Chronic itching - Could it be neuropathy?

Nearly four months ago (around the beginning of December 2025), I developed a random and mild itching sensation on my scalp seemingly out of nowhere. It came and went randomly throughout the day and never seemed to be relieved when I would scratch it. Within a week, the itching spread to other parts of my body, most notably my face, ears, back, arms, legs, the backs of my hands and my torso, though I have experienced it all over my body too. The itching is usually mild and infrequent enough that it doesn't interfere with my daily activities, nor disturb my sleep, to the point where I can ignore it. I haven't experienced any other unusual or strange symptoms following its development. And the itching itself feels normal enough. No pain, burning, tingling, crawling, etc, from what I can tell. But it's persistent. I wake up with it every day. A lot of the places I'm itchy lack visible skin irritation, i.e. rash, dry skin, etc. Nothing in particular seems to trigger it or make it worse. And it's been unresponsive to over-the-counter treatments, such as moisturiser and antihistamines. It's the last thing that's gotten me concerned.

I am prone to eczema and dandruff, so dry skin on my scalp or other areas of my body isn't unusual. I did observe dry skin on my scalp, the backs of my hands and my right hip, which has also been infrequently itching. But its lack of response to the over-the-counter treatments, as well as no signs of skin irritation in the other places I was itching, had me worried, alongside the fact that my Type 1 diabetes has not been the best controlled over the past eight years since I've been diagnosed with it. As of March 2025, I'd managed to lower my HbA1c to 64mmol after experiencing frequent numbers above 71mmol. But I'd been experiencing terrible insulin resistance over the course of the autumn and winter months of the same year, to the point my levels were consistently going into double digits. So, you can imagine why my mind considered the possibility of neuropathy.

After four weeks of no improvement, I contacted my diabetes team and got an appointment scheduled with a consultant at the beginning of February 2026, getting the necessary blood tests (full blood count) and urine sample done in preparation. My HbA1c came back as 71mmol, but other than that, nothing concerning showed up in either test. Everything was normal. Despite expressing my concerns about neuropathy with the consultant, they stated I should speak to my GP and have them refer me to a dermatologist. Two weeks later, I went for my annual diabetes review and spoke to the diabetes nurse at my GP about my itching. They prescribed me emollient cream to try. I used it for two weeks over most of my body. It didn't work. A few days ago, I returned to my GP and spoke to a different doctor, answering their questions as thoroughly as possible. They listened to me and looked over my previous blood test results, but they concluded based off my responses, my test results and a physical examination of my scalp that there were no red flags they were concerned about. Thus, they didn't feel the need to escalate my case further. Instead, they gave me a list of other emollients and antihistamines to buy from a pharmacy, along with an anti-dandruff shampoo, suggesting it could be seborrheic dermatitis.

The doctor told me to follow this treatment plan for a month and a half and then come back if it doesn't go away or gets worse. The thing is, I don't know if I can wait that long. I'm concerned I'm wasting money on over-the-counter treatments that aren't going to help, not to mention time on a diagnosis that might not be true. I don't want to believe I have neuropathy, yet I can't shake the feeling that's what I have. It wouldn't surprise me, given how long I've had my diabetes diagnosis for and how much I'm struggling with my blood sugar control.

I'm supposed to be seeing the DSNs in under a week and a half's time about potentially switching to insulin pump therapy. I'm wondering if it's worth mentioning my problem to them if my itching doesn't improve and seeing if they can escalate it to a neurologist. I'm worried that if I try to go back to my GP about this before the end of the month, they'll dismiss me again. I'm not sure what to do.

Hello @Pipp and @EllieM . Thanks for the replies.

Sorry. I probably should have clarified—I’m not looking for a diagnosis here. I am aware of the site rules. Though, if anybody does have experiences with neuropathic itching and have experienced similar symptoms to me, I welcome you to share them if you’re comfortable.

I guess what I’m looking for is advice on who it’s best to speak with out of the GP and the DSN and how I can get either one to take me seriously. I don’t have anybody in my daily life whom I can talk to about my diabetes outside of medical professionals, so I’m mostly dealing with these situations by myself. So, forgive me if I’m rambling with my thoughts.

I think what’s getting me concerned about this itching is how strange it is. Because of how conflicting my symptoms feel, it doesn’t seem like it quite fits into either criteria to be classed as one thing or the other. I’ve had eczema itching before. I developed it long before I was diagnosed with diabetes due to it running in my family. But back then, it was restricted to certain areas of my body and showed visible skin irritation. Additionally, since this itching started four months ago, I sometimes think I might have been fleetingly feeling things like slight pain or tingling or crawling on my body. So, it’s making me question myself a lot. Especially because my itching does not improve with my blood sugar levels. It seems unaffected regardless of how high or low they are, which I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

Logically, I feel I need to speak to the DSN about my symptoms. They are specialised in diabetes and I think they would take me more seriously than my GP. Then again, that’s exactly what I thought when I spoke with the diabetic consultant and they basically went ‘Sorry, we can’t help with this. Go to your GP.’ I’m worried the DSNs might say the same, even despite having my diabetes history on record.

On the other hand, my GP don’t have my full diabetes history (even though they should; I’ve chased this up with them and the hospital with little success in the past) and despite expressing my concerns about my diabetes control, they don’t seem worried about it. Furthermore, they keep citing my most recent blood test as the reason why they think I’m fine. Though, as far as I’m aware, a full blood count isn’t a reliable detector for nerve damage. I think there’s a specific test for it that I need to have, so I fear they might be making judgements based on the wrong test. I’m also worried that if I try to go back to them before finishing their treatment plan, they might not take me seriously because I haven’t followed it through. I’m trying to be as honest and as transparent about my symptoms as I can be so they have all the information, yet I feel this is backfiring on me.

Is it worth speaking to the DSN first and seeing what they have to say? Does anybody know if they could help me and potentially refer me to whoever I need to see to check for neuropathy? Or am I going to have to go through my GP instead?

So, I saw the DSN today. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to address the matter of the itching with her during the appointment, as there was a lot I had to process in the span of the hour and fifteen minutes we talked. Spoiler: the diabetes consultant team I am frequently being made to see have not been as thorough with our chats as I thought they were and I have been given some very bad advice towards my diabetes management. So... that was a bit of an eye-opener on top of the information supplied about insulin pump therapy. However, the nurse gave me an email contact to use to contact the DSN team if I have any non-urgent concerns and has scheduled a telephone appointment with me for a month's time to follow-up our discussion today. So, I've decided to stick with the treatment the GP gave me for now and see how things go. If things don't improve, I'll either email the DSNs or bring it up during the telephone appointment and see what they have to say.

As frustrating as the itching is, I think I'm just getting paranoid because of how much I'm struggling with my diabetes management lately. The thought that I could have done this to myself despite my efforts to prevent it terrifies me. But the DSN gently reminded me it's not my fault and from speaking with me, she can see I'm doing everything I can do. While the itching's behaviour suggests it could be neuropathic itch, the fact I've gone over four months with just sporadic itching and no other symptoms yet makes me inclined to believe it might not be neuropathy. So, I'm going to hold out a little longer. Unless I develop additional symptoms, in which case I'll report straight back to my GP.