This is a great post! Quite similar to my own story (of woe and triumph), so believe me when I can say that you ARE on the right track. In some cases the symptoms of PN can be alleviated and it appears that yours are slowly going away, as mine did.

Have a safe and sober New Years keep it up!

Happy NY all! I hope you survived the festivities without too much damage.

I realized I just finished my first full year without drinking. Not sure how long that was ago, but ... a long *** time.

Now mentally preparing to get rid of smoking. My addictions are starting to bore me, time to take the plunge.

Everyone is doing so well, on this thread!

Today there is this very interesting article at PsychCentral on how
alcohol (even moderately) damages DNA in cells:

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/01...dna/64002.html

884 days sober.

HaPpY NeW YeAr!!!

569. Percentage-wise, I'm gaining on you.

Well this is sure a mixed bag, the good news: 5 months of no alcohol. That probably hasn't happened since the moon landing. I have made meditation part of my daily routine, I sleep very well, feel really good, and I play well with others.

The not so good news: I actually have more numbness in my feet and sometimes my legs than I did when I started this journey. I also have the occasional shot of stabbing pain that I assumed was a thing of the past.

My diet has been awful--lots of cookies, ice cream, and other sugary delights, thank you so much extended holiday season. I am changing that with the new year.

The docs were confident that my PN was most likely from years of alcohol abuse, and I think they are probably right. But this sure is frustrating and makes ya wonder. I read somewhere that PN symptoms get worse for a time even after alcohol cessation, and then gradually get better with continued abstinence. I am hoping that is the case. Happy New Year everyone, it's great to come on here and talk to you.

I personally think ice cream is the worst offender of the sweets.

It thickens the blood with the fats in it, and impairs circulation for several hours. Tests were done on normal people, and blood draws after high fat consumption, showed very thick blood. We know that increasing viscosity of the blood, with various antibodies or peptides (bone marrow diseases like MGUS), will also give PN as the blood cannot circulate well in the tiny vessels in the hands and feet.

Sugar (with its fructose load) is the next to worst also. But I think we are designed to handle a little fructose because that is in fruit. Excessive sugar (fructose is 1/2 of table sugar), however then puts a load on that way.

So sugar + fat = ice cream

Vit E + fish oil will help thin the blood a bit. So if you think this is a problem for you, try those and see if your circulation improves.
Get the natural type of Vit E and take both oils with food.

Otherwise, just keep plugging along, as you are doing. One day at a time.

Thank you for the info, MrsD. I have been eating more ice cream than I even want to report. No mas!

I am 40, and for 38 years I just did not have a sweet tooth. Both my kids do, and seems like everyone around me does too. NOW, I crave chocolate and eat more ice cream than I care to admit. Mind you, that may be only a bowl every couple days, but for me that is grand.

I see a correlation.

My husband is a recovering alcoholic. He was mostly a binge type.
Never during the day, never drove when drinking, never missed work. But it was a huge problem in its own right. We came to an intervention type crisis...and I had him hauled to a hospital, and that scared the dickens out of him.

Well, he is sober now over 10 yrs, and for a while it was double chocolate ice cream EVERY night. I managed to get him off that 2 yrs ago...but he still buys Hershey bars by the case at Costco, and 6pks of Special Dark, and snacks on the Hershey's Dark with Almonds, nuggets. For him, chocolate really helps. I watch him and remind him of "moderation" but I can't really nag him over it.

But that sweet thing I think is connected to the alcohol gene. Both his parents were severe alcoholics too.