Teacher told she will never work again after classroom attack

Teacher told she will never work again after classroom attackSophie has been left with one of the most painful medical conditionsCommentsNewsNeil Shaw Assistant Editor (Money and Lifestyle)07:30, 17 Apr 2026View 5 ImagesSophie ColeA number of times throughout the day, Sophie Cole looks down to her left hand to check that it hasn’t been burnt off. She’s in so much pain, she often feels that it’s on fire. “It feels like it is in flames at the same time as being torn with a cheese grater. I frequently check if it’s still there as it feels like it’s been burnt off me,” says Sophie, 32, from Cork.‌“Then there is a feeling of electric shocks shooting up the arm, as well as a heaviness and deadness. Being in that much agony constantly causes migraines too. I’ve been told I will never be free of pain.”‌Sophie's painb stems from an assault in 2022 when Sophie leant down to the floor to clear up some spilled water while working as a Special Needs teacher. “I knelt beside a child, put my hand on the table to balance myself, and when I did that my hand was grabbed and slammed into a steel table. In that moment, my life changed as I knew it,” she says.‌View 5 ImagesSophie has been told she will never work again after the assaultFollowing the incident, for which she does not hold the child responsible , Sophie was diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is considered one of the most painful conditions known to medicine. It ranks higher than childbirth on the McGill pain scale and has been described as 'the suicide disease’ due to its extreme and unrelenting nature.Sophie has been left permanently disabled and with her life irrevocably changed. She can no longer drive or work, and spends much of her time travelling around the country attending hospital appointments, visiting different doctors and consultants in the hope of reducing the pain.‌She has been told the condition could spread throughout her body. The financial impact has also been significant. Soph...