That is what I am worried about the most ( being permanent ), since I waited for over 4 years to go to the Dr. About it. What finally brought me to my knees was the incredible pain , I really thought they were going to cut them off.I had never heard of PN before that. Yes your right,my neurologist told me it was permanent so I am hoping I will get " lucky" too ! You don't talk much about your pain or did you go numb without the pain?

Permanent is not necessarily true. Even Dr. Young at Rutger's says that replacing the lost nutrients will reverse most alcoholic PN.

You can search him, Wise Young, MD., on Google.

Stop the alcohol, eat smart with Omega-3s and good protein.
Avoid sugar.

Do Benfotiamine, magnesium, B-complex, B12, Vit D and see what happens. Take some time, but there should be small improvements along the way.

I found Benfotiamine,R-Lipoic Acid,B-12 Methylcobalamin and Slow-Mag today thanks mrsD for your help!I am excited about the future, it has to get better now. My B12 level is 883 they took me off injections said I was on the high end of normal,worked out tho rather take the 5000 mcg anyway.My pain is just horrific at times,I can only pray it was the alcohol that caused this because I have control over that.If this is what I must do to get my life back it is a small price to pay.

Well, not to burst your bubble here, but I did not have any pain. For me it was mostly numbness and tingling (pins and needles like) in my feet and lower legs. Add to that poor diet, massive amounts of alcohol (I liked my Vodka neat, no glass) and I lost the use of my legs. I could hobble from a bed to a bathroom but walking was out of the question.

When I was incarcerated (3 months) I was given a walker for 1 hour a day. When I was released I took it with me (dont tell them) and used that for about 3 months.

I ditched the walker in Feb 2012 for a cane.

Now I eat well, take the vitamin regime and walk about a mile a day just for giggles.

Oh, and NO alcohol....none.

Wondering how you are doing Icehouse. Care to tell us how you are doing here a year later?

I would, but its been fairly well documented in the last 5 pages...I kinda hijacked this thread on page one I think

But, without tooting my own horn, I think I am doing pretty damn good considering....

I am still pretty excited I can walk again!!

Read through this whole thread from page 1-6.....it shows the monthly progress in steps....

20 months or 608 days of sobriety. Easy? No. Worth it? Yes.

Hardly ever use the cane anymore, still not 100% but time will bring that along. I am going to post a picture of something that I never thought I would never be able to do again. I was far from the high scorer, but I bowled two games before I decided to take a rest

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wow! I congratulate you! you are an inspiration to us all.Great that you went bowling, I bet you had a great time!!!!
bizi

Congratulations Icehouse on your awesome journey & remaining sober! And Beachbumb... I hope that you are finding much relief with your supplements. How are you doing today?

Although far from fully recovered - I was feeling a good bit better after 2 weeks of no sugar/alcohol & a bunch of new (Mrs.D approved) multi-syllabled vitamins. But last night I had 2 glasses of delicious red wine & a small piece of cheesecake at dinner and BAM! I woke up with leg pain that I haven't had in weeks. It's lasted all day & I am struggling between being happy that I now know that alcohol must definitely play a major roll in my suffering and being sad that I probably can't enjoy wine ever again.

Try using in moderation (one drink to start), some quality filtered Vodka. Skyy...is quadruple filtered. See if your feet react to it. They make it in pints, so you can buy just a little.
Quality vodka in moderation does not set off my feet. But any kind of wine sure does! So does beer. Beer in fact upsets my GI tract as well. Smirnoff is a close second to Skyy. (avoid all the flavored vodkas)

I've learned to drink the vodka, because I need a relaxer now and then. My old fave, Canadian blended whiskey has become history for me however, along with the other alcohol sources.
It is not always just the alcohol, but what comes along with it that can be so problematic.

When you drink however, you will need that Benfotiamine (or regular Thiamine) to help metabolize it.