I currently have a working diagnosis of Small fibre neuropathy, my feet hurt such a lot when I walk as do my ankles which feel really stiff, my wrists are also stiff and painful, with hands and fingers that are swollen most of the time, are these similar to other peoples experiences?

I find the magnesium lotion really helps with
Symptoms like this.? Oral will work too
And soaking in epsom salt baths.

I also wear leg warmers often and
1/2 fingered gloves. These warm the
Blood where veins are near the surface
Of the skin.

I do have the stiff ankles, wrists, and fingers. I have hereditary neuropathy, sometimes the stiffness is the most distracting symptom as my pain is usually well controlled. I am on Baclofen which helps a little, although I take it primarily to prevent rib cage spasms which were very scary and painful. They are usually a symptom of MS, but I am finding that neuropathy can cause a wide variety of unpleasant sensations.

I push a walker and my ankles get very tight. The Morton Epsom Salts lotion is good at bedtime for me. Thanks Mrs. D . The night pain is the kind that you think you would scream if a cockroach crawled on top of your foot.haha. For the tight ankles I get on a bicycle that has handles and listen to rock-n-roll for as long as I can tolerate plus I use the pedals to extend and contract thru the range of motion for my feet. Letting toes down and then the opposite on the way up, You get the picture and you could also loosen the wrists on the handles also , being careful to start slow and warm up. Swinn is a good brand and tons on Craigslist as many machines are doing time as clotheshangers.haha good luck, Ken in Texas

Yes, I have this as well.

People don't talk much about this but mine came right with the neuropathy and is a big component of the bad sensation.

I haven't got to the bottom of it yet.

The magnesium bath and lotion helps. Don't soak in too hot of water for a long time though, this is not great for neuropathy ... stick to warm, not hot.

I have a set of hand and feet exercises I do every day to lubricate my joints. I also bought some therapy putty (look on amazon) and play with that while I'm watching TV or going for a walk, to get my joints gently moving. (Do a search in google images for instructional pictures on how internet gamers use therapy putty to get the movement back in their hands ... they are the same exercises that ergo therapists advise).

I bought a stationary bike so I have it in my home to quickly do some exercise. This has made a big difference.

Someone once called the swelling feeling "Mickey Mouse Hands" and that is an apt image of what they feel like.

I haven't yet been to a rheumatologist but I suspect there are hormonal influences. If you are menopausal, post-chemo, or anything that is playing with your hormones this can be related to inflammation in joints. (probably someone else here can explain the chemistry).

For myself, I think it might be a good idea to have a Rheumatologist do their typical full panel of blood work done, just to see what is happening with inflammation, acids and other things that might be going on which affect my joints and show up in the small joints of hands and feet. Sometimes it's hard to separate out neuropathy and joint issues and it's a good idea to rule out other things that might be contributing.

Eating 1/3 of a pineapple a day (cut up core into small pieces and eat also) or about 20 cherries, sour is best, is a natural thing you do for joint inflammation. However, there is only so much of this you can eat on an ongoing daily basis and it can give you very mild diarrhea.

Some also swear by drinking natural apple cider vinegar in water, but there are mixed opinions about whether this is proven.

Eating good healthy oils is probably a good idea also, for both nerves and joints.

I found some interesting perspectives over in the Arthritis area of Neurotalk, where Mrs. D also contributes. Although I doubt I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, in the strict definition, that forum is still people talking roughly about ideas for stiffness.

Natalie