I'm willing to suspend disbelief and since exercise usually doesn't hurt, I'll give it a try. I have nothing to lose. My mobility is quite impaired and unless I fracture something while exercising, what the hell?

He recommended either water aerobics or if not do-able, a stationary bike. I can manage both but a bike is much more convenient. He didn't say it's a treatment for PN but it goes into the basket of beneficial stuff you can do.

I have no clue as to why runners, skiers, sprinters, etal develop PN. However, one scenario comes to mind: If a toned cyclist develops cancer and has chemo for it, will the toxic effects of the drug be prevented/ameliorated by the person's superior aerobic condition prior to the cancer dx? Or will he/she be as vulnerable as a deconditioned couch potato? A lot might depend on the cause of the PN.

My reading is 400+ and my research suggests that the elevation could be a result of my messed up thyroid. I have a supersized bottle of Costco fish oil which I think I will try before Crestor.

In 3 months I got my triglycerides down to 88 from 154 by diet alone. I was on a statin for about a year but had terrible side effects. It did nothing for lowering triglycerides. I stopped eating sugar and white flour. I eat only good carbs, and nothing with preservatives. When I was on the statin it lowered the bad LDL but also the good HDL. It did nothing to lower triglycerides. The only thing that did that was diet. At this point in my life I finally believe, "We are what we eat".

Antonina,

Maybe I missed something from your first post. Did he think you have more than one cause of PN? If so, what are the causes he thinks apply to your case and how did he come to this conclusion? Are you diabetic?

Glad you were happy with the visit. JH has lots to offer.

[RANT]
That's what happened to me when my gut went kaflooey. Bozo the Gastroenterologist prescribed asacol (ASA-5 drug). Each time I reported I was getting worse and bleeding more, he increased the dosage until he wanted to put me in the hospital and cut out half my colon. That was where I put my foot down, got on the SCD, and cured myself within a year. Haven't looked back since except that now most NSAIDs cause bleeding again. Colon is probably permanently damaged, but intact and otherwise healthy!
[/RANT]

Doc

my md prescribed 4 grams of Lovaza for my high triGlycerides. basically its very pure omega 3 fish oil......

i went form a ~400 to under 200; hoping for further decreases as we go.

So far there are three: diabetes, chemo & elevated triglycerides. I also saw an endocrinologist @ JH on Thursday re: an outta whack thyroid which can add one more cause to the other three. I'll know more when I get the lab results next week.

All of the above is not good news but at least I now have some answers.

I had a great experience @ JH and even if I don't have ALL the answers, it's a good start. If it weren't such a major production, I'd like to go back for other health issues. You're lucky you can get there in 3 hours!

Hypothyroid issues can cause significant peripheral neuropathy symptoms. That is what I had starting at about age 30. My hard to diagnose thyroid (it is damaged on the left side only) wasn't discovered until my mid forties. By then my feet were numb after having gone thru alot painful years. It took about a year on thyroid hormone for them to wake up...tingling all the way.

I had high triglycerides too... 385+
I lowered them in 3mos with fish oil. I now take Krill oil (2 a day) and hold at 150. For you I'd start at 2 or 3 fish oil or two concentrated ones. Most are OTC but Lovaza fish oil is RX and your insurance may cover it. I switched to Krill oil, last spring and it works the same for me. Same blood work. No changes.

For a doctor who claims to be a PN specialist to give you such statin advice is ridiculous IMO. Especially since statins are not great interventions for elevated triglycerides anyway! One would expect a PN specialist to know all the drugs capable of causing PN (cell damage!).

Gentle exercise improves blood sugars in type II diabetics, and improves circulation. I've never heard of it curing anything tho. But it is in general good for you. Don't do high impact things with your feet.

Diet also helps. No alcohol, and limit sugars and white flour/potatoes/rice as much as possible.

Antonia--
 

--I think you've just discovered the "double-crush" hypothesis for nerve damage. (I've written a number of posts about it.)

In general, yes, you can have multiple conditions contributing to your neuropathy, and they tend to act together out of proportion to the "sum of their parts". Anyone who has systemic compromise of nerve, due to toxicity, glucose dysregulation, autoimmune effects, etc.--becomes very much more prone to compressive or other insults to nerve (it is thought that thyroid neuropathy is primarily compressive in action--a malfunctioning thyroid allows swelling and deposits in narrow areas in which nerves are prone to be compressed already, such as the carpal and tarsal tunnel areas), and the resulting symptoms are more than additive.

I would think that high triglycerides are part of the same "beast" as insulin resistence/glucose dysregulation, whether inherited or acquired (that 400 level is pretty high)--it's all part of metabolic syndrome, which is a big nerve compromiser. High glucose levels poison nerve; the circulatory/ischemic problems that come from high triglycerides/high LDL compromise the ability to get oxygen/nutrients from getting to nerve and waste products from getting out, the slower moving system allows fluids to pool and compress nerve--it's all part of a piece.

And, of course, you've had neurotoxic chemotherapy.

That said, I would caution about adding potential other causative factors to the mix--including statins. They don't cause side effects in everybody, but there've been enough people with myopathy/neuropathy from them to proceed with caution, especially for one who already has ongoing nerve problems. High quality fish oil, methylcobalamin (to reduce homocysteine mediated inflammation), and a lot of soluble fiber are probably better ways to go.

Mrs. D,
Thanks for all the good info. Would you please tell me the brand of krill oil and the strength? I have a hard time swallowing the jumbo Costco fish oil pills. I've done a search and found Schiff Mega Red and Neptune Krill Oil 500. Do you know anything about either of these? TIA