When Jo-Ann C. of Rougemont received her official "cancer-free" diagnosis ten years ago, life should have felt like a gift. And while she thanked the Lord that she'd beaten cancer, her relief was overshadowed by constant, burning pain in her hands and feet.

​

Jo-Ann was living with Peripheral Neuropathy, a degenerative nerve condition estimated to affect 20 million Americans. It damages the nerves in the hands and feet, sending scrambled signals to the brain and producing a range of devastating symptoms: excruciating sharp pain, burning sensations, pins and needles, numbness, and loss of balance. Left untreated, it can steal a person's mobility and independence entirely.

​

For Jo-Ann, things only got worse. The burning was layered with sudden "electrical shocks" that took her breath away. Her feet would darken and turn black during flare-ups. Blisters formed on her toes. Eventually she couldn't tolerate closed-toe shoes, closed-heel shoes, or even socks. For eight years, through cold, damp winters, she wore nothing but sandals, because anything more was simply too painful.

​

Neuropathy stole her sleep, too. Even the weight of a thin bed sheet against her feet at night was unbearable. "I'd just lay there," she recalls. "I couldn't fall asleep because my hands and feet were burning so bad."

​

The numbness caused her to drop things constantly and, heartbreakingly, she had to give up the sewing room her late husband had lovingly built for her. "Using those machines... it's just not safe for me anymore." Her laughter-filled shopping trips with friends became casualties too. "I didn't feel like I could go with the girls because I couldn't keep up. I always felt like I was holding everyone back."

​

Doctors put her on gabapentin, increasing the dose until they couldn't go any higher. "They told me there was nothing else they could do," Jo-Ann recalls. "So I gave up."

​

Then a friend showed her an article about Piedmont Acupuncture Healthcare in Durham, NC. Jo-Ann didn't hesitate. "I couldn't wait for them to open so I could call."

​

Dr. Christi De Larco and her team blend the time-tested science of acupuncture with a technology originally developed by NASA to increase blood flow and accelerate healing, delivering real, lasting results for patients others have deemed hopeless or untreatable.

​

After just a few months of treatment, the difference is nothing short of remarkable. Jo-Ann's hands and feet are now pain-free. Full feeling has returned to her fingers and hands, and sensation continues to return to her feet. She's reduced her gabapentin from the highest possible dose down to just a quarter of one pill, and the change has rippled through her entire life. Her thinking is clearer. Her balance has returned. She's keeping up with her friends on shopping trips again and recently spent a full day at a home show with her son and granddaughter without missing a step.

​

Now she has a new goal: to walk into Dollywood on her annual trip with her granddaughter wearing a brand new pair of closed-toe shoes.

​

Jo-Ann's story isn't just about pain relief. It's about getting her life back. If you've been missing out on the life you had planned for your golden years, call (919) 813-0103 today to schedule a consultation and sensory exam.