Diabetic Neuropathy question

Ragnar Lothbrok

I was diagnosed with very low level Type 2 diabetes just over 10 years ago. It's had no bad effect on my life, and I have all my tests done every six months and it's not getting any worse. I've been a vegetarian my entire life, I'm not overweight and I don't have a bad diet (although it could be better, I suppose). I've been on medication for maybe the last 8 years, and have recently started using a glucometer - my blood sugar levels are almost always between 5.5 to 8.0 - so I don't think there's any problem there. I smoke 20+ cigarettes a day and drink once a week (quite heavily). Over the last three/four months I've made a determined attempt to exercise, and generally go on 4 or 5 steep walks a week of between 5 and 10 km. I do appear to be losing some bit of weight, although I wasn't particularly overweight to begin with (GP has advised me to lose around 1 stone).

Now, my big problem is that over the last two years I've noticed an increasing irritation in my feet. Like a constant pins and needles that starts at the tips of my toes and goes down to just beneath the end of the toes. I eventually mentioned it to my GP who prescribed me Amitriptylene (30mg) and informed me that it was due to diabetic neuropathy. This seemed to have no effect and I was very wary about using a drug that is usually prescribed for depression.

I moved back to Cork last year, and my new GP has prescribed me a different drug (I can't remember the name right now, but it's generally prescribed for epilepsy, apparently). So far, this seems to be having no effect either.

Anyway, the reason for mentioning all the above is that I desperately want to know if anyone knows of any other reasons my feet could be causing me so much grief (it's irritating all day and can be extremely uncomfortable, painful even, at night)? Or maybe knows of a natural remedy for the diabetic neuropathy?

Kurtosis

Hi Ragnar,

Unfortunately, commenting on your personal medical circumstances and offering medical advice is not allowed on boards. It's best to discuss these issues with your doctor.