a little. 

It started towards the end of my career, when I was working from home. I occasionally had to make the long drive between my home office in Peterborough and our head o...

Amber Mitchell's Story

I was diagnosed with type I diabetes in 1987. Now, at 39, I've faced just about every complication you can think of, short of amputation; I've been blind a couple of times, I've had a kidney transplant, I was on dialysis for 5 years and have some nerve damage as well. I also had a herniated disc last year and am trying to manage my sciatic pain with steroid shots.

I've faced so many ...