Hi Mary,
Unfortunately my symptoms have been steadily worsening, although I can still get around OK. It's been about 3 1/2 months without alcohol and I have no desire for it anymore, particularly considering the damage. I had one horrid doctor recently who berated me for drinking and told me that its only going to get worse. Some people have been lucky and able to reverse their neuropathy, but perhaps my alcohol consumption went on too long. Still hoping and praying for a miracle.

Oldbat: Beside all the other THINGS that can cause Neuropathy, just hearing Dr. Wallach on the radio the other night, he says, foot neuropathy especially can be caused by degenerative discs in the back... I have lost about 3 inches from my 5' 5" body. With aging, we all lose disc space and this he says causes nerve damage down the legs into the feet. Stretch the body, I do every morning before I start my day, and waiting for my new order of Inosine which I've posted about that helps my issues... which came on from hip replacement in 2010......

Hi Caroline,
Thanks for your suggestion. I am scheduled for a lumbar MRI Monday, so any spinal problems affecting the legs will hopefully be found. Cervical spine MRI showed some severe foraminial stenosis c5-c6 that I thought might be affecting the arms, but a spinal doctor I saw said no and that my symptoms point to peripherial neuropathy. So far I've had 2 EMGs of the legs, most recently 6 wks ago. Both showing nothing wrong. I've heard of small fiber neuropathy which isn't usually detectable by EMG. Will discuss with neurologist next time.
I've been taking MSM in a Glucosamine complex. That along with 100 mg Hyaluronic acid keeps joint pain down.

Hey Bat,

The first 3 months are the hardest in respect of coming to terms with chronic pain and a life without alcohol. You have endured those days, you have got through them and they will never be as bad again. I remember sitting at home trying to watch TV at the beginning of UK lockdown at the end of March ( my fist symptoms were mid January) and I had hurt my back at the same time and everything hurt, I couldn't even find a comfortable place to sit. I remember thinking that if this gets worse I won't be able to continue.

Luckily for me, Lockdown gave me 3 months of rest and recuperation. And I slowly recovered. That is the point, recovery and nerve regeneration are slow. It requires patience. You are doing the right thing, things will get better. I spoke to some guys on the thread Alcohol Neuropathy Part 2 and they said it took about a year to fully feel better, but their symptoms were much worse than ours. One guy was in a wheelchair for several months. It took me maybe 5 months to recover. I actually became over confident and thought I was cured and drank, experienced symptoms and had to start again. Over the months I changed my whole diet (Vegan) and lifestyle and focused on getting well. I think it's very important to try and do everything you can to allow your body to heal itself. Develop a wellness plan. I'm at the position now where I am pretty much symptom free apart from say awareness of my toes from time to time.

You don't need a miracle. You just need time and a bit of effort.
Here are some supplements you may want to consider ...

NERVE HEALING SUPPLEMENTS:

Vitamin B1; thiamine but best to take Benfotiamine the fat soluble form as you can store it in your liver. B vitamins are water soluble so pass out of our bodies .This together with
Vitamin B12 are the most important supplements. I take 1000ug of methylcobalamin a day.

A quality broad spectrum multi B Vitamin. Don't overdo B6
B Complex 50 ~ 100 mg
Vitamin D3 1000 ~ 5000 IU
Magnesium 400 ~ 600 mg
Omega - 3 (EPA DHA) from Algae Oil or Fish Oil 1000 ~ 2000 mg a day
Eat milled flax seed and chia seed for additional omega 3.
Turmeric 500 mg
Alpha lipoic acid 600 ~ 1200 mg
CoQ-10 100mg

I wish you well,

Atty

It isn't mentioned often, but MSM might be worth considering also..
I discovered it when I had severe RSI, and have used it for 30 yrs on & off..
NERVE HEALING SUPPLEMENTS MSM - Google Search

Top 8 Health Benefits of MSM Supplements
MSM Herbal Supplements Side Effects, Benefits, Uses & Dosage

I have been taking MSM in water for years...it does calm the pain I live with...I take 1 healing tsp in water, two times daily.... This is about 12 grams give or take.... I learned about the higher dosing years ago from another health group member...some members take 3 tps daily in 8 oz water each time...

