Does anyone have shortness of breath with neuropathy?

Interesting i came across this,I am also dealing with shortness of breath. Did chemo and 15 rounds of radiation ( on left side) I truly believe one or both caused shortness of breath. I'm 63 and very hard to walk up one flight of steps.legs also are very fatigued. I have apt.with pulmonologist next week..will report here if they say there is a connection. Will be interested to know if more people are having issues. My treatment was in 2024. Really was hoping by now I'd be back to feeling pretty good not the case at all.

Amen to that, mensch (@mensch)! … although I've not attributed my shortness of breath to my idiopathic large-fiber PN; I've always attributed it to the year-long septic infection I suffered in 2024. My PN had pre-dated the infection, and I don't recall having much of an issue with shortness of breath before the infection. Now your post has got me wondering. I look forward to the replies you get from others. –Ray (@ray666)

Hello @mensch, I would like to add my welcome along with @ray666, @lynnpete and others. I'm not a medical expert but shortness of breath (dyspnea) can be a sign of autonomic neuropathy. Depending on how bad it is or if it's all the time it is definitely a conversation I would have with my doctor or neurologist.

Thought you all be able to relate to the following video of different people with neuropathy explaining how it affects them - https://www.foundationforpn.org/video-what-we-want-you-to-know-about-pn/.

In case you haven't seen these discussions and have shortness of breath, you might want to scan through them to learn what others have shared:
-- Anyone feel short of breath and have feet?: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/anyone-feel-short-of-breath-and-have-feet/
-- Difficulty breathing and neuropathy: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/difficulty-breathing-and-neuropathy/

@mensch Hey, thanks for posting this! I'm sorry you're dealing with this - yes, it absolutely can be! I deal with it, too. My hunch is that many others do, also. Hope you can get relief. Like @ray666 said above, I too look forward to hearing from others about this topic. And thanks @johnbishop for posting those articles - makes for some good night reading! 🙂

I have shortness of breath, too!!! My adult kids have remarked on it, I noticed but didn’t pay attention. When I hear myself mouth-breathing, huffing and puffing, I concentrate on “Smell the roses, blow out the candle” and can quickly get things under control. I never thought about it being related to the neuropathy, but it does happen when I’m not doing anything exerting.
Wow- this conversation is eye-opening. Thanks, John Bishop, for the links.

I have recently started to have shortness of breath. I was diagnosed with SFN 4 years ago, and now I’m wondering if this could be a symptom of the SFN. I’m still finding out and learning about this disease. This forum is very helpful. Thank you to all who post here.

Not that I know. I have been short of breath and blame it on 2 years of wearing mask for covid. I told my doctor and they had me do a breathing test and said I had no significant change from normal breathing. I use a menthol cough drop if I feel real tight. I do not keep cough drop in till gone as they can be hard on teeth. I use it long enough to free my breathing then I put it back in wrapper. Don't fall asleep with them it can choke you. Also allergies are bad and we have had a dry winter so far. That Don't help either.

@lockmith I have shortness of breath. I’m fine and then it hits me. I don’t know if it has to do with anxiety.

I take propranolol for anxiety. 10 mg. Three times a day. It reduces your heart rate. Helps with anxiety but it can make me feel short of breath cause the hearts not pumping as fast delivering less oxygen to the blood I would guess. I just deal with it. I do believe being up and around is better than sitting idol. I'm 70 and I still work because I like staying busy. Takes my mind off of me. I don't move fast but I make up for that by being steady.