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Member Neuropathy Journey Stories: What's Yours?
Neuropathy | Last Active: Nov 23 5:30pm | Replies (573)Comment receiving replies
@ray666 My first indication that something was going on was a tingling sensation in my feet and legs. After some time I went to the neurologist, who did a nerve conduction test and determined that I had pn. Over the past ten years, the diagnosis has been refined as it moved on to pain, then burning in the balls of my feet, and slowly included the tops and bottoms of my feet. Several months ago pain moved up into my ankles. Tingling and pins and needles have been the first sign in each area, and those sensations now are above my knees.
There are quite a few kinds of neuropathy, with different symptoms. I don't know if balance is typical of pn, but for me, it's one of several signs of another neuropathy, autonomic neuropathy.
Have you had other symptoms beside balance? What tests did your neurologist do? I like the way you described your "vertigo" as standing on a ship. I need to remember that because I have a hard time describing it to my doctors.
Jim
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Hello, @jimhd. Thanks for writing.
My first sensations were and continue to be exclusively balance, the ol' wobbly gait. Since it began "quietly," I didn't pay it much attention. That may be as much as 10 years ago. I say it's gotten worse because it has, but not because of pain or tingling or a lessening of sensation in my feet. I've often chalked it up to "bad knees."
I've terrible knees. the right one is an implant, but I've lots of arthritic achiness around the implant; the left knee is my "birth" knee (ha!), and it too is smitten with arthritis. Couple bad knees to severely flat feet and you have got a recipe for locomotion problems. Until recently, that's what I thought my balance issues are caused by: locomotion problems, thanks to the knees and feet.
And it may still be that what's causing my wobbly gait. Or it may be some strain of PN. (My brother had diagnosed PN. He also had no sensation in the bottoms of his feet and lots of pain up and down his legs.)
"Standing on a ship in a rolling sea" is the best I've come up with. I thought of it one night in a heaving sea when I wasn't feeling wobbly otherwise. Waling the deck and having to catch myself from pitching right or left, I thought, Whoa! This is exactly what it feels like when my balance s all screwy!
Again, Jim, thanks for getting in touch. Let's talk again one of these days. It's nice to know I'm not alone in this!
Cheers!
Ray