Teen With 'Suicide Disease' Says Rare Disorder Feels as Painful as Giving Birth Every Day

suicide disease Complex Regional Pain Syndrome CRPS Jack Puttock Mayo Clinic McGill Pain Scale chronic pain pain of childbirth Lidocaine Steroid Injection Spero Clinic Arkansas vagus nerve stimulation treatment

By Lili Scott , Parent Herald Jan 31, 10:24 pm

Photo: (Photo : Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)

Jack Puttock, an 18-year-old boy from Bedfordshire, suffers from a rare condition, dubbed the "suicide disease," which brings unbearable pain on the same level as giving birth every day.

The teenager hopes to raise funds to treat this condition in the United States. Puttock knows that this treatment will change his life after enduring Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) for more than two years.

How did Jack Acquire his Suicide Disease?

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome is a type of uncommon, chronic pain that affects either the arms or legs. According to Mayo Clinic, not much is still understood about this rare disorder, but it has been called the "suicide disease" since those who experience the pain feel tortured by the symptoms. Some patients take their own lives to end their misery, hence its moniker.

A study published in the Korean Journal of Pain in 2021 stated that most patients with CRPS are at risk of suicide. CRPS develops because of physical trauma from an injury, surgery, or after suffering from a heart attack. Mayo Clinic described the pain of CRPS as "out of proportion."

In Puttock's case, his pain feels like his limbs are constantly submerged in boiling water. On the McGill Pain Scale, his pain level has been measured at around 42 out of 50. On the same scale, the pain of childbirth is at 40 out of 50.

Puttock didn't always have the suicide disease. He developed CRPS after an arm injury in early 2019. He tried to seek treatments in the U.K. because the injury was "debilitating, scary and frustrating," yet all of the doctors he sought help from dismissed his condition as all in his mind even as he also developed seizures, severe headache, and a disorder in his gastrointestinal tract.

The teen said that none of the drugs prescribed to him worked, so he was pushed to try even unlicensed medications, as well as a more invasive Lidocaine Steroid Injection. There are also nights when the pain becomes so unbearable that he can only get two or three hours of sleep even with a sedative.

A Life-Changing Treatment in Arkansas

In his GoFundMe page, Puttock said that he would need at least $68,000 to get a vagus nerve stimulation treatment at the Spero Clinic in Arkansas. This specialized procedure involves implanting a device that will send electrical energy to the vagus nerve. It's recommended for patients who no longer respond to medication.

Puttock plans to travel to the U.S. in 2023 but to achieve his goal; he needs the public's help. He also said that his private insurance would not cover the cost of the treatment given its high price.

"This treatment has the potential to change my life," the 18-year-old said. "I know it's a large sum of money but no matter how small the amount, it helps get me to my end goal of living a pain-free life."