Jonny J:
Other than I'm about 25 years older than you - my story is pretty similar, and you are where I was about a year ago.

As you read the stories here, remember that many of the people who are long term posters are those who have pretty severe problems. There are certain forms of PN that are progressive and disabling. Others can cause severe pain. But this is not the case for everyone. In my case, I started out with twitching, then cramping, all kinds of strange sensations, then moving on to pain in my feet. This all developed over a few months, and I assumed the worst (just like you probably are now).

Well, after about 6 months, my symptoms stabilized and now have reduced to some extent. I would classify my current condition as more of an annoyance than a disability. No one can say for sure what will happen to me (or to you) as time goes on. But here are my suggestions:

1. Work with the doctors to find a cause and treat it if possible (although the cause remains unknown in many cases).

2. Keep your body and mind as healthy as possible - to give your nerves the best possible environment to heal. This includes improving your diet, taking supplements that support nerve health, get as much exercise as your condition allows, and reduce stress and anxiety as much as possible.

3. If your pain gets bad, work with your doctor to find medication(s) that will help.

If you do these things, you may very well see improvements - or at the very least slow down the progress. Over time, you will adapt as necessary - and find ways of coping with things you probably can't imagine you could cope with now.