Cliffman - just getting back to your original post. No, it is not common to have a rapid spread to body-wide symptoms, but based on the posters here it does happen occasionally. However, it seems that in every case I've read about, the rapid onset cases seem to peak out, then it gets somewhat better over time. On the other hand, the cases that come on slowly seem to continue to progress over time.

Of course, I'm just generalizing - this disease is unpredictable and literally anything can happen. The rapid onset cases are brutal and hard to cope with at first, but in some ways they may be better in the long run than the chronic/slowly progressive cases.

All you can do is cope the best you can. I know it's difficult, but try to get some exercise if your body will tolerate it. Look at your diet, and make some improvements if needed (sugar seems to be a big trigger for many - even if they aren't diabetic or even pre-diabetic). Stress reduction is important, although difficult under the circumstances - meditation or something similar might help. And consider a supplement regime - there's tons of information on this site about all the different supplements; start with the basic vitamins and move out from there. And of course, work with your doctor on finding pain medication(s) that work for you.

(I know you've probably read all these things before - I just wanted to re-state them. Although my case is a bit different than yours, I too was in a state of total panic/confusion when my symptoms took off. You can do hours of research and come up with a ton of information - but I think the things I stated above are basics of dealing with PN of unknown cause. (Ideopathic PN 101 if you will)