peripheral neuropathy??

Has anyone out there had a problem with this? My surgery was Aug 2004 and by Halloween I could barely walk. I was soon in a wheelchair and am still in one. My neurosurgeon says it's peripheral neuropathy. If anyone has had this could you tell me how long it took to get better and what you did to get better? I have numbness, tingling and no muscle tone from the neck down. My feet are excriciating, also my hands. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Tracy

Are you getting your B-12 shots regularly? My mother had WLS in 1980 and did not keep up with her B-12 injections. She now suffers from neuropathy and wishes she had taken the shots and the B-12 (and other) vitamins when she first began her journey. Check with your surgeon or regular doctor to get a complete CBC and see what your numbers are. You can take too much B-12, but it is rare. Please! If you are not already getting your regular B-12 injections, do it soon! Hope you're feeling better soon. ~Laura

Are you taking your B vitamins? Have you been getting your levels checked? B12 and B1 are critical to us as post ops. A similar thing happened to a lady in my support group who had a B12 deficiancy. She began B12 injections in 7/04 and was walking again without a walker by 12/04. Please have your B12 and B1 levels checked!!! Good luck. Kristy 254/148/130

Thanks for the replies. My wls surgeons were lousy. No aftercare at all. Which is not what I was led to believe beforehand. They almost killed me in surgery. I've had a terrible time from day one after wls. I couldn't eat or drink anything for 4 months. I had out of control nausea and vomiting. I was hospitalized 13 times between Aug 17 and Thanksgiving for dehydration and low potassium. I developed vertigo in eary December, then kidney stones a week later. I was told that was from the dehydration. Right before the vertigo I was dropped at the hosptial and broke my tailbone. Then a week after Christmas I went for an MRI to try and see what the problem was with walking. They discovered a herniated disk and thought maybe that was the culprit so I had that repaired on Jan 19th. The incision just closed and healed this past weekend. I didn't think it would ever heal. Now I'm back to square one on the walking so I truly appreciate your input. I will get my B levels tested ASAP. I've been taking them but maybe not enough. I just started taking the Tr Vita. Has anyone else tried these? Thanks Tracy

Wow! You've been through a lot! You really have a lot to be angry about---especially in light of the poor post-operative care you've received from your surgeon. I am sorry about that. I take vitamins in the morning and at night. Centrum and Caltrate and a Vitamin C (each twice daily). In addtion to this, I take Premarin for my "female" health. That's it. I get my B-12 shots regularly, and two months after each shot, I start taking B-12 orally again. My surgeon allows us 5 post-op visits. The first is one week post-op. The rest are at 3-month intervals. My 6-month checkup was earlier this month, and it went very well. He was pleased with my progress and would like to see me lose a little more by my 9-month visit in early summer. Every surgeon is different (I've learned this from reading the board postings), but you'll have to decide for yourself what is your best course of action to take. Ask lots of questions and find a good doctor (locally) that can help you with your post-operative needs. If your surgeons don't take care of you, then you probably should report that to your state health board. They ought to know about the sub-standard care that you've received. Good luck to you. ~Laura

hey, ive got this same problem, but didnt know what had caused it or what was wrong OR what to call it.. several people thought that I had a mini-stroke and caused this.. i had my surgery in late august and I too could barely get around by mid october.. i havent had to be wheelchair bound and no numbness.. but i do have weird feeling sensations in my legs.. just my legs and lower back...every time ive gone to the doctor about this they tend to find something else wrong to fix that ive thought was less important than my mobility but still the same needed fixed.. its slightly improving but not like it should.. when i walk i drag my feet almost like i dont even know how to walk anymore. DOES this get better??? will i ever be normal again.. im scared to death.. im 24 years old and sit and cry and wonder sometimes if i actually did the right thing by having the surgery since i am less capable of doing things now han i was before.. please help me out what do ya think ?? will i be normal again with my walking?!?!