People were asking for details as to what I used to fully get rid of the neuropathy symptoms I suffered from in a Facebook group for neuropathy sufferers, so I thought I should make it accessible to everyone. The symptoms I had were stinging sensations, and tingling pretty regularly– albeit less severe– starting when I was a kid but became very bad a few years ago. It felt like I was being stabbed all over by needles any time I was startled, stressed, there were loud noises, or etc. I even began to lose my balance and get drop- foot sporadically. This was all concerning, and I worried I was getting something serious like MS. I wanted answers and success stories for even the worst- cases- scenario. My most hopeful scenario was that of Terry Wahls, who went from being bed ridden, feeling helpless with her diagnosis, to stepping into power to the point she was able to go on long bike rides. Now, being fully able- bodied, she helps others handle their symptoms the same way as a physician who does studies highlighting MS patient outcomes using her signature Wahls protocol I’ll go over later.

First what worked for me and my scenario, and has repeatedly helped if any symptoms came back (when I had covid twice), and were seemingly the most accessible and easy to implement:

Vitamins:

• Thiamin (b1) any kind may work. Bentofiamine is a fat soluble form with more affinity for the nerves and I found more success with this in the beginning when I struggled a lot and was very depleted. Since then, in acute instances of neuropathic/ neuritis symptoms, regular thiamin in a dose of only 100 mg did the trick to get rid of the pain in my leg that would sometimes feel as if boiling or ice cold water was poured on it

• B12 I took methylcobalmin, not recommended for everyone depending on methylation. Other options are hydroxylcobalmin or adenosylcobalmin, rather than cyanocobalmin (cyano- as in cyanide)

• Inositol is essential for proper nerve function, is actually a b vitamin and used to be considered as part of the b complex but is no longer a focus. It regulates blood sugar by helping transport glucose from the liver, providing a needed functioning our society with widely sub- optimal liver function (the liver creates all the chemical messengers for nerve transmission)
• Vitamin E is protective for the nervous system and an antioxidant, as is Vitamin C, though I wouldn’t point to these as what made the big difference for me.

Minerals:

• Magnesium glycinate, up to 800 mg per day, 400 mg is the RDV. Start slow as it can cause looser bowel movements. I did find 800 mg to be most helpful during this time (per the recommendation of Terry Wahls)

• Potassium. Best gotten through food and tested before as it needs to be in balance with other minerals and can do a lot of damage if it’s increased too much at once (even just with food). However the RDV is 4700, an amount most of us don’t even get half of! The balance with sodium is most important, a ratio of 2:1 potassium: sodium. This will also depend on where you’re at health wise. For instance those with weaker adrenals will need salt and do poorly with potassium until they get stronger.
  • I’d suggest getting potassium with food to start, slowly, in the form of foods that you salt to help secure this vital balance. Good sources, providing about 10% of your DV include potatoes, winter squash, beans, plantain, edamame, leafy greens (beet greens being the highest, followed by Chard). Tomato paste/ sauce is a good source (I like V8 type juices, which can be salted to taste) carrot juice is also a decent source, as can orange juice (I’d suggest in the form of an “adrenal cocktail” which adds salt and coconut water, another excellent source).

• Calcium: even though I consumed dairy multiple times a day, I wasn’t getting enough I realized. Most multi vitamin/ mineral supplements don’t contain a significant amount of calcium. I prefer calcium glucarate as it has detoxification supporting benefits. I’d avoid carbonate due to low absorbability.

• Sodium in itself is also important, as is chloride (found together in salt) for proper cell signaling. Real salt as opposed to the sodium found in some processed food is important if you’re counting on getting your chloride from a “salty” food. Sodium and chloride are necessary for cellular communication, which is how nerves are able to send signals. I like fleur de sel, a high quality, unrefined salt, which can be helpful in avoiding microplastics.

Other supplements:

• Alpha lipoic acid, I started with 1,200 mg which is recommended for people already sick and struggling with a disruptive condition

Everyone should take a multivitamin, as all nutrients need each other to metabolize properly and do their job. No nutrient is independent.

The Wahls Protocol involves restricting some foods, I decided to instead add foods I could to see how that would affect things. It definitely worked

The Wahls Protocol advocates 2-3 servings each of deeply colored produce, leafy greens, and sulfur- rich vegetables– with the amount depending on your size/ weight. Generally, if you’re under 200 pounds 2 servings of each are good. To meet this, I’d use leafy greens and deeply colored fruits every day in a green smoothie, sometimes with a teaspoon of beet powder (1/2 tsp amounts to a serving of a vegetable– but shouldn’t make up a majority of intake). I kept the mindset that something was better than nothing and tried not to be too black and white or strict about the way I accomplished this, which made it easier to stick to rather that discouraging to feel like I wasn’t meeting an expectation. A way to help you with this every day might be an encapsulated vegetable powder like beet, spinach, or fermented spinach powder. There are also things like basic or parsley supplements that count. The more variety the better, for Wahls, so even a cup of a novel herbal tea is a major plus, supplying unique antioxidant plant compounds to the body, contributing unique epi- genetic effects.

It was highly impactful to incorporate Wahls’ recommendation to use 3 oz (palm sized portion) of complete protein with every meal (3x/ day).

Retrospectively, I realize this got me to eat more than I was, which may have been one of the most healing effects overall. The Protein is something I didn’t prioritize and is needed to create nervous tissue on a basic level

People don’t realize the effects of deprivation affecting us as a society because it’s normalized and never talked about. However, the Minnesota Starvation experiment showed how much a common level of restriction, many implement today to try to lose weight, caused participants to experience a drastic reduction in blood volume, heart tissue, and nervous tissue (the only one we hear about is muscle tissue being lost– for aesthetic purposes) *eyeroll.

Additional nervine tropho- restoratives were supportive and healing, but not as impactful included some herbs with an affinity for the nervous system including

• Milky oats (avena sativa) in a tincture.
• Wood betony, helped with anxiety and relaxation, as well as digestive function that slowed down due to nervous system erosion (for lack of a better term)
  • Ginger was also helpful on a physical level for digestion for this purpose, as was HCl, which I no longer needed upon eating enough regularly to normalize gallbladder contraction and in turn bowel movements, over time of getting enough energy.
• Bacopa can help rewire the brain and rebalance neurotransmitters. It seemed to help with the mental factor like increased anxiety and poorer concentration as did lithium orotate, which shares those healing functions but acts like a mineral in the body, which we benefit from some quantity of. The brain is part of the nervous system which suffered from depletion and “over- excitation” in my case, a symptom of a condition that I discovered to be referred to as neurasthenia.
• Wild lettuce works specifically for pain and is helpful for sleep and relaxation.
• Prickly ash has been specifically found to be effective for “sensations of torture”. This may help as you work to fill nutritional “holes”

Affiliate disclosure: To help readers access products I have used and benefitted from in dealing what is discussed in the post, I’ve left links to Amazon which I personally use or have used and found to be effective, as affordable and high quality as possible. If you uses the links, you’ll pay the same exact price you’d find if you had to look yourself, and I may get a small percentage if you buy the product through the link I’ve provided.