Introduction
Diabetic neuropathy is a common problem that happens when someone has diabetes and does not control their blood sugar levels well. It can damage different nerves in the body and cause lots of different problems. This can make it hard for doctors to know what is wrong or how best to help. By learning more about how these problems happen, we can better understand what people living with diabetic neuropathy might experience. In this guide, we will use plain language and simple examples that everyone can easily follow. If you’re wondering about the image on the front of the post, it’s a diagram of the sales cycle for prescription drugs. It shows the revenue stream created by those drugs and it’s hard for me not to see a relationship between the prescribing of drugs (gabapentin, lyrica, neurontin, insulin, etc) which help “manage” symptoms but do nothing to address the cause or even fix the issues causing neuropathy.
Types of Diabetic Neuropathy
Diabetic neuropathy is a condition that can affect different types of nerves in your body, and there are four main types: peripheral neuropathy, autonomic neuropathy, focal neuropathies, and proximal neuropathy.
Peripheral Neuropathy affects the nerves in your feet, legs, hands, and arms. The symptoms could be numbness or tingling sensations or even sharp pains.
Autonomic Neuropathy affects the nerves that control your internal organs like your heart rate, blood pressure levels digestive system bladder sex organs sweat glands eyes. It could lead to hypoglycemia unawareness and other symptoms.
Focal Neuropathies affect particular areas where you experience nerve damage most likely in places like head torso leg hand or hip leading to muscle weakness or paralysis on one side of the body eventually.
Proximal Neuropathy is rare but potentially disabling; it results from nerve damage in certain muscles such as your buttock hip thigh only on one side of the body. Symptoms might include pain difficulty standing and walking.
Signs and Symptoms of Diabetic Neuropathy
Diabetic neuropathy can cause different symptoms, depending on which nerves are affected. Some common signs that you might have diabetic neuropathy include:
Numbness or tingling in your feet, legs, hands, and arms
– Imagine feeling like there are pins and needles in your body that just won’t go away.
Sharp pain or a burning sensation in your feet or hands
– Have you ever touched a hot stove by mistake? That’s what some people with diabetic neuropathy feel all the time.
Weakness in your muscles
– Everyone feels weak sometimes, but imagine even simple things like holding a glass of water becoming so hard it makes you tired out quickly.
Loss of coordination
– Normally we can walk without thinking about it much. But for someone with coordination problems because of diabetic neuropathy, even something as essential as walking safely becomes difficult.
Digestive system problems
– Think about having an upset stomach from eating too much candy. People with diabetic neuropathy experience constipation (pooping less) or diarrhea (pooping more often) in their daily lives due to nerve damage.
Other effects may include bladder problems such as urine leakage or difficulty emptying the bladder completely. All these symptoms could be mild at first but could eventually become worse if left untreated.
If you think you have any of these symptoms, please contact us IMMEDIATELY, the longer you wait, the harder it gets to fix it.
Treatment for Diabetic Neuropathy
Diabetic neuropathy is a serious health issue that affects millions of people. Treatment and prevention are important factors in managing its symptoms. Fortunately, there are options available to those living with this condition.
Medication: To help reduce pain and other symptoms of diabetic neuropathy, medications such as over–the–counter pain relievers, prescription medications to aid seizure control and treat depression can be taken.
Topical Creams: There are also topical creams which can provide relief from pain and numbness associated with diabetic neuropathy.
Physical Therapy: Exercising regularly is important for managing diabetes’ side effects like nerve damage. Physiotherapy is designed to improve strength, flexibility, balance and coordination – all skills which may become impaired due to diabetic neuropathy.
Rebuilder 300: Rebuilder units deliver a programmed low voltage electrical current to your nerves to reduce pain and improve neurological dysfunction caused by neuropathy
Prevention: There are also steps one can take proactively to prevent the onset or worsening of diabetic neuropathy such as maintaining balanced meals and blood glucose levels; exercising regularly; avoiding tobacco use; monitoring blood pressure regularly; etc
Prevention of Diabetic Neuropathy
Living with diabetic neuropathy can be difficult and the best way to manage it is to practice prevention.
Maintain Balanced Meals and Blood Glucose Levels: Eating a balanced diet, which includes carbohydrates from whole grains, fruits and vegetables and proteins from lean meat, dairy and legumes as well as healthy fats can help keep blood glucose levels in check. This will work together with regular physical activity to keep your diabetes under control and reduce your risk of nerve damage.
Exercise Regularly: Exercise not only helps in controlling diabetes but can also improve balance and coordination significantly which will help in preventing falls that could result due to loss of sensation. Regular exercise also increases blood circulation which further reduces risk of nerve damage. Avoid
Tobacco Use: Smoking cigarettes or consuming other forms of tobacco has been linked to an increased risk of developing complications due to diabetes including the onset or worsening of diabetic neuropathy. Quitting smoking (even if you’ve smoked for many years) can reduce this risk significantly.
Monitor Blood Pressure Regularly: High blood pressure is another condition associated with an increased likelihood of suffering from diabetic neuropathy, so monitoring numbers regularly is essential for anyone living with diabetes
Diabetic neuropathy can be serious and proper treatment is required to help manage its symptoms. Unfortunately, taking medications or drugs is not a solution. While they may provide temporary relief from pain and other symptoms, it does not address the underlying cause of nerve damage which is the reason our office focuses on methods that address the 3 underlying problems of neuropathy to create a treatment protocol that fixes the problem instead of managing it.
Medication: To help reduce pain and other symptoms of diabetic neuropathy, medications such as over–the–counter pain relievers, prescription medications to aid seizure control and treat depression can be taken. However, these do not target the root of the problem and could even cause further harm if used for an extended period of time.
Topical Creams: There are also topical creams which can provide relief from pain and numbness associated with diabetic neuropathy without posing any additional risk when used for a short period of time.
Physical Therapy: Exercising regularly is important for managing diabetes’ side effects like nerve damage as it helps strengthen muscles that have been weakened due to lack of sensation in limbs. Physiotherapy is designed to improve strength, flexibility, balance and coordination – all skills which may become impaired by diabetic neuropathy – significantly reducing discomfort levels greatly in many cases.
Rebuilder 300: The electrical pulses are designed to mimic the natural electrical impulses that the body produces, helping to stimulate the nerves and promote healing neuropathy non–invasively.
Prevention: There are also steps one can take proactively to prevent the onset or worsening of diabetic neuropathy such as maintaining balanced meals and blood glucose levels; exercising regularly; avoiding tobacco use; monitoring blood pressure regularly should all form part of your daily lifestyle routine if you are living with diabetes and at risk for this condition.
Along with medical assistance from experts specialized in addressing issues related to diabetes patients’ health, there is no reason why those living with this condition cannot lead comfortable lives full of activities that bring joy and fulfillment! If you believe someone close might be suffering from diabetic neuropathy please contact our office today so we can start exploring options together!
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