You have come to a good place; Mrs. D. and others have helped me with good information, which always helps.
Your mentioning your Italian heritage leads me to ask about your diet. Recently, I mentioned to an Italian friend of mine that I had gone gluten-free to heal my neuropathy. He said, "oh, you have the Italian disease. My whole family has it."
In fact, celiac disease, intolerance of the gluten found in wheat, is extremely high in Italy.
My wife and I love pasta. We found a brand, Tinkyada, that is gluten-free, but still tasty. Most brands are not as good as the traditional; but this one is.
I have been off gluten for one year now; and while I'm still not completely healed (I expect that to take another 1 to 2 years), I am able to get through my days without any pain killers; a year ago, I was popping Ibuprofen like candy, just to get through the day.

Good luck with your journey.