Thank you and appreciate the welcome!!!! I will document my progress as the months/years progress. Day 2 of no alcohol and I feel like I have lost my best friend :{

Hello all.

I thought I would start an ongoing detail of my journey from beginning to until? I suspect the PN is from moderate/heavy social alcohol use over many years. The first symptom was thumb twitching a year or so ago. Then in early April of this year (2019) after having 10 beers the night before, I awoke to tingling in my left hand. This then progressed to the classic "pins, needles and tingling" in my hands, skin crawling just above my left ankle and light-headedness.

I suspected PN from the beginning based on internet searches and dramatically scaled back alcohol use. The diagnosis was confirmed recently by my Neurologist after a EMG test (he said nothing other than "mild neuropathy") .

I was in denial at first and tried to just reduce the alcohol consumption significantly, but there has been no noticeable improvement and very slight progression over the past 4 1/2 months. After an appointment with my doctor on Friday, I have decided to get serious about trying to get better (although I know there is no guarantee of this with PN). Detailed below are some details about me and my recovery plan that I will be tracking on the forum. Any other help or recommendations would be really appreciated!

* 53 year old male in good health with healthy diet and vigorous exercise 4 times a week. Had a colectomy/IRA in 2007 but recovered quickly and no issues since 2007 with that.

* A1C in the "pre diabetic" zone, but not diagnosed a diabetic (we tested this to begin with).

* Stopping all alcohol use (two days in now).

* Starting a vitamin supplementation regimen recommended by mrsD and Icehouse on this site that includes the following daily:
-Centrum Silver
- Doctor's Best Benfotiamine (150 mg), Vegetable Capsules, 120-Count
- Jarrow Formulations Jarrow B-right Complex, 100 Capsules

Thanks again and I hope everyone is having a great weekend.

Hi CTman, sounds like you are making good decisions and are heading in a good direction. Cutting back alcohol is the first thing I was told to tackle. I unfortunately was too deep into my addiction cycle, and did not listen. Two more years of on and off drinking made it much worse. Nothing I can do about it now though aside to just learn from it.

For me exercise is key, and it seems that you have that covered. I find that starting off the morning with something that gets my blood flowing sets me up for a much better day than not.

I also moved to a no sugar, low carb diet. This is also something I find keeps the pain on the lower end of the spectrum of what I experience. Might not be for everyone, but I ran it by my doctor and his feedback was that I should keep doing whatever I was doing because my numbers were great after a couple of months. Since I am part of communities that focus on low carb, no sugar lifestyle, I read about a lot of people reversing their diabetes all the time. Perhaps it's something to look into, while keeping your Dr in the loop.

Great work on the no drinking part of it. That was very difficult to me and is where my focus was at first. Because if I didn't get that right, it was going to be impossible to make any progress in the other area's. Once that was under control I was able to start making progress with diet and fitness. While I am not as physically capable as I would like to be as a result of neuropathy, it has forced me to improve my lifestyle in many other ways, and has given me a perspective on life that I would never have gotten without it. So almost a blessing and a curse. Overall, 16 months in, life has gotten much much better though.

I think it's a great sign that the feedback from the DR was mild neuropathy. I would stay away from a drink at all costs, be easy on yourself and see how things are over a few months down the line and see if any other adjustments can help. This is a great community with a wealth of knowledge. I researched Alcoholic / PN for two years until I stumbled on this site and it's where I found the most info out of anywhere, DR visits included.

Thanks so much for the advice and words of encouragement. Giving up drinking is the toughest thing ever...I feel as if I have lost my best friend and the only thing I looked forward too every day. I hope it gets easier (3 days in...a lifetime to go).

Ug...I can tell you it will get easier, a whole lot easier, but probably not any time soon. It took me about a year before I shook the "need" for a drink. I counteracted that feeling with soda (the brain thinks it likes the carbonation) and smoking (I don't advise this by the way). I quit the cigarettes a few years later and still enjoy the odd cigar.

It's a psychological game to me. I had to trick my brain into thinking it liked other stuff.

