What is Neuropathy?

Neuropathy is simply a problem with your nerves. “Neuro” refers to nerve and “pathy” means dysfunction. In this article, I will be discussing peripheral neuropathy, referring to the nerves in the hands and feet. Unfortunately, the vast majority of cases are progressive. That means that if you are curious about getting treatment, you may have noticed that your symptoms are getting worse. The disease process does not stop and, unfortunately, 200,000 people require amputation each year because of this terrible condition.

What causes Peripheral Neuropathy?

There are around 46.5 million people in America who have neuropathy. Nearly a third of neuropathy cases are a complication of diabetes, which means there are 15.5 million Americans with diabetic neuropathy. Another third is caused by anything from military chemical exposure to chemotherapy drugs. The last third of peripheral neuropathy “idiopathic,” meaning that medical doctors do not know why it has developed. For most cases of neuropathy, it is actually a disorder of the circulatory system.

Whether neuropathy is caused by diabetes, agent orange exposure, or chemotherapy, the mechanism of how the disease develops is the same. The medications or chemical agents, even elevated blood sugar, travel through the bloodstream and pools most commonly in the feet. The chemicals in the blood damage the small blood vessels, or capillaries, in the skin.

When the blood vessels in the skin become damaged enough, the blood flow is reduced to the area. Nerves need a high amount of nourishment as they are much more active tissue than muscle, for example. When the blood flow to the skin is not sufficient to sustain the high requirements of the nerve tissue, the nerves begin to disfunction.

Symptoms of Peripheral Neuropathy

As described above, most cases of neuropathy are related to a lack of blood flow to the skin of the feet and sometimes the hands. The first and most common symptoms that patients notice is that their feet are usually cold. Blood carries heat and, and without adequate blood flow, they may notice that their feet are unusually cold. This is a sign that the disease process has started, and it may be just a matter of time before they start to experience neurological symptoms.

As the nerves begin to degenerate, a patient may start to feel pins and needles or tingling, maybe a burning sensation in their feet. These symptoms are typically worse at night and may be tolerable for years, starting to appear occasionally and not being much of a concern, more of an annoyance. As previously mentioned, the majority of cases of neuropathy are progressive, meaning that whatever symptoms you are experiencing will only continue to get worse over time. I have personally worked with patients who have experienced muscle cramping in their feet that brings them to tears. They have not been able to sleep for years because of the pain and their quality of life is significantly diminished due to mobility issues.

Neuropathy pain symptoms can include:

• Numbness
• Tingling
• Burning
• Electric shocks
• Stabbing
• Worse at night
• Restlessness

Medical Treatment of Neuropathy

The first treatment option that most medical professionals will prescribe for the symptoms of peripheral neuropathy is a drug called Gabapentin. Lyrica is another popular choice that functions in much the same way as Gabapentin. I will discuss Gabapentin for the purposes of this article, but if you would like more information about Lyrica, visit  https://www.drugs.com/lyrica.html 

Gabapentin is an anti-seizure medication used to calm overactive nerves. What this drug is essentially doing is telling the nerves in your feet to quiet down. This drug also essentially numbs the part of your brain that registers pain. It does nothing to treat the condition, just an attempt to make the pain go away. Patients are typically prescribed between 100-300mg of gabapentin and gradually increase the dose as the condition gets worse. I have personally worked with patients who are on over 3000mg of Gabapentin, while still being in 10/10 pain. For more information about gabapentin, visit https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a694007.html.

Once the medications stop working effectively, many doctors will suggest pain relieving injections, or nerve blocks. These injections simply shut down the nerve’s communication with the brain so that the brain doesn’t receive any pain signals from that part of the body. Patients who receive injections are offered immense relief from their pain. Imagine the first night sleeping without excruciating pain in years: sweet relief. Unfortunately, according to my patients, the relief experienced from the first injection typically only lasts around two months. The second injection lasts about one month, the third injection two to three weeks, and the fourth injection might only last one week. All told, the injection might offer three or four months of relief and after that, the doctors will not give another injection, not that it would last very long anyway.

After the injections and the medications stop working, the medical doctor might try any number of combinations of different pain-relieving medications, including opioids, all ending with nearly the same result: worsening pain and limited mobility. The final suggestion, according to patients, is to try and get comfortable, buy some neuropathy shoes, no more pedicures, and never walk barefoot or you may end up with a foot ulcer, which could lead to amputation.

Foot Ulcers and Amputation

If someone with an advanced neuropathy case accidentally cuts their foot, the lack of blood flow to the skin will make healing the wound difficult. There is simply not enough oxygen and nutrients to support regenerating the skin. Additionally, there is a high risk of infection because the immune system, white blood cells, have a much more difficult time getting to the wound to fight bacterial growth.

When eventually the infection does not heal, sometimes after months, it will get infected. If the infection spreads to the underlying bone, the patient is in a life-threatening situation with the possibility of a runaway infection throughout the whole body. For this reason, the medical doctors will have to amputate whatever part of the body has the ulcer. Around 200,000 people in America lose fingers, toes, hands, and feet each year because of ulcerations and runaway infections.

Neuropathy Treatment at Crabapple Wellness

At Crabapple Wellness, we understand that the pain associated with neuropathy is only a symptom of an underlying disease process, not the problem that needs to be fixed. Through our treatments, your nerves can actually heal. This means that the treatment can turn back the clock of the damage and allow the pain to go away naturally.

Our treatment program uses a five-pronged approach to heal your nervous system and allow you to experience better sleep, improved mobility, and an overall higher quality of life.

1. Restore Blood Flow – Decreased blood flow is the underlying cause for many cases of neuropathy. By restoring adequate blood flow, we supply the nerves with enough oxygen and nutrients to grow back and allow the white blood cells to fight infections and protect the skin.
   
   
2. Optimize the Body For Healing – You can’t build a house on a poor foundation. Healing nerves will happen most effectively in an alkaline environment with less inflammation.
   
   
3. Heal the Nerve Signaling – Traditional TENs units can damage nerves with their harsh signal. Our program is designed to retrain the nerves to function properly without causing more damage.
   
   
4. Increase Cellular Metabolism – The tools we use to help your body heal stimulate the body on a cellular level to heal damaged tissue and restore function in as little as six weeks.
   
   
5. Liberate the Nervous System – If there is dysfunction in the spine leading to pressure or tension in the nerves, no amount of stimulation will fix the underlying damage in the nerves. Our doctors work as a multidisciplinary team to ensure you get the best results in as short amount of time as possible.