1. < Neuropathy

Foot neuropathy: What gives you relief?

Posted by kathrina @kathrina, Nov 5, 2019

It seems if I get enough activity/exercise daily I don’t have pain; if not, am awakened from sleep and must get up (even in the middle of the night). What’s going on & what more should I do to avoid rest-disruption?

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holdrege | @holdrege | Jul 1, 2023

My physical therapist just put me on a walking program that has me over time walking very long distances on level ground. It seems that pushing. the distance gradually helps build endurance. There is pain but things are getting better. A trip to the whirlpool following exercise is working to reduce pain.

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pacer3702 | @pacer3702 | Jul 1, 2023
In reply to @lapistwo "This product is what has helped me for ten years. Nerve Renew and Nerve Optimizer. Under..." + (show)
@lapistwo

This product is what has helped me for ten years. Nerve Renew and Nerve Optimizer. Under Nerve renew on the internet should take you to the manufacturers site. There is a lot of information on this site. I take two Nerve Renew and One Nerve Optimizer every morning. If I have to skip due to upcoming surgery then I know within a week I'm back to pain and suffering. This product took me four weeks to see the relief that I have to this day. This vitamin supplement has B1,B6,B12 and pure Alpha Lipoic Acid. All natural. Call them and they can set you up.
Shelley

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Excess B6 can cause nerve damage.

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NJ Ed | @njed | Jul 1, 2023

@holdredge - Yes, I've been taking B-1 (50 mg) daily which my neuro doc cleared along with the
B-12. I did try 1000 mg of B-12 but the numbers were not satisfactory. I've tried a wide variety of supplements for a minimum of a year and have not found anything that even helped a little. So, after a year, I stop and say OK, let's give this a try and when I stop the supplement, I find no difference.

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fredpassin6 | @fredpassin6 | Jul 1, 2023
In reply to @stuckonu "I never realized how common foot neuropathy is. I didn’t want to take another pill so..." + (show)
@stuckonu

I never realized how common foot neuropathy is. I didn’t want to take another pill so I tried acupuncture and massage and both helped. I wish I could say it made it go away but that hasn’t happened yet. I’m starting to think get treatments more often might work. I also used this device that is like a tens device only with more connectors and a variety of settings. I put it on and move the sticky connectors around while watching tv with my feet up. Hope something I mentioned works.

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Haven't tried acupuncture and massage as of yet. But I will.

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1 reply
kingfish1952 | @kingfish1952 | Jul 2, 2023
In reply to @rickhood "I am still trying to figure out a cause to my idiopathic foot neuropathy, which came..." + (show)
@rickhood

I am still trying to figure out a cause to my idiopathic foot neuropathy, which came on fast in May 2019. The word "idiopathic" does not mean there is no cause, it just means no one knows what it is.
Blood sugar is not high (A1C within normal range), do not drink alcohol, B12 is low but with supplements and shots is fine, I have a lower back issue, but two MRIs do not see anything that could be the cause. Mine is numbness only, feet only, and I am told it is mild, though it borders on pain at times. I walk twice a day for an hour each time. Walking helps it to some extent. I take R Lipoic Acid, Magnesuium (glycinate), Acetyl-l-Carnitine, N-acetyl cysteine, BenfoMax (thiamine) -- so far they don't seem to do anything.
One possible smoking gun is weight, and possibly carbohydrates.
Earlier this year I put on 10 pounds relatively quickly (205 > 215) and I definitely noticed my feet were worse. I am now on a mission to get down to 185 which is a more or less ideal weight for me. Will report back if it works.
Foot neuropathy is worst when I first get out of bed. Also, sometimes I am very achy getting out of bed, including lower back, and sometimes I am not. I think there is a correlation between how much I eat late that day -- the more I eat the worse I feel the next morning. Fasting (skip dinner) is the main way I am trying to lose weight. It works great, but keep something like celery sticks around for munching at night as need.

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I'm also on mission to lose weight and have been moderately successful. My feeling is that the less weight put on my feet, the less pressure there is on the nerves. My neurologist concurs.
My neuropathy is at its worst when I'm in a closed shoe (versus sandals) and when I lie down at night and wake up in the morning. When I walk, it is less so because of the sensory distraction of walking I believe. Losing weight is tough but it can be done particularly with intermittent fasting.

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3 replies
Mentor
John, Volunteer Mentor | @johnbishop | Jul 2, 2023
In reply to @kingfish1952 "I'm also on mission to lose weight and have been moderately successful. My feeling is that..." + (show)
@kingfish1952

I'm also on mission to lose weight and have been moderately successful. My feeling is that the less weight put on my feet, the less pressure there is on the nerves. My neurologist concurs.
My neuropathy is at its worst when I'm in a closed shoe (versus sandals) and when I lie down at night and wake up in the morning. When I walk, it is less so because of the sensory distraction of walking I believe. Losing weight is tough but it can be done particularly with intermittent fasting.

