All,
This is an update of my peripheral neuropathy (PN) with other things mentioned and not in another thread I started. I mentioned in my last entry that I was put back on Spiro. No problem there as my T and PSA levels are down last month. The PA symptoms are down, but still days with excruciating pain, more on that later. I noticed that the small rash which was just below hairline had spread to below my eyes and on my cheeks. After checking the indications on all of my meds, I found a warning about a rash while using the drug Synthroid. I then put 2+2 together and remembered that a small rash had appeared about 3 months into the Synthroid 2 years ago. I didn't think much about it as it was occurring at the ball cap line. I wear a ball cap when I am outdoors in the sun.
Well, my Dr. took me off of the synthroid last month with no ill effects in that category. The rash has gone down as well as my neuropathy symtoms this past month. My Dr. though that the Synthroid may have triggered rosacea, or adult acne as it is also called. I was given a script for a topical salve used for rosacea symptoms and for those with severe acne. The salve is put on in the affected areas. I have days with clear face now.
Back to the peripheral neuropathy. A summary: Started with pain in soles of both feet occurring at the same time for the past 30 years. Was quite minor earlier. 18 years ago a dermatologist dismissed it as psoriasis pain that the callouses and peeling on both feet was a type of psoriasis and not athlete's feet due to the application of expensive topical salves for either condition was not working for the 2 years checking. The pain type changed from a dull burning with some electrical jabs helped with cold soaking in water in summer with a warm soaking in the winter. It occurred around the callouses in the soles and at the same time. 8 years ago now in 2006, I found at times that getting off of my feet did not relieve the pain, sometimes walking helped.
April 2012 to now: I was put on Synthroid at that time due to a high TSH reading. It was 3 months later when that pain around the callouses turned into a sharp burning pain with many stabbing and electrical jabs, often appearing on both feet and at the same time and on the same places! This pain radiated up both lower legs. This happened in July 2012 after chasing down an annular eclipse in Page, AZ, visited the nearby canyons, visit relatives in Phoenix and SoCal and chasing down a Venus transit across the Sun in a remote area plus hosting 2 family events at the cabin. I called that hell month at the time. Then came July. We recorded record temps of 100+ degrees F during that month in a house with no air conditioning. The pain shot up with that burning so much that I was either KO'ed or fell asleep due to the intensity of that type of pain. I still fall asleep when the pain gets severe. This pain was 24-7. I would wake up in pain as well as fall asleep. A simple bed sheet on the feet bring on more pain to this day. I've since made a bedding lifter for the feet for the cold nights. I would go and do the gardening in late afternoon into the evening when the pain was less severe. Late August was a little better with the pain for the harvesting and canning. A record crop of grapes had me on my feet for 28 hours straight while juicing them. That brought a case of cellulitis around both ankles. Again, my current Dr. dismissed that from psoriasis and the cellulitis.
September, 2012 had a weeklong astronomy and camping event with hosting the cabin twice again as well with my niece's wedding in SoCal at the end of that month. I noticed that walking on the beach barefoot during my niece's wedding was as real adventure in pain as well as wading in the cold Pacific surf. I remember as a child in SoCal that a lot of the beach walking and in the surf tickled the feet. Thanksgiving had me visiting my long-lost sister in Texas and I could not keep up with my brother-in-law when he walked the dog. Only in December, 2012 after that it was realized as Peripheral Neuropathy. The various nerve pain drugs were given me until January, 2014. All this did was put me to sleep more.
Finally at this time last year my Dr. sent me to another podiatrist. He said that callous was athlete's foot that topical drugs will not help. He did a few other tests and gave me a folate drug in the 2 months and finally gave me Lamisil for the callouses. I was on the Lamisil for one month and the callouses disappeared and the soles of the feet were the smoothest in 30 years! The earlier mentioned dermatologist refused to prescribe the Lamisil due to the potential liver effects. The disappearance of the callouses moderated the pain in both feet even though the feet were numb with no motor in areas and the main pain had spread up to both ankles. January and February, 2014 was another bad winter, this time with no painkillers. It got better in March. In April my Dr. put me back on Spiro to knock down my over-the-top PSA reading. This summer was a little better but still with those bad days in bed and in severe pain.
With the omission of the Synthroid 3 weeks ago the foot pain was even less severe. Time will tell, there were periods of less severe pain in the two years with this condition. Hyperthyroidism which can occur on some on Synthroid is a cause of Peripheral Neuropathy as something that would aggravate it. Too much folate would cause it as well. It got better after I got off of that folate analog drug in January this year. PN is a very nasty thing, the Devil's device.
Joelene
