Alcoholic neuropathy is a common and least recognized consequence of alcoholism. Having this condition means that you will experience pain, tingling, weakness, or loss of balance. By getting into treatment for your alcoholism, you will not have to experience the uncomfortable symptoms of alcoholic neuropathy ever again.
Effects of Alcoholic Neuropathy
Alcoholic neuropathy occurs when you drink too much alcohol over a long period of time. The effects are caused by nerve damage. One of the effects is the decreased sensation of the hands and feet. This leads to hardly feeling any pain when you bump into something because of the lack of balance caused by alcohol which will make you more prone to bumping into things. Not being able to feel pain can mean you will not know if you have a wound or are bleeding, making your injuries worse.
The things you are normally able to do without looking like walking, writing, and typing can be impaired because of your lack of coordination. You may also feel pain in the hands and feet like sharp pins and needles. Because messages cannot be sent to your nerves to function well, this leads to having weak muscles. Alcoholic neuropathy can also weaken the autonomic nerves which impair the bladder function and bowel.
Causes
Alcoholic neuropathy comes from having a nutritional deficiency related to long-term alcoholism as well as the toxins that build up in the body. Alcohol changes the function of the stomach, kidneys, and liver that prevents the body from detoxifying waste material. This builds up and harms many body regions like the nerves. If nerves are severely damaged, they will not be able to regenerate. If damage has taken place for a long time or persists, alcoholic neuropathy can be permanent.
Treatment
Luckily, there are pain medications to treat alcoholic neuropathy. Antidepressant medication can also help control the pain that comes with the condition. Because alcoholic neuropathy can occur from the lack of essential nutrients, you may be asked to take vitamin B12, folate, vitamin E, and thiamine. There are no medications to help with muscle weakness, loss of sensation, or coordination and balance. But, you may experience improvement of these symptoms a few months after being abstinent from alcohol. As challenging as the disease of alcoholism can be, it is important to receive help for it to avoid having to deal with the uncomfortable symptoms of alcoholic neuropathy.
Located in Georgetown, Texas, Alma Loma is a transformative living center to help those struggling in early recovery to transition out of our Psychiatric and Substance Abuse residential center. Alma Loma believes that addiction is born from an untreated mental illness in which our facility is willing to help you. Our facility offers residency, medication management education, individualized treatment, life skills education, 12-Step support, and more tools to bring patients the confidence to be able to live an independent life. For more information, please call us at 866-457-3843.
