Many fibromyalgia sufferers complain of nerve pain, also known as neuropathy. If you have it, you know how difficult it is to deal with.
My nerve pain began in my feet, back when I was 13. I had spondylolisthesis — a vertebra that had slipped forward onto the one below it — from a horse riding accident. I began experiencing shooting pain down my legs and numbness in my feet shortly after the accident. I had two spinal fusions, anterior and posterior, 30 years later. The shooting pain went away, but the nerve pain remained.
Since those surgeries, the nerve pain has worsened and has moved to my hands and even my face. I had numerous tests done but nothing was ever discovered. I never heard of a condition called neuropathy, and no doctor ever mentioned it to me.
When I began experiencing nerve pain in my face, I was concerned that I was having another stroke. I had three strokes in 2009, but didn’t recall that same tingling in my face. After taking every expensive test my doctors could dream up, I was told they had found nothing. Could this really be all in my head?
Fast forward to 2015, when I stumbled upon neuropathy by accident. I was researching something else, and found that neuropathy can be a symptom of fibromyalgia. Why hadn’t any of my numerous physicians considered that I might have it?
I haven’t had good experiences with doctors. For most of my life, they have cast aside my feelings, symptoms, and concerns. How am I supposed to trust a medical profession that has ignored and misled me? I’ve been humiliated by the very people who are supposed to help.
I was at a point where I was unwilling to deal with another doctor, so I decided to try to find a solution myself. I learned that many of the odd things I’ve experienced can be symptoms of neuropathy — gastric disorders and muscle cramps, to name a few.
I discussed this with my chiropractor today. Typically, neurologists will tell you that if you’ve had numbness in your feet or hands for more than two years, you will never get rid of it, he told me.
Not true, he said. It takes a long time to get rid of the numbness, but it can be done, he said. For the most part, nerves repair, regenerate, or grow about 1 inch per month. So it takes years for nerves to heal.
I may finally be on the right track, but it looks like it will be a long, slow ride. Hopefully my weekly chiropractor appointments will be the key to healing my poor, shot nerves.
I don’t know if this will work, but I don’t have a lot of options at this point. Modern medicine has failed me. I don’t want to take more medications than I already do. Nor do I want to go from specialist to specialist and have test after test without a definitive diagnosis.
If the natural approach doesn’t work, I’m not sure what I will do. I’m having problems with my vision and ability to talk, which is frightening and potentially dangerous. I feel time is running out to get this taken care of before I lose my ability to drive, work, or even communicate.
Only time will tell if this is the right course to achieve freedom from nerve pain. If the symptoms continue to worsen, I may have to break down and see a neurologist again. But for now, this fibro warrior plans to keep it natural.
If you suffer from neuropathy, what type of doctor do you see? Do you take medications and if so, do you feel they help? What natural options have you tried and which worked best for you?
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You are not alone as modern medicine has also failed for me and nearly killed me because no one would listen. I would that I were exaggerating-I am not!! Probably many others whom can say the same. I still am trying and exploring other options. What works for one is not always good for another.
Thank you for this post.
Good luck, Carrie, maybe some poster has a helpful supplement. My FM feet and legs have some type of nasty neuropathic pain that standard meds did not help and I abandoned them due to side effects. I have tried numerous supplements, no luck, next will try a turmeric blend from local supplement store reco’d by someone.
I find that Lyrica really does help with my neuropathy. Hands and feet. Painful, unexpected, critical pains. Fire in my toes. My rheumatologist is the dr who prescribes Lyrica. Once, when I forgot to take it, the pain came back right away. It’s always waiting to attack.
I sympathise with you too. I have suffered with fibromyalgia since 2009 after sliping two discs and trapping nerves in my back and having two failed back surgeries which left me in unimaginable pain. The third op a 2 level fusion with metal rods etc helped for a while but my fibro pain went into another level. The nerve pain I experience now is horrific. I find Lyrica helps a bit. But my doc has recently taken me off Naproxen due to the life threatening side effects and took me off tramadol too. Well the severe pain this left me in was really affecting the quality of my life, so he has since out me back on Tramadol which is a relief. I’m trying to come to terms with the fact that this is going to bed with me now for the for the rest of my life which isvhard to believe. I’ve already had to give up working as I simply couldn’t cope anymore and my partner is now my full-time carer, not ideal. But I’m still trying to find something that will take away or ease the severity of the pain especially after doing any type of activity, beit walking, shopping, cooking, getting up out of a chair, etc etc, all of which leaves me in so much pain I never revover. I’m always suffering from what I did the day before. Please God let someone find a cure to this terrible disease.
A cure…I have not ever thought about this being a possibility. T’would be a marvel. A positive thought.
Thanks 🙂
Joann says….
