After months or years of dealing with neuropathy symptoms, it’s easy to start organizing your life around what hurts, but it doesn’t have to stay that way.
At Trinity Pain Medicine Associates, Ashley M. Classen, DO, FAOCA, Ashley Bailey-Classen, DO, MBA, FAOCA, Dr. Gurtej Singh, and Eva J. Bailey, MD, are experts when it comes to neuropathy treatment. From identifying what’s damaging your nerves to exploring advanced pain management options when traditional treatments aren’t enough, we can help you find a path toward better pain control.
Read on as our team of double board-certified pain management physicians and anesthesiologists at Trinity Pain Medicine Associates share four ways you can start reclaiming your life from neuropathy.
Neuropathy develops when nerves outside your brain and spinal cord become damaged or dysfunctional. These peripheral nerves carry information between your central nervous system and the rest of your body.
In fact, the word neuropathy literally means “nerve disease” or “nerve damage.” It comes from neuro, meaning nerve, and -pathy, meaning disease or disorder.
When they’re damaged, those messages can become distorted. Your nerves may send pain signals even when there’s no injury happening at that moment, or they may have trouble transmitting normal sensations.
Depending on which nerves are affected, neuropathy can cause:
You may notice that your neuropathy symptoms begin in your feet or hands and may gradually spread.
Dr. Classen, Dr. Bailey-Classen, Dr. Bailey, and Dr. Singh help you find relief by:
Diabetes is one of the most common causes of peripheral neuropathy, but nerve damage can also result from injuries, infections, autoimmune diseases, nutritional deficiencies, certain medications, and other medical conditions.
Sometimes, despite a thorough evaluation, the exact cause isn’t clear.
That’s why our treatment plans start with understanding your symptoms and medical history rather than simply prescribing something for nerve pain.
Whenever possible, neuropathy treatment starts by addressing what’s damaging your nerves. If diabetes is contributing to your neuropathy, for example, better blood sugar management may help prevent additional nerve damage.
Your treatment plan may include:
Our team also focuses on healthy habits that help you manage nerve pain. Regular exercise, a nutritious diet (including vitamin B), avoiding smoking, and limiting alcohol can help you manage conditions that may contribute to neuropathy.
In many cases, you may need a combination of the right treatments and healthy habits to find the relief you need.
If conservative treatment no longer works, it may be time to consider more advanced treatments like:
For certain types of persistent neuropathic pain, we may consider spinal cord stimulation. Instead of repairing the damaged nerve itself, spinal cord stimulation changes how pain signals travel through your nervous system.
A small device delivers mild electrical impulses to specific areas of your spinal cord and modifies the pain signals before they reach your brain. You can typically try the therapy first. A temporary trial allows us to see how much spinal cord stimulation improves your pain and function before you decide whether to have a permanent device implanted.
In some cases, we may also recommend surgery. That said, we use minimally invasive techniques when possible.
For people who have spent months or years dealing with persistent nerve pain, these advanced options may provide relief when more conservative treatments haven’t been enough.
When you’ve lived with neuropathy for months or years, success means more than getting your pain score from an eight to a four.
Maybe you can finally sleep through the night without burning feet waking you up. Perhaps you can walk through the grocery store without stopping. These are all wins.
That’s why we look at more than your symptoms when we evaluate your progress. Our biggest goal is to help you hurt less, move more comfortably, and reclaim the parts of your life neuropathy has made difficult.
If burning, tingling, numbness, or shooting pain is sabotaging your life, it’s time to call us to help you explore treatments beyond traditional pain management.
Call our office at 817-332-3664 or request an appointment online to find out which neuropathy treatments may help you reclaim more of your life.
