Exercise and PN
 

Hi. I recently was diagnosed with Idiopathic PN. Nerve testing showed possible large fiber nerve damage and my symptoms indicate small fiber nerve damage. I know there has been things written about moderate amount of exercise for Peripheral Neuropathy but I'm wondering what is moderate? Before this all started my only escape, "therapy" and insurance that I would sleep at night had always been dance and different forms of exercise. However, I am finding that none of my happy places are being accepted by my PN. I meditate and do other things to help relax but NOTHING compares to exercise for me. I am so depressed without an outlet for my frustration and what's going on in my body. Can some of you share what works for you. I only take Gabapentin before bed to help with my symptoms so I can sleep. Would it help me be able to exercise if I take it during the day too?

Prior to my PN, I was a competitive athlete. I raced my bike all over the midwest and it was a great lifestyle. Now I have whole body SFN symptoms andvalso have large fiber damage in my right foot. The only thing that has worked for me was to get into the pool. I do about 3 pool classes each week and it has been good for both my body and my mind.

Able to tolerate less
 

Exercize to tolerance is the mantra but lately I have become lazier or less tolerant. I used to use a spin bike for three songs on the internet. One song-legs and ankles-toes. Next song-legs-arms and neck rolls. Next song try to stand up and pump, that is cardio and up to 40 strokes. I think weight gain is slowing me and my determination. I hope you develop many new routines and tell us about them. Ken in Texas.

Swimming is my favorite exercise. It makes my whole body feel better. I do Kundalini Yoga, Maya Fiennes. You can check her out on youtube. I like her the best because she works on all parts of all the nuero systems. Also, she does postures for stimulating organs, to make them function better which helps nerves repair. Another huge plus is the breathing techniques, providing oxygen to places that it just doesn't get to normally. It helps eliminate my pain in the long run and gives me lots of energy. It may hurt while I'm doing it and after too. I have found there's no way of getting around pain. Some of it's good because it can mean my nerves are healing. Some of it's not but I would have lost muscle tone without it, making me progressively worse. So I stay on top of it. My meditation lately is golf. I like to go by myself because it's almost like therapy. I am so focused on putting that ball in the little hole, that there's no room for anything else. It's something I have taken up since getting sick.

Why have you stopped dancing? Doing something that makes you happy is the best medicine.

Thank you February! You gave me new info to think about. I didn't realize that pain could mean my nerves could be healing. I gave up dance because during the warmup, a few minutes into class my right leg started burning from my foot on up my leg and I figured triggering my symptoms was not a good thing. Maybe I need to rethink this. I might be babying myself too much, which if you knew me you'd realize that's not my normal behavior!!

I should mention I have a baseline. Meaning, I have an idea what to expect, pain or fatigue, after my workouts. If it's significantly more pain and fatigue lasting longer, I pull back on my activities temporarily. My goal has always to build the baseline slowly. As you read many of us keep a log or diary of symptoms to keep tabs on triggers. Overdoing exercise is not good either, but you can't necessarily base that on pain alone. Figure out your personal baseline but keep all your muscles active one way or another, always.