I also understand the fustration and confusion. I had pain since my pregnancies in my legs,but shook it off, thinking it was due to my pregnancies. Well years later, had started to have severe pain down my legs and my arms. Went to multiple orthopedics and neurologists. They said it came from my neck and back. It showed on the x-rays and MRI and CT’S..SO surgery on my lower lumbar. Then a car accident was the last straw that broke me. 3 neck surgeries later, a broken hand and ankle I’m continuingly having cramping, especially in my hands and feet. I also have TMJ,and Graves disease,which also comes with Fibromyalgia.
My sister and Aunt has Fibromyalgia as well.
Sometimes I feel as if I can’t talk or remember/think, as well as my concentration.I want to work, but know that I’ll be out sick too often to hold down any job.
The worse part is, it costs too much money to buy the proper foods to eat,not to mention the costs of vitamins to feel better and stop taking medicines that distroy and interfere with you getting better.
So, I sympathize with all of you..
i know this is an old post, i pray you are feeling better, made me cry reading as this is me, they wont do my fusion surgery now because of complications with fibr for recovery i am in dispair with the pain and inability to move around also, i will say a prayer for us all in this situation.
Before taking turmeric, please check with you pharmacist. I was going to start taking it and found out that it can in some cases interfere with other medications.
I commend you for trying to do this naturally. I was just diagnosed this past March, and I already feel like I am being blown off by the doctors I have seen. I refused to take any meds and am trying to keep the pain to a minimum through diet (caffeine, gluten, sugar free), exercise (5 days a week-walking, stretching/toning, yoga, and zumba light), and massage (twice monthly). I only take Tylenol or Advil when the pain is more than I can handle. So far I am doing good. Weather changes really cause flares, but I am hoping as late spring and weather approaches with more consistent weather that will help. Prayers that you will feel better.
Hi there, I was diagnosed with neuropathy some 15 years ago and then carpul tunnel, ulna tunnel, operations at which stage I was then confirmed with Trigeminal Neauralgia and now have been diagnosed with FibroMyalgia. I have been able to control the TN with a natural tablet available from America and have now upped my tablets to help with the FM which seems to be helping. As I am in the UK it is very expensive for me to ship my tablets but extremely worth it as the UK are unable to supply me with anything but epilepsy drugs which used to space me out of my brain. I have been taking these tablets for some 11 years and have no pain from my TN and although the FM pain is still there is much better than it was. The clinic I buy from says if the tablets are going to work you will know in 6 months if it has not worked by then it never will. If anyone wants to give them a try let me know and I will post the www address for them to contact them.
I would like web site, I’ll try anything at this point.
Have you tried the Wahls protocol? It’s helpful for nerve healing. http://terrywahls.com/about-the-wahls-protocol/
I was on the highest level (Wahls paleo plus) and was feeling great! Then I went off because I missed certain foods. Thank you for your post, it has helped to convince me to get my butt back in gear. 😉
Some of us are better off not eating certain foods. Thank you for this post. We cannot tell others how to eat. We can share and encourage. As I have stated in previous posts what works for one may not work for another. Being observant of what you put into or on your body can make (for some) an astonishing difference in how we feel and how we function.
The most difficult food for me to avoid were the peppers-anything in the Nightshade family and there are many healthy foods in this category. Not worth the upshoot of negative symptoms. I cannot be a derelict when it comes to what I put into or on my body.
Just the way it is and succumbing to this reality has been and will continue to be a challenging journey.
Blessings and Enouragement
I have had some success with acupuncture. Several years ago I had several sessions and it really seemed to work great. I felt so good I quit going to see him and went for almost a year with reduced pain by about 75%. He charged $50 per session and of course no insurance covers the cost of “voodoo” medicine. LOL I am going to find his new location and go and see him again. I recommend giving it a try. It may help you.
I just started with acupuncture. Second visit was today. Actually felt relief both times. Was pleasantly surprised, as I went in as a skeptic knowing all about the placebo effect. Thank God they offer it on a sliding fee scale so it’s affordable. It seems to help with the pain from TMJ disorder. Also is helping the horrible pain in neck and upper back. They told me it may take several visits, but I’m already happy I went. Counted thirty plus needles, strictly in the front of my body. Didn’t hurt, not in comparison to fibro!
Hi folks,
I, too started acupuncture, second try with much nicer and more skilled person. I have some $ at the moment so have been seven times in last few weeks, also has sliding scale and also pretty desperate with pain. It may be helping somewhat, as is a Chinese traditional medicine herb blend she suggested that I am less happy to take on top of my regular meds but may be helping more. Time will tell. If you look up the Chinese herbs you get nervous but some of the same ones cured a terrible disorder she had. Side effects are like Western meds, though.