Hi @grandmar -- Ronnie. My husband John has dealt with Sensory Periphery Neuropathy for 20 years. His neuropathy is due to a genetic disease -- Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT). You can find more information on CMT at the following:
https://www.foundationforpn.org/what-is-peripheral-neuropathy/causes/heredity-disorders/
https://www.cmtausa.org/understanding-cmt/what-is-cmt/
John's neuropathy does not cause pain; however, he has NO feeling below both knees -- He broke a toe last December, and realized it only in the evening, when he took his socks off and saw half of his foot was red and swollen.
In spite of this severe case of neuropathy, John walks "normally", drives "normally", and has no problem on stairs. This is how he has managed to remain so capable: He wore athletic ankle weights for 12 years, every day. This allowed him to strengthen his leg muscles and "teach" other parts of the body to "feel" changes in movement and ground contour. In fact, when asked how is he capable to drive and walk, in spite of not having any feelings in his lower legs, John says he "feels movement with his knees".
Yes, he does have occasional problems and he wears compression socks to prevent swelling.
Hope this helps Ronnie! A hug .... --Dee