Living with Neuropathy - Welcome to the group

Welcome to the Neuropathy group.
This is a welcoming, safe place where you can meet other people who are dealing with neuropathy. Let’s learn from each other and share stories about living well with neuropathy, coping with the challenges and offering tips.

I’m Colleen, and I’m the moderator of this group, and Community Director of Connect. Chances are you’ll to be greeted by volunteer patient Mentor John (@johnbishop) and fellow members when you post to this group. Learn more about Moderators and Mentors on Connect.

We look forward to welcoming you and introducing you to other members. Feel free to browse the topics or start a new one.
Let’s chat. Why not start by introducing yourself? What concerns would you like to talk about?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Neuropathy Support Group.

@wisfloj

From my research, ALA has an S and an R component, the R is the active one. I take 300 mg. of R-ALA

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@wisfloj Hi! I take the R-ALA as well. Any problems? I have tried the 300mg and 600mg but find the acid gives me a burning sensation in my stomach. Taking it with low acid foods seems to help. Thanks for your input! Toni

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@johnbishop

Toni @avmcbellar, My wife is the dessert specialist in the house but I'm not sure she's used almond flour for desserts. I had her try it for making biscuits a few years ago and they were not too bad. I've had organic almond flour crackers that I like with chili and soups. I did see some recipes here that looked tasty - https://www.thekitchn.com/7-ways-to-bake-with-almond-flour-and-almond-meal-243264

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Thanks John! @johnbishop. If is difficult to find uses for the almond flour in a regular diet. I also enjoy making desserts. Your tip has helped. I viewed the website for the great healthy recipes. I will make my alterations for less fat content since I am not on a Keto diet any more. I would like to use almond flour for flavor and texture. I wasn’t fond of breads using almond flour while on the Keto diet. The taste was not the same at all.
Since then I have made alterations using wheat flour for bread and yielding fewer carbs than the normal bread. My mother with diabetes even enjoys it. I use the same recipe to make pizza, sandwich rolls, or a loaf of bread. We enjoy our Sundays watching NFL while eating pizza! Who wants to give that up? My husband has lost 30 lbs using the Keto diet without exercise. We have gone to a low cal regular dIet for several months now. We never buy any bread. Only use what I make twice weekly. So far he has not gained any weight. Thanks again for the suggestion! Always looking to improve ourselves through diet. Toni

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@bustrbrwn22

@sunnyflower I have an injection scheduled for the 23rd. I think it will be the first of 3 but it’s so expensive. Please keep us posted on how it goes. Is there anything someone should be worried about with getting these (besides the standard possibility of infection etc)?

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Hi @bustrbrwn22, I always ask for lidocaine at the IV site and then the IV doesn't hurt at all. The Lidocaine is given w/ such a tiny needle that it's barely a sting. A lot won't want to give it and say it makes the veins roll away or some other reason but I tell them it always works for me at the first attempt of the IV and it does! Then I would request what they call, "light" or "conscious" sedation. I was barely conscious but think mostly out, b/c the injections (2) I had, were painless. Pretty drugged the rest of the day and must have a driver. I got a significant increase w/ my heart rate which is one of the side-effects one can have from the injected steroid. The reasons I had mine was quite different than the typical low back, butt and leg/foot pain so it was not to have relief from pain. It's a complicated diagnostic for numbness and my leg giving out for no reason, without pain. I do have aching thigh pain but it's not the horrific pain I had before my first three back surgeries. So as far as results, none known yet. Please keep me posted and I will be praying for you. I had to pay a total of $100 for my procedure and I am on Kaiser Permanente Medicare Optimal Advantage plan. Keep me posted but know I'm probably not going to be as active here on the Neuropathy blog b/c I HAD to join the bone/joint/muscle blog to help w/ some decisions I have to make about taking a drug w/ potential serious side-effects for my "severe" osteoporosis . All the best, you're a trooper to say the least! What BTW, are you having the injection for? Many blessings, Sunnyflower

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@avmcbellar @johnbishop Hey, folks, how about setting up a separate group for cooking?? It doesn't really belong in Neuropathy.

