Neuropathy treatment with acupuncture and chiropractic.
A neuropathy chiropractor in Scottsdale who is also a board certified acupuncturist, which is the combination peripheral neuropathy responds to best. Dr. Tracey Ryder treats the burning, tingling and numbness in the feet and hands alongside your physician's care, never instead of it.
- Chiropractor and board certified acupuncturist
- In practice since 2003
- Works alongside your physician's care
- Old Town Scottsdale, Scottsdale Road
What it is
What a chiropractor for neuropathy can offer
Peripheral neuropathy is damage or dysfunction of the small nerves in the feet, legs and hands. It produces burning, tingling, numbness, pins and needles, sometimes sharp pain, and in the feet a loss of the sensation that keeps you steady. Diabetes is the most common cause; chemotherapy, vitamin deficiency, alcohol, some medications and inherited conditions are others, and a good share of cases have no cause found. The underlying condition belongs to your physician. The symptoms are what we treat.
Peripheral neuropathy treatment in Scottsdale at Ryder is built around acupuncture for neuropathy in Scottsdale, which is one of the best-supported non-drug options for the burning and tingling, paired with chiropractic care for the spine and the lower limb joints so the nerves are not being irritated a second time on the way down, and massage for circulation and the muscles that stiffen when the feet cannot feel the ground. It is a neuropathy natural treatment approach that sits beside your medical care, not in place of it.
If you are searching for a neuropathy chiropractor near me from Old Town, Tempe or south Scottsdale, the office is on Scottsdale Road between McDowell and Thomas. Bring your diagnosis and your current medications.
- How it feels
- Burning, tingling, numbness or pins and needles in the feet, legs or hands; unsteadiness on the feet
- Common causes
- Diabetes, chemotherapy, vitamin B12 deficiency, alcohol, medications, idiopathic
- What we use
- Acupuncture and electroacupuncture, gentle spinal and foot adjustments, massage for circulation
- First visit
- History and diagnosis review, sensation and balance checks, spine and foot exam, explanation, first treatment when appropriate
What is going on
Why the feet burn and go numb
The longest nerves in the body run from the low back to the toes, and they are the first to suffer when blood sugar, toxins or deficiency damage the small fibers. Damaged fibers misfire, which is the burning and tingling, and then fail, which is the numbness. Because the feet can no longer report the ground accurately, balance suffers and the leg muscles stiffen to compensate. The same nerves can be irritated at the spine, and a nerve that is compromised in two places produces more symptoms than either alone.
Acupuncture, including electroacupuncture, improves local circulation and reduces the misfiring; it is the part of the plan most patients feel first. Adjustments keep the low back and the foot and ankle joints moving so the nerves are not compressed a second time. Massage supports circulation and loosens the guarding muscle. Progress is re-checked at each visit against sensation and balance, not just how it feels.
Symptoms
What people come in with
Neuropathy tends to look like this:
- Burning in the feet, worse at night
- Tingling or pins and needles
- Numb toes or fingertips
- Feeling like you are walking on cotton
- Unsteadiness in the dark
- Sharp, electric pains
- Cold feet that feel hot
- Sensitivity to bedsheets
- Symptoms in both feet
- Weakness or cramping in the calves
Symptoms in one limb only, or that came on suddenly, point to something else and are checked for.
How we treat it
How we treat neuropathy
Acupuncture first, the spine and feet kept moving, all alongside your physician.
Acupuncture
Points at the feet, legs and hands, with electroacupuncture for stubborn burning and numbness. The part of the plan most people notice first, over a short course of sessions.
Chiropractic
Gentle adjustments to the low back, ankles and feet so the nerves are not compressed on the way down, and the joints that have stiffened from altered walking keep moving.
Massage
Circulation-focused work on the lower legs and feet, and release of the calf and thigh muscles that guard when the feet cannot feel the ground.
Your visit
What a first visit for neuropathy is like
During the visit
- Your diagnosis, its cause if known, medications, how the symptoms have changed and what they stop you doing.
- Sensation, reflex and balance checks, exam of the low back, hips, ankles and feet.
- A plain-language explanation of what care can and cannot change.
- First treatment when appropriate, usually acupuncture.
After the visit
- Neuropathy changes over a course of sessions rather than a visit; burning and sleep often improve before numbness does.
- Foot care and balance advice, and a note to your physician if you want one.
- A re-check of sensation and balance at every visit.
Causes
What commonly causes it
The underlying causes, which your physician manages.
Diabetes
The most common cause. Blood sugar control matters most.
Chemotherapy
Several agents damage small nerve fibers.
Vitamin B12 deficiency
Often missed; a blood test finds it.
Alcohol
Direct nerve toxicity over years.
Medications
Some antibiotics, statins and others.
Idiopathic
No cause found in a large share of cases.
When to come in
When to see us, and when to see a doctor first
Good reasons to book
- Diagnosed peripheral neuropathy with burning, tingling or numbness you want treated without adding medication.
- Diabetic neuropathy alongside your diabetes care.
- Chemotherapy-related neuropathy, with your oncologist's knowledge.
- Neuropathy with low back pain or foot and ankle stiffness.
- Unsteadiness from numb feet.
See a doctor first if
- Numbness or weakness that came on suddenly or in one limb only.
- Neuropathy that has not yet been diagnosed or had its cause investigated.
- A foot wound or ulcer that is not healing.
- Weakness that is spreading upward quickly.
Nothing here replaces your physician's management of the cause. We treat the symptoms beside it, and we send notes if you want them.
Real questions
What people ask about neuropathy.
Searched in Scottsdale Does acupuncture help neuropathy in the feet?
For many people, yes, and it is one of the better-supported non-drug options for the burning, tingling and sleep disruption of peripheral neuropathy. Electroacupuncture is often used for the feet. A short course of sessions tells you whether it is helping you; improvement in burning and sleep usually comes before any change in numbness.
Can a chiropractor treat neuropathy?
A chiropractor cannot repair damaged nerves or treat the cause, which is your physician's job. What chiropractic care does here is keep the low back, ankles and feet moving so the nerves are not compressed a second time, and it is paired with acupuncture, which does the most for the symptoms.
Will the numbness come back?
It depends on the cause and how long the nerves have been affected. Burning and tingling, which are nerves misfiring, tend to respond better than numbness, which is nerves that have stopped reporting. Dr. Tracey re-checks sensation at each visit so you see what is changing.
Is this instead of my medication?
No. Care here sits alongside whatever your physician has prescribed. If your symptoms change, that is a conversation for the prescriber.
Can neuropathy be treated naturally?
The symptoms can be managed with acupuncture, movement, circulation work and foot care, all of which are used here. The cause still needs medical management, and the two approaches work together.
( Book )
Book a visit for neuropathy
Call the office or request an appointment online. Tell us where it hurts and how long it has been going on, and we will set up the right first visit.
- Monday
- 8:30 AM to 6 PM
- Tuesday
- 8:30 AM to 12 PM
- Wednesday
- 8:30 AM to 6 PM
- Thursday
- 2 to 6 PM
- Friday
- 8:30 AM to 6 PM
- Saturday to Sunday
- Closed
Directions in Google Maps
Prefer to talk? Call (480) 900-5280.