Can Diabetic Nerve Damage Be Reversed?

Published October 2009. 

I would have to say yes.  Why?  Because I did it.

Here is the lowdown:

I had annoying nerve pain in my feet for years during a time where my average glucose was 200-300.  Then I spent several months working especially hard to maintain normalized blood sugar.  During those 6 months or so I felt the nerve pain worsen dramatically.  I felt it was too late, the damage had been done and now was worse than ever.

I wondered how I would live with the constant pain.

Then the pain disappeared.  That was years ago.  The pain has never returned.  Ok it did but only for a week after 7 straight hours of walking and dancing about at my wedding in 5 inch-high-too-narrow-for-my-feet stilettos (that’s what I get for such nonsense).  Other than that, nothing, nada, zilch.  I’m pain free.

I have since researched to find out what happened in my case.  I discovered that nerve damage which has not gone on too long or too far can be reversed.  Nerves are alive and can heal themselves if the body gives itself the chance.  I had terrible glucose for 10 years and in one year of good glucose control my pain was completely gone!

What does this mean for you?  HOPE.  Hope that you can at the very least lessen your nerve pain.  Don’t kick yourself any longer over your bad diabetes control.  Just begin to make steady changes towards better control, never giving up until you wake up and find you almost always have great glucose numbers (like me).

Reversing damage is not something most doctors will talk to you about, only managing the pain with medications.  You deserve better than painkillers, you deserve to feel like you aren’t a diabetic!

Give it a shot and let me know what happens…and remember, if you begin to improve your sugar averages and feel more nerve pain-don’t be alarmed.  This is a sign your nerves are healing themselves.  It won’t last too long, I promise.

Good luck!

Update-August 17th, 2011

This is a highly read post so I wanted to update everyone on how I’m doing two years after writing this post.  I feel the same.  My A1c has stayed below 6% during the last two years.  Once or twice in the past 2 years I’ve hit 400 and when I do, I feel a bit of tingling in my left toe.  Then once I’m back down the tingling is gone.  So…hanging in there and feeling good.  I wish you all the best.  Damage may be far gone in some people but I don’t think it’s ever too late to simply…try.  Maybe some damage will reverse itself…maybe not.  But what if?…

Update: January 31st, 2020

My A1c has been under 5.5 for the last few years. And I have gone to very low carb a la Bernstein's recommendations so my standard of deviation has lowered. I can't even remember the last time I was up at 400 mg/dl. My feet still feel fine. I don't wear heels much anymore so I don't know how a lot of pressure on my toes feels. But take this post as proof that despite many more years of type 1 since I first blogged about this, achieving tight glucose control can not only reverse nerve damage but keep it away. :)