Newly Joined
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Join Date: Feb 2016
Posts: 1
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Newly Joined
Join Date: Feb 2016
Posts: 1
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Anxiety or PN?
Hi everyone,
So let me start off by saying I do have health anxiety.
For the past few months I've been having peripheral neuropathy symptoms in my hands and feet - pins and needles, sharp stabbing pains, strange crawling sensations on the skin, and (probably perceived) weakness. The symptoms come and go at random, but always seem to come on symmetrically, ie. both soles of both feet would suddenly feel crawling sensations at the same time.
The symptoms also seem to be slowly getting worse. Week 1 was just pins and needles in only the hands; a few weeks later the stabbing pains started in the hands; a few weeks after that the toes felt these symptoms; in another few weeks the entire feet get these symptoms; the strange crawling sensations then appeared in the hands and feet. Burning sensations is the latest new feeling I get.
I just had a nerve conduction study and an EMG, both of which came back normal, and the doctor tells me this is all in my head, that it's all anxiety induced. This is possible because like I said, I do have health anxiety. Still, my symptoms seem like a textbook case of length-dependent PN, and I just can't get it out of my mind that I have PN and I'm totally freaking out about it - a lot of information online (including this board) paints a very grim, painful, and debilitating future for sufferers of PN.
But the doctor's convinced I'm physically healthy. I live in a fairly rural area, and seeing a neurologist is difficult. Even if I get a referral to another, it'd be months away, and I could really use some advice right now to calm myself down because I am not functioning well at all due to the stress these symptoms are causing.
I know you're all more experts on PN than anxiety, but does anyone have any insights into this situation? Could this really be all in my head? Or do my physical symptoms strongly suggest PN despite the normal nerve tests?
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