I have since quit drinking soda (pop for the northerners) and that was super easy.

Don't touch my coffee though....

Thanks!!! Really appreciate the perspective. Also, the Neuropathy has gotten noticeably worse in the 3 days since I stopped drinking. Is this typical that it spikes right after you cut alcohol? Thanks again!!!

I was a daily drinker for a while and from what I can tell, it didn't get bad until I dried out for a few days. First it was just tingles and twitches. But in the end when I dried up in a detox I was in a world of pain.

It could be that it's now out of your system and you are feeling it. But I am not sure our situations are comparable if you weren't drinking in the same way I was.

With that said, perhaps knowing that it's there is bringing it into focus.

For mild cases, Ive read it can clear up. Best thing that I could do for myself was to try and get healthier. That's just my experience but even starting off with a little here and a little there. Getting in tune with my body was key. Understanding how to fit in exercises and stretches throughout the day to get my blood circulating. Eating better. Making sure I had done enough in the day that I would be able to sleep. It was a process for me, but aside from the nagging neuropathy, I'm much healthier because of it.

Not sure if this has been posted here but it's got a lot of good info.

Alcoholic neuropathy: possible mechanisms and future treatment possibilities

Hey folks, a quick one:

1) I had it confirmed 2 days ago, unequivocally, that glucose (sugar/carbs) does affect the nerve endings - that’s one of the reasons diabetics are prone to PN - and does make them “swell” in layman’s terms, but with no way to go. Ouch! He is an expert neurologist only working with PN patients. I felt a huge reduction in pain after cleaning up my diet in 2013. My previous neurologist looked at me like I was an idiot after I reported this, but it is science, not just “internet knowledge”. You can get a fatty liver from soda & fruit juice without ever touching a drop of alcohol. There are 8 year olds with fatty livers. (after all, alcohol is fermented fructose).

2) Alcohol is a very effective pain killer, so it is perfectly normal to feel much much worse immediately after quitting. This does go away, but do not expect a complete reversal. It happens, but it is rare. But the really bad pain will subside, no doubt about that. It does get better.

3) Do not let that discourage you. Continuing to drink after the diagnosis will cause a world of pain and/or disability (depending on what type of nerves were damaged). I’m perfectly happy not drinking, it’s not a thing anymore. I was sure it would be impossible to quit. I found out it’s not.*. I was sure my life would be empty and boring. It’s not. I thought I would no longer be able to play music, to be creative, etc. All wrong.

4) Sugary stuff can help you quit, that’s the paradox. Indulge if that helps you stay sober, you can always take that next step when you find your footing. Obviously, if you can do both, go for it!

* It’s 9:30 PM here and it’s the first time today, well, this week, that I think about alcohol, and only because I’m writing about it here. I feel - pinky swear - zero attraction to drinking though. And that in itself feels great. My wife still drinks (one of those weird normal drinkers) and it doesn’t trigger me anymore. Do not do this in the beginning though, make it as easy on yourself as you possibly can, it’s not a challenge.

Good luck, and keep asking questions!

Thanks so much!!! Appreciate!

[QUOTE=On_A_Freeway;1279079]I was a daily drinker for a while and from what I can tell, it didn't get bad until I dried out for a few days. First it was just tingles and twitches. But in the end when I dried up in a detox I was in a world of pain.

It could be that it's now out of your system and you are feeling it. But I am not sure our situations are comparable if you weren't drinking in the same way I was.

With that said, perhaps knowing that it's there is bringing it into focus.

For mild cases, Ive read it can clear up. Best thing that I could do for myself was to try and get healthier. That's just my experience but even starting off with a little here and a little there. Getting in tune with my body was key. Understanding how to fit in exercises and stretches throughout the day to get my blood circulating. Eating better. Making sure I had done enough in the day that I would be able to sleep. It was a process for me, but aside from the nagging neuropathy, I'm much healthier because of it.

Not sure if this has been posted here but it's got a lot of good info.

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Thansk so much!!! This is really helpful!