To: "Mustang0227"

Rest assured you are going to get BETTER. It's a matter of time and care. Everybody's body is different and that's what makes any determination on healing so hard to come by. But from what I've learned, is that you DO heal. It largely depends on how you take care of yourself.

That's what makes this particular forum site so helpful - you can learn from others here, even if they are in different situations, we all basically have the same problems symptomatically. I learned so much from this site in such a small time.

I had a pretty bad day today as far as pain is concerned, but that was after 7 days in a row of feeling quite well - meaning only very light pain. There will be "good days and bad days" as they say - but ultimately we'll heal up eventually -and we can put the bad times behind us.

What's so important is getting the right vitamins and medication that "truly" helps us, regenerating damaged nerves and helping both our body and mental states. These are vital for our survival and well being and the key to that is knowledge. We are lucky to have the internet to research and share our experiences.

I mentioned keeping a daily log on your healing. This helps mentally as well as keeps you up to date on what circumstances and stresses make your PN pain worse -and more so -what makes you feel better.

I have been dealing with PN pain for over 4 months now - 2 months were severe for the most part, and the first month was suicidally unbearable. (Honestly, no exaggeration here) ...With a daily log, I can trace when I have a "bad or good" day. I can look back at my log and make a determination on what may have caused it - or what made me feel better. So even when I have a bad day, I know it will pass.

I pasted a sample of one of my log entries and how I rate the types of pain. You can do your own version - then you'd be able to keep a log of healing. I'm sure you'll find, just like I did -that even if the healing is slow -you'll see strong healing strides as time passes and a daily log records these positive strides in detail.

Below is a log comparison from my first week of PN till my more recent log entrees - Notice the differences. These changes are honest and hopeful.

July 5th: 2012
I noticed the pain suddenly travels to my fingers and arms, as well as changes into various types of horrible pain. The pain is very severe at this point, consisting of strong stabbing pain in fingers and toes, as well as painful cramping and prickling all over my body, and burning sensations along my legs, arms, back, and sides. The pains came on very quickly without a gradual stage. I went to the hospital ER room this night.

Stabbing Pains: Very High. Clamping Pains: Very High. Burning Pains: Very High. Needle Stings: Very High. Cramping: Very High. Fingertip Pains: Very High. Prickling Pains: Very High. Eye Pain: irritated. Depression: Very High – close to Nervous breakdown. Anxiety: Very High – Suicidal Level. Betterment: None

October 30th: 2012
Tuesday: It’s cold and sunny outside. I helped my wife get her stuff ready for her vacation tomorrow. I spent quality time with the family. Added some cooked mushrooms to my soup. I felt “Very Almost Normal” again with only very light pains. Thank God.

Stabbing Pains: None. Clamping Pains: None. Burning Pains: None. Needle Stings: Very light & less frequent. Cramping: Very light & less frequent. Fingertip Pains: Very light & less frequent. Prickling Pains: Low. Eye Pain: None. Depression: None. Anxiety: Low. Betterment: I felt “Very Almost Normal” again with only very light pains. Thank God.