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Hi @steeldove. I agree with you somewhat. Carbs are not good for a diagnosis of neuropathy. So a low carb diet can benefit. I will keep your suggestion in mind. Thanks, Toni

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@steeldove

@avmcbellar @johnbishop Hey, folks, how about setting up a separate group for cooking?? It doesn't really belong in Neuropathy.

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Guilty as charged @steeldove, sorry! John

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@avmcbellar

@wisfloj Hi! I take the R-ALA as well. Any problems? I have tried the 300mg and 600mg but find the acid gives me a burning sensation in my stomach. Taking it with low acid foods seems to help. Thanks for your input! Toni

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Hi Toni, @wisfloj and everyone else, does anyone else have acid or heartburn or increase acid or heartburn on this supplement? I have been taking it and I think I do have increased heartburn / acid. Thank you so much! Warmest regards, Sunny flower

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@sunnyflower

Hi @bustrbrwn22, I always ask for lidocaine at the IV site and then the IV doesn't hurt at all. The Lidocaine is given w/ such a tiny needle that it's barely a sting. A lot won't want to give it and say it makes the veins roll away or some other reason but I tell them it always works for me at the first attempt of the IV and it does! Then I would request what they call, "light" or "conscious" sedation. I was barely conscious but think mostly out, b/c the injections (2) I had, were painless. Pretty drugged the rest of the day and must have a driver. I got a significant increase w/ my heart rate which is one of the side-effects one can have from the injected steroid. The reasons I had mine was quite different than the typical low back, butt and leg/foot pain so it was not to have relief from pain. It's a complicated diagnostic for numbness and my leg giving out for no reason, without pain. I do have aching thigh pain but it's not the horrific pain I had before my first three back surgeries. So as far as results, none known yet. Please keep me posted and I will be praying for you. I had to pay a total of $100 for my procedure and I am on Kaiser Permanente Medicare Optimal Advantage plan. Keep me posted but know I'm probably not going to be as active here on the Neuropathy blog b/c I HAD to join the bone/joint/muscle blog to help w/ some decisions I have to make about taking a drug w/ potential serious side-effects for my "severe" osteoporosis . All the best, you're a trooper to say the least! What BTW, are you having the injection for? Many blessings, Sunnyflower

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Hi Sunny, thank you so much for responding about your iv. Can you please tell me if this was an IVIG or was it an IV for rituxan? I'll look forward to hearing from you thanks again Rose

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@geegie

Hi Sunny, thank you so much for responding about your iv. Can you please tell me if this was an IVIG or was it an IV for rituxan? I'll look forward to hearing from you thanks again Rose

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@bustrbrwn22, and Rose, The Ivy was for a light AKA Twilight AKA conscious sedation for the procedure to get my steroid spinal injection. They use something like Propofol to make you not move, and a benzodiazepine such as Valium and something else I believe. A lot of people do not have this and in fact, I suffer through my first three steroid injections back in the day before I got my first of three back surgeries. I am currently facing a fourth but for a different reason which is severe canal stenosis so that would be for a decompression surgery within the spinal canal. They usually try steroid injections as a first measure to see if they working out for a patient to avoid surgery. I failed my three, three weeks apart, before my first surgery. Hope that helps and I wish you all the best!!

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@sunnyflower

Hi Toni, @wisfloj and everyone else, does anyone else have acid or heartburn or increase acid or heartburn on this supplement? I have been taking it and I think I do have increased heartburn / acid. Thank you so much! Warmest regards, Sunny flower

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@sunnyflower I didn’t notice until one day, after months of taking it, the capsule collapsed in my mouth. I took too long to drink water with it. I noticed the burning feeling was the same as with my stomach. No matter how much water I drank, I could not get that burning feeling to go away. Thankfully, I did not have GERD, the reflux disease, nor was the burning from the neuropathy. I even called the manufacturer with questions to get more information. At first, they tried to brush me off by telling me to call my physician. I was never asked any questions by them. I felt it was their product why should I contact my doctor! What would he know to do that I didn’t? Surprisingly, they began cooperating but gave me a weak suggestion to take it with food. Really? I gave up on them and started experimenting with the supplement on my own. I found a solution that best fits me. I take it with ALC and foods low in acid. Best of luck to you. Toni

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