A man suffering a condition so excruciatingly painful it's dubbed 'suicide disease' left doctors baffled for four years because they couldn't work out the cause.

Charlie Moore, 21, from Frome, had to drop out of an apprenticeship at his dream workplace after the right side of his upper body suddenly became inflamed and swollen.

He visited A&E around 10 times in two years, "begging" doctors for a diagnosis and treatment.

Charlie has just been diagnosed with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) - a chronic pain condition that can cause severe pain in the arms, legs, hands or feet.

His consultant will be starting him on nerve blocks, which involves injecting medicine into the nerves to block pain signals, but there is no known cure.

CRPS is nicknamed the 'suicide disease' because of the prevalence of people taking their own life due to the pain.

Now, living on just £115-a-month Universal Credit, Charlie is raising money to afford to live with his health condition, as well as funding treatment.

Charlie, a freelance filmmaker who is out of work, said: “I thought the pain would go away - but it became so extreme, I ended up attempting suicide.”

At 18, Charlie dropped out of college to begin a video editing apprenticeship with MTV. Starting in 2020 and due to last two years, hee moved to London.

But in his second year, he started having muscle spasms, which turned into right-sided headaches.

Charlie Moore in hospital. Photo released November 6 2024. A man suffering from ‘suicide disease’ left doctors baffled for four years - because they couldn’t work out the cause of his excruciating pain. Charlie Moore, 21, had to drop out of an apprenticeship at his dream workplace, after the right side of his upper body suddenly became inflamed and swollen.He visited A&E “seven-to-10 times” in two years, “begging” doctors for a diagnosis and treatment. But clinicians couldn’t work out what was wrong with him - while his life was left “in tatters.”
Charlie Moore in hospital (Photo: Charlie Moore/SWNS) (Charlie Moore / SWNS)

Charlie's doctor told him to treat the headaches with paracetamol and ibuprofen and placed him on a six-month waiting list to see a neurologist for an MRI.

He said: "I mainly get it in my right arm, right hand, it spreads all the way up into my shoulders, neck muscles and my head.

"The pain feels like tensing your muscles so hard, they feel like they're going to rip open from the inside.”

Charlie dropped out of his apprenticeship in mid-2022 and tried to work as a freelance filmmaker.

He says his illness came to a head after a "disastrous" work trip to Spain.

When Charlie came back from his trip, plans were put in place to move him back to Frome with his family.

He struggled to receive a diagnosis - and says he wrote letters to his MP and spoke to the head of his GP surgery to be prescribed medication, like oral morphine.

In late 2023, Charlie even attempted to take his own life due to his debilitating pain - prompting him to seek answers at the London Pain Clinic on Harley Street.

He said: "I went through a lot of blood tests to rule out lots of conditions - like carpal tunnel syndrome."

He's been receiving physiotherapy for CRPS and will continue to do so on a weekly basis.

His consultant started him on nerve blocks from November 4.

Charlie added: "I've been able to pay for my nerve blocks with my GoFundMe - but I'm still raising money for some new camera equipment, and to be able to live independently.”

Charlie's GoFundMe link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-charlie-overcome-chronic-msk-pain-reclaim-his-career?cdn-cache=0