Quote:
Originally Posted by jarrett622
Nope...ya done good!
Bilateral huh? I don't know...guess that might depend on the Dx? My left foot has always been more painful than my right. No idea why. My Dx is idiopathic PN. So far anyway. At some point when and if I can afford more testing I plan on seeking out a specialist in PN. I want more than just the basics ruled out.
Can't take Neurontin. Made me suicidal. So I manage with Tramadol and recently added Mirapex. So my symptoms are well under control for now. Yep, been blessed with PN and apparently some RLS thrown in for good measure.
And yes, we do all we can to reduce our symptoms to levels manageable for us. During the day I'm a 1 or less most of the time. Toward 9:00 or 10:00 PM I escalate to about a 4 or 5 before I take a Tramadol. That's much less than my levels were about a year ago when I first found this wonderful message board.
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Yes PN is usually bilteral, but sometimes with more severe pain on one side. I am not sure that this asymmetry may not be due to other factors including arthritis. PN often results in slightly disturbed gait which then can lead to a stress-type osteoarthritis with tendosynovitis. I have this on one side which I can control with Ibuprofen.
Certainly one of the most inexplicable syndrome of this disease is the propensity to worsen at night. Also it may have some association with RLS which is why Mirapex may help. Very interesting!!! Thanks for this idea--jarrett622.
I had vague symptoms similar to RLS before I got the full fury of PN. This may also explain why if I have severe burning getting up and walking around often helps. Of course one has to walk with heavily padded slippers on soft carpets.
Also may explain why the symptoms are generally worse at night.
From the forum I noticed that some of us are taking huge doses of Lyrica (up to 600 mg). I would be very cautious with these doses as we not sure of the effects on the brain (memory loss, bizarre thinking, depression etc.). Also I wonder about effects on other parts of the body. I have notice that moderately high doses of Lyrica causes me to have bouts of Bradycardia. Unfortunately I am quite sure that with time other side effects will be identified.
I am sure most us learn how to manage as best as we can and learn to dose our meds for the best and safest effect. That is what chronic diseases are all about -Management!