Hi Atty,
Thank you for your words of encouragement. Much appreciated after hearing that spine doctor say that my neuropathy will keep getting worse. Maybe he thought I was still drinking. He didn't seem to be listening well. The neurologist was more hopeful, at least as of mid October when I last saw him. He thought the symptoms would eventually start to improve, but it would take several months of proper diet, supplements, exercise, and zero alcohol.

Thanks for the advice for a wellness plan. I have been changing my diet and trying finding foods that I'll stick with that will hopefully help reduce these awful symptoms. Used to love coffee on cold mornings, but dropped it recently because it's probably flushing out valuable nutrients. Used to love eating pizza (& beer) on Friday nights, hot dogs & beans (& beer) on Saturday nights, but dropped all them all with the exception of a small piece of veggie pizza Friday nights. I try to add salads to lunch and dinner, using raw spinach leaves, carrots, broccoli, nuts. Bread, particularly white bread is mostly gone from my diet. Still eat small portions of lean meat, particularly chicken. Eating more tree nuts. Cutting back on cheese. Substituted almond milk for regular milk. Trying to eat more kale and collards. It's a process I suppose. As a vegan, what do you eat for protein?

For exercise, I've been doing about an hour of full body workouts daily (aerobics, strength training, balance, stretching), following a program called "Faithful Workouts" on youtube. I also do targeted exercises to target weakness in my hands and feet. I take the creatine you recommended, 5 grams mixed with orange juice and beet juice about an hour before exercising and drink whey protein after exercising.

Thanks the list of supplements. Some of these I was missing or not taking enough of, such as magnesium, alpha lipoic acid, co-q-10, omega 3. I have not tried Turmeric yet and will add it to the shopping list.

I am very thankful for the support network here.

Hey Bat,

It sounds to me that you're doing very well indeed. Sending you a socially distanced, virtual, pat on the back!

Some thoughts

First of all what do you have against coffee? For me the benefits ( especially for the liver and the brain) of coffee totally outweigh any harms. I drink 3 cups of black coffee pretty much every morning, but then I don't drink any for the rest of the day as it will affect my sleep. Just take your supplements at a different time of day if you are worried by nutrient depletion.
I then switch to Tetley decaff green tea for the rest of the day.

For an oldbat you appear to be ultra fit! An hour a day mixed exercise sounds a great achievement. However I am just wondering if your body wouldn't benefit from days off to allow repair and recovery. I happen to know that in both strength and endurance training, rest and recovery days are seen as important as training days.

Protein. As a new vegan I get this all the time. Protein requirements are grossly exaggerated in most people's minds. Protein is associated with meat and fish but there is more than enough protein in plants to sustain bodybuilders ( see numerous examples on YouTube )
A great source is beans. I note you used to love hot dogs and beans. Whilst highly processed meat products like hot dogs are pretty much the most unhealthy foods you can eat, beans are the opposite.
They are packed with nutrients and fibre (and Protein!) Fibre is a key to a healthy diet. Try a tin of Five Beans (in a hot and spicy tomato sauce), 45p! at Sainsbury or Taco Beans from Tesco!

Anyways I wish you well,

Nadolig Llawen

Atty

Old Bat, I see you mentioned SFN, SFN is what I have and it’s taking its toll on me! Have issues walking, restless and burning legs and tremors in arms and chest and this goes on 24/7.
So far I have just started gabapentine for a month now but not really working! Wish you the best!

Hey skbing,

Welcome to the forum. SFN can be a debilitating disease and difficult to cope with. In a couple of understated sentences you capture the daily horror of life with SFN. The early weeks and months are the worst. But you will get through this. Things will improve.

Would love to hear more of your story.