Thank you all for your input on this topic, and I will certainly read and learn from it.

Now for some big news:

On Friday, I saw a neurologist at the Cleveland Clinic, and he made a startling statement: I do not have PN at all, but instead I have something going on in my spine in the thoracic area, and it might be something they can fix. I know that everyone here knows what a huge about-face that is, compared to the generic "ideopathic neuropathy" bucket. I will post more on this as it unfolds--even start a thread if it might help someone else. It might be a life-changer, or it might be just another be another blind alley.

Right now, I'm fighting the impulse to dream about how it would be if this could be fixed. I know he could be wrong. I know this could be false hope. But at least I have to try by getting the MRI and giving the idea a chance.