Cold feet due to neuropathy - need help

Hello @t21, Welcome to Connect. You pose an interesting question and hopefully other members can share their experience with you. For me when I think my feet are cold, they actually feel cold to the touch. I don't have the pain with my neuropathy though. Here's an older article from 2011 that talks about the topic.

Cold Feet That Aren’t Cold to the Touch May Indicate Neurologic Problem: https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/cold-feet-that-arent-cold-to-the-touch-may-indicate-neurologic-problem/

Are you on any medication for your neuropathy pain?

Hi John, thank you for your reply. I am currently taking Cymbalta but I have tried Lyrica and Gabapentin and I did get some relief from the high dose of Gabapentin but I gained a lot of weight so I stopped taking it. I am working with my Dr. and trying to get back on the Gabapentin- watching my weight closely. You said when your feet are cold to the touch when they are cold which makes sense but my feet are cold to the touch and burning on fire at the same time so I have a hard time trying to figure out which one it is. I cant wear socks for long especially at night when I go to bed because my feet start aching and really burning up and I can no longer sleep. I have seen a Neurologist and my nerves have been tested and I was given the Peripheral Neuropathy diagnosis along with theres really nothing we can do for it except to try the standard meds. which I did. Now I am left with Pain Management on my own. I also have nerve damage in my Spine at the L5-S1 area and I have no discs left between those vertebrae and I have had the nerves ablased and receive Steroid Injections when needed. The pain that I have in my back doesnt compare to how my feet feel daily and I just have a hard time understanding why there is no effective way to treat this when its so common and so painful that the only thing on your mind is how bad your feet feel. I havent found a Pain Management technique that has worked for me yet. I will keep on searching because I have no other options. Im hoping to get some ideas from this group that I havent tried but am more than willing to try.

John- I just read your link and I do have all of the probable causes or underlying conditions but thats all I have been told. They dont know which is causing my Neuropathy and so they treat each probable cause separately i.e. Im given vitamin prescriptions and my diabetes is controlled but theres just not an answer for how this can be and Im not satisfied without an answer for the pain that im in with my feet.

@t21 - I have no medical background or training but from all of the research and reading I have done there is unfortunately no real cure for neuropathy. The only exception I can think of is when you have a pinched, compressed or damaged nerve that can be fixed with surgery or possibly therapy. The best we can hope for is a treatment or therapy that helps relieve the symptoms. I can't say that I blame you for not being satisfied not having an answer to the pain in your feet. The best thing we can do to help ourselves is to learn as much as we can about our condition and possible options to relieve the symptoms. Here are a few other discussions that might offer you some relief from the pain and burning.

-- @artscaping and others have found relief with Myofascial Release Therapy (MFR). There is a discussion on MFR here: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/myofascial-release-therapy-mfr-for-treating-compression-and-pain/
-- @rwinney and others have found relief with the Mayo Pain Rehabilitation Program - https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-pain-rehabilitation-program/
-- Myself and others have found some relief taking supplements - https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/have-you-tried-the-new-protocol-525-product-for-neuropathy-relief/

My 2 best sites for learning more about neuropathy:
-- Neuropathy Commons: https://neuropathycommons.org/neuropathy/neuropathy-overview
-- Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy: https://www.foundationforpn.org/

You also mentioned you have diabetes and that it is under control. There have been a lot of studies about reversing diabetes with diet that you might find interesting. Here's YouTube video you might find helpful.

"Jay Wortman, MD, tells the story of how he reversed his type 2 diabetes, using a simple dietary change. Ten years later he is still free from the disease and needs no medication. He just stopped eating the foods that turn to sugar in the body." -- How to reverse type 2 diabetes: https://youtu.be/zjUdtK6ukqY

Hope you can update us after you meet with your pain management doctor.

Have you thought about a spinal cord stimulator?

Same thing here. Feels like they are burning and I take off my socks and they are cold. The best relief is to soak them in warm water. I'm too lazy to do it most of the time. Hope it helps you. Try it.

This has not been offered to me. I assumed that my Pain Medication Specialist would be suggesting treatment that would work for me. I could be wrong and I will be asking about it next appointment. Thanks for the suggestion.

For sleeping with cold feet that won't warm themselves, I lay a hot water bottle towards foot of the bed and on top of the bedspread and sheets and then lay a small throw-blanket on top of the water bottle. The bottle heats my feet, and the throw blanket insulates the bottle which remains warm throughout the night. It works.

Thank you for your response.

I don't have diabetes and am not an alcoholic. A DOD pain management doc believes the numbness and coldness likely is from the spine. I don’t remember the specifics, but the X-rays and MRIs indicate lower lumbar DDD, L4-5 anterior spondylolisthesis, and severe central canal and lateral recess stenosis. Before neuromuscular testing in the leg and foot, this doc indicated that neuromuscular testing doesn’t always show a problem even when there is a physical problem. And the neuromuscular testing done on my leg and foot did not show a problem. Nonetheless, the progression of the coldness and numbness seems to gee-haw with spinal problems.

I will try this. My first thoughts are doubts regarding the level of heat, the heat lasting through the night, and small area heated (versus legs moving around). However, I will try it. You never know.