Hey welcome BigShooter.

This thread is very long, so by now people miss that part of our journey. Icehouse was in a wheelchair after he got sober, and I had exactly the same symptoms as you have. Even someone just pointing at my feet made me recoil. Getting stressed I could feel the burning sensation getting much much worse.

I don't think I've heard anyone with PN improving immediately after quitting drinking. The effects of a healthier lifestyle (and sugar is sadly just as bad for us and our livers) take time. Our nerves do heal, but at something like 1 mm per year, and that's the best case scenario. I don't think the myelin sheath ever truly heals, but I'm not a doc, so take that for what it's worth.

For me it took a year and a half to find my stride (pun not intended). Alcohol is a "perfect" pain killer, and when we stop drinking the symptoms often first get worse instead of better - especially when you are indulging in lots of sugar. Which is not a criticism mind you, I did the same thing, I had to. It was only after I was more comfortable being sober, and really changing my diet to a non-inflammatory one, that I saw/felt progress.

I do take pain killers - still today after 13 years - but I try to take as little as possible - I halved my daily dose this year. Getting some rest and clarity in your mind will help push back against anxiety - I'm sadly very familiar with the effect of stress and anxiety, so finding a way to lower those two will help massively (but you may see the symptoms ebb and flow a bit)

Will you feel better a year from now? Yes, if you stay sober, you most probably will. Will it be gone completely? No, and I don't think anyone here ever experienced getting back to the baseline of when before they became addicted to alcohol. There may be some, but they are unicorns.

Keep at it, talk here if & when you want to, we do have the T-shirts, and we don't try to sell you something or give irrational advice.

It doesn't really matter if your PN is idiopathic or alcohol related (or some meds like statins and certain antibiotics), the results and advice are 100% the same.

Do look into the benefits of vitamin supplements like B1 and B12 though - there's more information about that in the other PN threads - in order to avoid symptoms still getting worse. Best way to do this is to have your blood work done, so you can see the baseline & shortage of those vitamins.

I no longer have the burning/stabbing sensations, but I still feel like my feet are encased in concrete, especially when I put them in water. (Yet I have no trouble walking longer distances, like after attending a concert where we were standing for 6 hours). It sucks, but it surely beats the burning and stabbing sensations. There are days I don't think about PN at all, as it's something in the background.

Anyway, welcome, and keep at it!