Symptoms question for new member
 

Hi, I'm new on here & have a list of symptoms that I would like to share to see if any of this makes sense. I get these on & off but mostly on:

* Tingling skin
* Itching everywhere
* Bug crawling feeling
* Burning skin
* Piercing like a bee sting anywhere on body
* Wet feeling on skin (rare)
* Feeling like I have a large bruise, on torso, but nothings there
* Balance & walking not as steady as it used to be

Does this make sense ? I'm 50 & this has been going on for about 5 years. Could this be caused by an old spinal injury that went unnoticed till now ?

Thanks in advance for your help, Patrick

Welcome Patrick...
 

I hope I'm not being presumptious here, but I think if you read lots of our prior posts, our symptoms and complaints run along the same vein, to differernt degrees.
I urge you to take a look at the 'stickies' at the top of this forum. There is a lot of information that should be 'stuck' at that top, so folks can get key info and learn about PN and it's issues. Start off with http://www.neuroexam.com/content.php?p=2 www/neuroexam.org
and then go to http://www.aafp.org/afp/980215ap/poncelet.html
The first will tell you what a neuro is generally looking for at first and the second will be a bit more specific. Those are the 'appetizers' so to speak. Being a neuro disease that mimics many things it's a hard issue to get docs often to zero in on. Looking at the sites above will give you a sort of 'intro to 101' version of what to expect. If you don't get some of the basics from a doc [usually a neurologist] if your medical insurance allows, get a second opinon. Do not overlook diabetes or pre-diabetes as a possibility. I hope others will speak more eloquently on this issue.
Lastly any tests you have...be SURE YOU get copies! Handy when seeing other docs and you can avoid having the same tests unnecessarily at times. Check out www/lizajane.org as well, there are worksheets put together by other PN'ers who have all varieties of PN issues...including spinal ones. It's kind of a menu of tests that could be done for diagnosis.
Sorry this is soo, well, heavy, but info is info...tho a lot. I hope this helps you decide what to do. And how to do it, and what to expect in the doing. - j

Hello Patrick...
 

5 years of this?

Itching everywhere? Have you had liver functions run recently? How is the old gall bladder doing? Are you hot/getting palpitations with the itching?
If so has the thyroid been checked recently?

When symptoms like yours are ALL OVER... one has to think globally.
Gluten intolerance can do this (systemic nerve irritation)
Allergies can do this (eating high MSG foods or foods high in histamine frequently)

Certain nutritional deficiencies can do this...B12, thiamine, EFAs (Omega-3s)

Have you been tested for autoimmune disease? That would be blood tests.

Are you taking drugs? Narcotics cause itching all over. Other drugs too.
Some drugs deplete nutrients and over time you become deficient because of this.

Can you keep a diary and log when it is bad and when better? If it varies you might find an environmental trigger.

We here tend to like to figure things out... find answers. We will spend more time with you this way than your doctor will in most cases!

tell us more
 

If you'd like us to help you, it would help us if you'd tell us your story. Tell it from the beginnig, like, I'm an X year old man/woman who was well until____when I developed my first symptom xyz. I went to my doctor who did ABC and treated me with JKL. I was sent to a neuro who did an EMG and told me yada yada yada.

Gather up all your lab results from your doctors, and tell us what you know, and we'll see if we can help you.

Also, LizaJane has a website that is specifically for PN'ers.
www.lizajane.org
In a nutshell, it is a comprehensive tool that allows us to track ongoing tests and therapies to see if there is change.
Also to see what testing has been done vs what testing should be done for our symptoms. (Theres more to it than that, but its just a nutshell explanation)