I am 63 and was diagnosed with Peripheral Neuropathy caused by a sacral adjustment 12 years ago and the pain is getting a lot worse lately in spite of the various adjustments I have made to my sacrum and pelvis. I no longer have any ankle or knee reflexes and my toe nails have become distorted, thicker and brittle..

Until I came to this Forum, I didn't realize that so many people had similar problems and seemed to be getting relief from medicines...

I always thought the remedy was to bring back my sacrum to its original position, but after having had a recent meeting with a neurosurgeon, I have finally come to realize otherwise...

I have no diabetes and a stand up MRI shows no visible problem at the nerves roots at L3, L4, L5, S1, but there is some mild stenosis. However, about a year before the fateful sacral adjustment, a chiropractor had hit the centre ridge of L5 counterclockwise with a couple clicks of his 'activator', which caused the left big toe and the toe next to it to become numb in the following 2 days...

The nerve irritation or damage appears to be somewhere between L3 and my feet, probably in the sacrum/pelvis area....

It all started about 12 years ago in Paris when I had some serious back pain: that was resolved by a therapist who had only 1 year of osteopathic study - as it turned out later - by doing a cranio-sacral adjustment, which consisted of pushing in the top of the sacrum to increase the curvature of the lumbar area...

It worked great for back pain, but 4 days later, when already in Spain by then, the sole of my feet started to burn intensely and it felt like I had a thin layer of chewing gum under the ball of my feet when walking. The muscles along the spine and lumbar area were under constant tension, sexual functions and circulation to the feet were seriously impaired and I could not find anyone to remedy the problems...

A recent X-Ray done to try again some chiropractic solutions shows a sacrum/pelvis misalignment in 2 dimensions: the left pelvis is rotated anticlockwise in relation to the sacrum and is 1/2" higher, resulting in a shorter left leg. I surmise that this was the result of a car accident that happened in my early 20's, when the leading left edge of the iliac was fractured and pushed backwards. I probably lived like that without noticing until the sacral adjustment, which I assume triggered the current Peripheral Neuropathy...

Another therapist in Spain, using a belt around my thigh and pulling it outward managed to improve the blood flow to my feet, which had become very cold. Later on when on my own, I devised an orthopedic gadget that reproduced this effect and gave me some measure of control over the circulation to my feet...

I placed a rounded spacer between my thigh right against the crotch and used an extended foam padded clamp to bring my knees together, thereby opening up the SI joint and helping greatly with the blood flow to the feet. However, one should keep very still while doing that, as sacral adjustments can easily be lost in the process...

Through various stretches I managed to control the muscle tightness along the spine and in the lumbar area and substantially improve sexual functions. However, lately, the pelvis and sacrum adjustments that were keeping me going reasonably well - since I sit at my computer all day long and avoid walking or standing for more than 5 minutes to avoid recurrent pain - are having less effect...

Here are some examples of the effects of such manipulations, which are done by lowering a certain part of my body on a rubber cube and let gravity do the work: pressure on the upper part of the sacrum will cure back pain, if the sacrum came out of alignment; pressure on the upper left pelvis will help with the feet burning but tends to make the ball of the feet number...

The numbness originally started at the big toe of the left foot, then most of the upper part of the feet became numb, including a band just above the ankle, while the ball of the foot became hyper-sensitive. The right foot followed the same pattern shortly after. Until recently, when I rubbed my big toe against the one next to it, I could feel it, but not any more. Also, I could alleviate the symptoms for a short while by pulling my feet behind my chair, as far back as possible for about 45 minutes, but that trick no longer works, either...

The chiropractic attempts at straightening the pelvis in relation to the sacrum have only resulted in temporary (1 day) relief, at the expense of the ball of the foot now becoming also numb. Where the pain only bothered me when walking or standing, I now experience it also at night and have trouble sleeping...

Stretches did help a lot at he beginning: alternating resisted knee to the chest relieves back tension and, lying down with one knee up, placing the opposite foot on the knee and pushing the leg down in a resisted pumping action to stretch the ligaments, does help with the feet burning...

I have also tried deep body massage with a "Thumper" to release the muscles around the back, spine, buttocks, thighs and legs, in case a nerve is entrapped to some good effects, which unfortunately don't last very long

The neurosurgeon I just visited suggested pain killers, such as Lyrica, but this would be a last ditch solution, as I know only too well that the side effects of most medicine are usually worse than the problem they're supposed to cure. I also need to keep in touch with the pain to see if things are getting worse...

I am finally convinced that the long sought perfect sacrum adjustment won't solve the problem and even if it were attained, it's unlikely it would last. I have been looking up the Iherb Website for products that users recommend and found that Benfotiamine appears to be very helpful...

I would appreciate any advice from veterans of Peripheral Neuropathic pain who have obtained good results, as the quality of my life has began to stink to high hell, lately..