Hi @kenhassen, Welcome to Connect. I only have the numbness in my legs and feet but not to extent that you do. I too have been dealing with it since my 40s but only got a diagnosis in my 70s since I had always been told it's probably nerve damage and there is nothing that can be done about the numbness. I was bummed out when I finally sought a diagnosis and it turned out to be idiopathic small fiber peripheral neuropathy and again I was told they didn't have any treatments to help with the numbness which was what brought me to Connect. I wanted to learn what others have shared. I'm happy you have found Connect as I know you are not alone with your experience.

It sounds like you don't have any pain or the gabapentin is controlling the pain. I was given gabapentin by my primary care doc before being diagnosed but stopped taking it after a couple of weeks because it wasn't helping the numbness at all. I talked with my PCP who met with her Mayo team and after meeting with them and answering a few questions about pain, they confirmed it won't do anything for numbness.

There are a couple of sites you might find helpful for learning more about neuropathy if you haven't already seen them.
-- Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy: https://www.foundationforpn.org/living-well/
-- Neuropathy Commons: https://neuropathycommons.org/neuropathy/neuropathy-overview

I've tried many different shoes to try and help with that spongy feeling when walking. The best I've tried are the shoes with zero drop soles which are similar to walking barefoot but your foot is protected by thin flat rubber soles. There are a lot of different brands but the ones I tried were Xero shoes. I switch between the zero drop soles and more normal shoes that are comfortable if I know I have to walk very far.

Have you used any walking aids like trekking or hiking poles for more stability?