Grete writes:
I think the endorphine hypothesis is probably correct for everyone, and the circulation hypothesis is correct for many people (including me). In a few people I suspect stimulation, including increased blood flow, may trigger parathesia -- those would be the people who experience stabs of pain when walking, for instance.
So far my PN involves only numbness (and some mild burning if I am too inactive) so I'm very lucky.
I'm able to do foot-intensive exercises like jogging and elliptical steppers, and both seem to help. The best, though, is a long hike over steep, uneven surfaces, so my feet flex and push every which way.
I realize not everyone with PN can do these activities, though.
Other than that, toe-raises seem especially useful. I think they strengthen the muscles which stabilize the lower leg, and help with balance. Sometimes I sit and rotate my ankles -- that is, hold my lower leg still and flex my ankle so that my toes move in a circle.
Massaging my feet seems to help too. I rub hard, from heel to toes, and across the top of my foot. I twist the ball of my foot back and forth to flex the metatarsals as well. If I have the time I spend a half an hour doing first one foot and then the other.
My mother's PN has left her unable to control her ankles or feet. She wears special shoes and uses a walker, and she goes 10 blocks a day for exercise. She's 88 years old, and a constant inspiration to me...
For her, the exercise may not directly affect her PN. I suspect, though, that it helps her think of herself as a healthy person. She's not a sick, crippled old woman; she's a fundamentally healthy, strong woman who has a problem with her feet. Big difference.
There was an excellent article in The New Yorker, December 12 2011 (
see here) on the placebo effect. Since what people believe about a treatment or therapy can make a huge difference in how effective the treatment is, it seems to me that one can use belief to one's benefit in managing something like peripheral neuropathy.
For instance, many studies have shown that exercise is good for humans. It may or may not actually help PN -- but if I believe it helps
my PN then I'm getting placebo benefits on top of the scientifically proven general health benefits.
It seems the same for diet...studies show that omega-3 oils from fish reduce inflammation and have health benefits. They may or may not specifically help PN, but if I
believe they do then my PN symptoms may in fact ease, and in any case I gain anti-inflammatory benefits by eating fish.
So maybe if something is known to have health benefits, and if it does not
adversely affect our PN, then it's actually constructive to think that it may be helping.
Not sure if that makes sense, but what the heck.