I thought I'd share my story...it starts off very predictable and takes a slight turn!

I drank heavily from 22 until 27 1/2. Around October last year I noticed pain / numbness in my legs...Googled the potential causes and found PN. So I decided to stop drinking. I spent a week with terrible insomnia but got over it, didn't drink for 3 weeks and all numbness, pain etc disappeared. I went back to regular boxing training and all was well.

I then succumbed to drinking again...binged for 4 days (about 4 bottles of wine per night) and had all the signs of PN back again - I was absolutely certain this time it was caused by PN. Went to my doctor's, was prescribed with the usual B vitamins and abstained again. After 3 weeks I again returned back to full fitness...running in the morning and back to work and training.

Stupidly...I went to Ireland to meet a friend from the States (I'm English) and drank to moderation and didn't get PN. I didn't even think about it again but was aware of limiting my drinking.

December 16th 2016 I travel to Houston for the start of a month long road trip with some friends from England. On the 4th night I start getting stomach pains and go down with Acute Severe Pancreatitis, caused by Hyperlipidermia (which they believe was caused by excessive wine and orange juice - I loved a mimosa)!

So 2 weeks in intensive care later (and still no signs of PN) I return back to England with my poor girlfriend and father who flew out to Dallas to come back with me. I went to see my GP on return who referred me to the hospital who admitted me. Two more weeks in hospital and they told me I was free to go.

By this point I hadn't drank since 20th December and it was 20th January, and I actually felt quite good...and I'd decided to never drink again.

But after 2 days out the hospital....the 22nd January, my PN came back to a small degree and made life awkward for a couple of weeks until it then went again. It didn't come back too bad so I didn't notice it go.

Then I have 2 weeks of great health..no PN, I'm training lots, still no alcohol, and my work life is going fantastic. In that time I went to see the doctor about the stomach pain I was still getting from Pancreatitis - this didn't bother me at all as it was very much to be expected after such a serious illness. She gave me an increase in my dosage of Oxycondone (Oxynorm / Ocycontin - an Opiod!) to the point of it doubling my previous daily dose I had from being in hospital.

From that point on for the following 2 weeks up until today, 27th Feb, I have had very bad burning, tingling and pins and needles return in my extremities...knees down to feet, and to a lesser extent my left hand. So I went to the doctors today to receive my blood tests I'd asked for a week previous and they said they were 'excellent' - nutritionally balanced, cholesterol, ALT levels...everything was where they'd like it. So I asked the question to my Dr...I have not drank any alcohol since I quit and my PN disappeared completely, where has this come from?

His ideas where as follows:

Oxycodone:
As I was reporting suffering of many side effects to this already - red face, constipation, itching, dizziness, feeling faint, irregular heart beat.

The doctor said that I wasn't experiencing PN but instead the side effects of the Opioid Oxycodone, because the common side effects also include feeling weak; tingling in hands and feet; pain in the extremities and a burning feeling across the body.

Therefore, if I stop taking this and take some Amitriptyline to help it along its way I will be fine in no time. He also had another potential theory...

Pancreatitis:
Because my body and mainly digestive system had been recently under so much stress from the Pancreatitis that I probably had a vitamin deficiency while in hospital and I'm suffering the affects of that now...and it's just a case of waiting. Which could be true as they told me in Dallas I had Anaemia which went away.

So, where does this leave me...

When I knew the alcohol was to blame I could handle the pain and the constant frustration because I felt I knew the cause and would be healing myself soon by abstinence...but now I don't know why it's back for sure, I feel so down. The only thing that kept my mood up previously was the Oxycodone because that killed the pain for awhile...and now I can't take that because the Dr. thinks that that is the cause.

Does anyone have any experience of knowledge of PN with Pancreatitis or PN type symptoms from taking an Opioid which turn out not to be PN?

Can anyone guess how I managed to make full recoveries previously but now it's come back without drinking any alcohol...and it seemed very, very, very closely linked to alcohol previously - I've also had tests to exclude the possibility of Diabetes.

Please some good news...how I'm feeling I don't want to wait years for this to stop hurting.

Supplement wise, here's what I've taken daily since November:

Inulin
Milk Thistle
Aloe Vera
B Vitamin Complex
Thiamine
CQ 10
Papaya Enzyme
Digestive Enzymes
Multi Vit
Lipoic Acid
Ginger Root
Tumeric
Grapeseed Extract
Garlic
Primrose Oil
Bioglan Supergreens
Bioglan Greens Boost
Ginseng
Manuka Honey
Selenium
Magnesium