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Hi @kingfish1952, Since you mentioned intermittent fasting I thought you might find the following discussion helpful.

--- Low-carb healthy fat living. Intermittent fasting. What’s your why?:
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/low-carb-healthy-fat-living-intermittent-fasting-whats-your-why/.
There are also other discussion in the LCHF Living & Intermittent Fasting Support Group that you might find helpful: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/lchf-living-intermittent-fasting/

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Nancy Banks | @banksnc49 | Jul 2, 2023
In reply to @rickhood "I am still trying to figure out a cause to my idiopathic foot neuropathy, which came..." + (show)
@rickhood

I am still trying to figure out a cause to my idiopathic foot neuropathy, which came on fast in May 2019. The word "idiopathic" does not mean there is no cause, it just means no one knows what it is.
Blood sugar is not high (A1C within normal range), do not drink alcohol, B12 is low but with supplements and shots is fine, I have a lower back issue, but two MRIs do not see anything that could be the cause. Mine is numbness only, feet only, and I am told it is mild, though it borders on pain at times. I walk twice a day for an hour each time. Walking helps it to some extent. I take R Lipoic Acid, Magnesuium (glycinate), Acetyl-l-Carnitine, N-acetyl cysteine, BenfoMax (thiamine) -- so far they don't seem to do anything.
One possible smoking gun is weight, and possibly carbohydrates.
Earlier this year I put on 10 pounds relatively quickly (205 > 215) and I definitely noticed my feet were worse. I am now on a mission to get down to 185 which is a more or less ideal weight for me. Will report back if it works.
Foot neuropathy is worst when I first get out of bed. Also, sometimes I am very achy getting out of bed, including lower back, and sometimes I am not. I think there is a correlation between how much I eat late that day -- the more I eat the worse I feel the next morning. Fasting (skip dinner) is the main way I am trying to lose weight. It works great, but keep something like celery sticks around for munching at night as need.

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I am like you. Everything about me is normal except about 6 mos before the onset I was on dialysis due to a weird issue that destroyed my kidneys. I’ve since had s transplant but I still have pain. I’m of normal weight but I notice if I eat a lot of sweets it is much worse at night. So I try to be careful about my sugar intake but I am not diabetic.

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rickhood | @rickhood | Jul 2, 2023
In reply to @kingfish1952 "I'm also on mission to lose weight and have been moderately successful. My feeling is that..." + (show)
@kingfish1952

I'm also on mission to lose weight and have been moderately successful. My feeling is that the less weight put on my feet, the less pressure there is on the nerves. My neurologist concurs.
My neuropathy is at its worst when I'm in a closed shoe (versus sandals) and when I lie down at night and wake up in the morning. When I walk, it is less so because of the sensory distraction of walking I believe. Losing weight is tough but it can be done particularly with intermittent fasting.

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I should have mentioned that I was able to get an appointment with Dr. Oaklander at MGH who seems to be quite an expert.

She was most concerned with:

1. My low B12 numbers. Even though I had been taking B12 shots, she thought my B12 was still too low -- she wanted it to be at least 600-1000. Taking daily 5000mcg oral CVS chewable did the trick and B12 is consistently 1000 or greater now (for 3 months). She also thought it was a big deal that my father had low B12 and wanted me to reach out to my siblings to tell them. To my knowledge my father did not have neuropathy.

2. My weight. She wanted me to lose weight.

She did not think blood sugar was an issue and did not think my lower back issues were the problem. She also thought my neuropathy was mild. I tend to agree, but the numbness still feels really weird and sometimes my feet hurt to some extent to walk on. For me, no shoes is worse than with shoes.

One other detail: I started Avorstatin a year before my neuropathy started. I stopped when I learned statin can cause neuropathy (my cardio said that was OK). But that did not seem to stop the progression, so it may have nothing to do with this.

I see her again in September, so trying to get weight off well before then.
https://www.massgeneral.org/doctors/17253/anne-louise-oaklander

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davidpn | @davidpn | Jul 2, 2023
In reply to @holdrege "My doctor says to watch B-1 in addition to B-12. Some people are reporting improvement with..." + (show)
@holdrege

My doctor says to watch B-1 in addition to B-12. Some people are reporting improvement with a focus on B-1.

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I would reiterate the value of R-Alpha Lipoic Acid. My neurologist pointed out that even though it’s not fda approved there is some evidence that it helps.

Speaking of fda approval. There are so many vitamins and vitamin companies it makes it difficult. Would they have to test i.e. all R-Aplha Lipoic Acids from each vitamin company???

Wheras I recently heard of a new med. for brain cancer at stage 3 of 4 for fda approval. That’s doable.

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1 reply
januaryjane | @januaryjane | Jul 3, 2023

Gabapentin, elevation, watching my diet, like sugar and sodium.

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