Quote:
Originally Posted by Williamson99
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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Many here have learned some tricks to help those with anxiety issues. First let me say that I do not get "freaked" when I go to the Dr. but I definitely put my foot WAY up in my mouth when I first started. If your Dr. has already written you off, you might have to find another and build an outline or script to carry with you to the new Dr. If I stick with the outline, I get the important questions asked and hopefully answered. Several posters have been funnelled into the "all in your head" bunch and it dowsn't take a Dr. long to categorize. If you read here, you can learn that SFN needs a skin punch biopsy to be properly diagnosed and even then symptoms can be present with a negative diagnosis. So, there aren't many hard and fast rules, only generalities. Your symptoms sound pretty in line with Neuropathy but in the same breath I don't know the depth and breadth of your anxiety. As for coping until you find out more, take heart that lifestyle makes a difference, no miracles from the Drs. The horizon is not as black as you paint it. Improvement is slow but it is there. A combination of good nutrition, geed sleep, exercize to tolerance and the passage of time are the workhorses. I would ask what your b-12 number is? Needs to be from 400 to around 1000. This was one of the things that helped me. Also a Magnesium Lotion helped me to use bedsheets again as the tops of my feet were burning for a while. Also, expect symptoms to change over time, mine have almost completely changed over 3 yrs time. I know it's stupid to ask you not to worry but I will ask it anyway. Good Luck, Ken in Texas.