Cold feet
 

I keep reading the PN causes burning feet, which do I get particularly if I stand/walk too much. But my main issue is freezing cold feet. I wake up in the morning and my feet are freezing (as well as painful), is this usual in PN?

Nothing I do seems to make this freezing feeling go away.

I'm sure others will be along to answer too. My feet get very cold, yet I can't say freezing. Three years ago when I was working at a convience/gas station and on my feet for my entire shift, my feet burned. In the last 2 years, they rarely burn, they ache, sometimes are numb, and they both have a certain area that swells.

Now Kev has diabetic neuropathy and his feet are always cold, ice cold to the touch. He always says he thinks it is caused by poor circulation. So, I would imagine, you will get many answers.

Hey Lupin,
Having PN is like trying to raise juvenile delinquents, they require so much time and attention and you don't know what they will do next. You can try warm foot baths with epson salts, foot cremes and what ever you do to remendy the situation rest assured they will cause you trouble in a different way.:winky:

Lupin...
 

The only thing I have found that warms up my cold, cold feet are a pair of slippers called "Cosy Soles". The website www.footsmart.com has them on sale right now. http://www.footsmart.com/Product.asp...%22&src=FSpaid. You warm them up in the microwave and then wear them. They really work well for me. Good Luck.

Ann

Your feet feel cold inside, but...
 

aren't outside..to touch. or just the opposite. Finding the just right things to do is a matter of trial and error. AND It's not your imagination....

Weird or incorrect temp sensations are syptoms of all sorts of PN's. Gel warming paks or the rice or barley packets are good to use as they are a gentle heat, not one that can burn. Part of this is explained under a stickie I'd posted a while ago...page 3 I believe about skin. It's under diabetic neuropathy, but it's good in explaining that those malfunctiong nerves aren't telling your vascular and llymph systems what to do correctly. Or, simply telling the other systems what the totally wrong thing IS rather that what it really SHOULD be.

What to do? The Cosy Soles are one approach...tho I wouldn't heat them so long for starters...sometimes Microwaving stuff can get far hotter than our damaged nerves and skin can really tell - get burned that way. I use a 'celery storage' Tupperware type container and fill it 1/2 way w/ tepid water and soak. I'd found that hot water, was well, just too hot! Another thing I do on occasion is blow my hair-dryer over the cold area..on a low speed, medium temp. That seems to take the 'chill off'. Gentle massaging the bothered areas can help too, just gets things moving...but sometimes, the 'rubbing' is as bad as the problem...Try it and see?

My hands get that way too, for that I've a pair of finger-less 'mittens'. I can wear them and type and stuff and they keep my wrists, palms and knuckles covered but the fingers can do their thing for most 'dry' stuff. Most diabetic socks I've found to be totally useless [and expensive], but one kind "Medi-Peds' I've found in the pharmacy part of places like Walmart-are reasonable and don't seem to be too tight even when the ankles swell. I've not seen/found them on-line yet tho.

Hope this all helps. I know that strange 'pain' is worse than getting real frostbite. I've been close a few times and there is NO comparison.

Hang in there...someone else probably has even better things to try! - j

Hi Lupin
 

I too share the pain from extremely cold toes and feet and occasionally w/ burning simultaneously but the cold is by far much worse for me. Many times my toes and feet are cold to the touch, other times they are at normal body temperature but my brain still registers the dysthesia as cold. I'm fortunate in that I've had several Doppler ultrasounds done and I know my arterial circulation from my thighs to the great toe is good. However, I'm sure that my microvascular circulation has suffered from the PN.

What works much of the time for me is an electric mattress pad that my wife bought a few months ago - just like an electric blanket but on the bottom. It has individual controls so I don't disturb her. I turn the pad on my side ~15-20min before I come to bed at which point the foot of the bed is comfortably warm. My feet and toes slowly warm up and I can get some rest.

Some days I've found that putting my feet down on a rug that's been warmed by the sun can sometimes give me some relief too, albeit briefly. I don't know if this will help you but it might be a worth a try.
I do hope you find some relief from the pain.
Alkymst

hanging in there without my brain
 

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will certainly try them. I am struggling a bit with the side effects of Lyrica, I am just over two weeks and now up to 100mg three times a day and my brain is a complete mess, can’t remember things from one minute to the next and my typing skills (which were never that great) have abandoned me LoL. I am sticking with it because I now I am up to the higher dose having notice a decrease in pain I hope it continues! I have Tramadol to take as and when required. I never thought I would be in a position of having to take drugs on a regular basis Oh well………
Lupin

cold feet
 

My PN in the feet used to cause them to be very cold and also burn at the same time. I didn't know whether to use heat or cold packs on them. My arthritis doc wrote an RX for some Nitro-bid cream. I think it is the same medication heart patients use to increse circulation to the heart when they have angina pain. This cream comes in a tube and needs to be applied very sparenly to the top of the feet about once a day (for me). One needs to use a glove when applying it. If you apply too much at a time, you can get a bad headache. I used a dab, on each foot, about the size of half a pea or less. I did this for several months and my feet mainly just burn now. I sleep with an ice pack everynight by my feet. I can take either hot or cold, but not both. Some people probably shoudn't try it b/c of side effects that might be heart related, but using it for a time did help with cold feet. I guess your doc shold decide as the doc has to write the RX. The idea here is to increase the circulation to the feet. I have good pulses in my feet, but the nitro-bid did help some. Just a thought.

Another question
 

Do any of you experience feet that feel as if they are freezing and yet they sweat really badly? If I enclose them in a shoe, they sweat that way. This never happened before the PN. It's driving me nuts. It's ruining shoes and creating an odor. I don't know how to deal with it. I've never worn out a pair of shoes in my life. I've got one of those expensive shoe sizes too. Extremely narrow and I have to pay big bucks for shoes.

Billye

To Billye
 

Yes I get that......it funny feeling because it is so bizarre that my feet are freezing cold but sweat like they are hot. I am wearing thick cotton socks (and I mean thick) and this adsorbs the sweat (LoL)!!