Ketamine helps Marquette student dealing with chronic pain

MILWAUKEE - The coronavirus pandemic has been stressful for many, but there's a different type of challenge for those dealing with chronic pain, like Marquette University freshman Josie Moore.

For Moore, each step is a struggle "that not many people see." 

Josie Moore

Moore suffers from Complex Regional Pain Syndrome — or CRPS. It's a chronic pain disease that develops after an injury.

"It got so debilitating, to the point when she came to me, she was using a wheelchair," Deanna Frazier said.

With the goal to walk at high school graduation, and after trying every type of treatment she could find, Moore went to Ketamine Wellness Center in Naperville, Illinois as the very first patient in February.

Josie Moore

"After a few rounds of Ketamine, my pain decreased enough to start using crutches again," Moore said.

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The treatment has worked for her, and after walking to get her diploma, she hopes her story will motivate others with chronic pain during the pandemic, with COVID-19 especially hard on people dealing with a chronic condition — both physically and mentally.

Deanna Frazier

"It can cause flares for people just because you’re under more stress than you would typically be," Frazier said.

"It gets a lot worse when I’m under stress or anxiety, and along with that, the weather change," Moore said.

But Moore is turning the pandemic into a positive. With more time at home, she's able to practice walking around the house, relying on just one crutch.

Josie Moore

Moore said she wants to shine a positive outlook for other patients during a time that can be so dark.

"There is something out there to help, and to keep trying and not give up," she said.

Moore said she's always been interested in how the human body works, but her condition solidified what she wants to do after college. She is studying to work in a research lab.