Restless Leg Syndrome

I have suffered with this for years. I have tried the prescription drug Requip but it upsets my stomach and after a few doses it keeps me up all night. Any other suggestions??

Tue. Sep 25, 8:39pm

Restless leg syndrome. what will they come up with next?

I used to be pretty active, walking a lot. Then I took a job where there was only sitting and driving. No walking. Within the first week, my legs were feeling "restless".

Moral of the story: If your legs are restless, they are begging to do what they do best. Let them do it. Go for a walk.

Tuesday, September 25, 2007, 8:44 PM

8:44, I'm not the OP, but I suggest you look this up. It's a real disorder, and usually manifests in the middle of the night when one is trying to sleep. Your ignorance and "humor" are unbecoming.

Tuesday, September 25, 2007, 9:08 PM

Hmmm, a disorder? Really? How about more like a small sympton of a larger problem. Hasn't this web site taught you anything? That perhaps the ENTIRE body has something wrong with it, not just those legs. I mean, think about it...why would some good, useful, working legs just revolt like that? Use your logic, your brain, and then think about the pharmaceutical companies and how much money they make by making up disorders and then marketing medicines for them, medicines that are often much more harmful than they are useful. One of the former lead marketers for Viagra spoke at a discussion at my University, and told us the exact method they used to market that medicine, in fact the medicine was first invented to help with blood pressure. They found out by accident is had another effect, and though, how can we make some money from this? Ooooh, let's make up a disorder! One that is actually a small symptom of a larger problem....we will name it, too. Just t make it sound authentic. Trust me, doctors don't have the monopoly on "naming" disorders, pharmaceuticals companies do. Put some more thought into what you say...

Tuesday, September 25, 2007, 9:32 PM

9:32- the whole topic of health is vast and confusing for all of us. Lets try and explore these issues with a little more kindness to the others in this forum. If there is any rule that we have, it is treat each other kindly and be as positive as you can.

-PT

Tuesday, September 25, 2007, 9:50 PM

I think the moral of the story is: If I want to convey useful information that is worthy of consideration, I should probably drop the sarcasm and air of superiority.

Tuesday, September 25, 2007, 9:51 PM

8:44 - You obviously haven't experienced this disorder. Restless legs doesn't mean they feel like they need to walk, they just jump around on their own! When I first got married my husband used to tell me to 'stop kicking'! in bed! But it was just my legs doing their own thing!

OP - I have suffered from this on and off, and found that I haven't had it since I've been on maternity leave. My thoughts? I'm usually well rested (afternoon naps with the kid!) and have a lot less stress than when I'm working (wiping up spit up isn't as stressful as teaching high school!). I know that not everyone can go on mat leave....but perhaps more rest and less stress? I don't know if that's a 'medical' answer, but it's my experience. Also, this appears to have a hereditary link...all my mom's side of the family has this.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007, 12:06 AM

Xango helps a lot!! It's mangosteen juice. My friend has been using this and it has taken her RLS away. She was on Requip too with similar side effects. My email is KellyLHansen@gmail.com if you have questions.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007, 1:38 AM

12:06 "More rest, less stress" can alleviate a lot of neurological problems. Fatigue and stress can be triggers for seizure disorders, for instance. Sounds like perfectly good advice to me.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007, 6:48 AM

This is so weird but apparantly works for a lot of people. My MIL had this problem, read about this weird cure in a magazine, tried it and now doesn't suffer from it at all. Here is it - put a bar of soap in your bed down by your feet. Weird I know!!! But, it's a cheap and harmless thing to try. Best of luck to you. I had restless leg syndrome when I was pregnant. I stretched my legs a bunch before bed and that helped a little. Wish I knew about the bar of soap thing then. GOOD LUCK!

Wednesday, September 26, 2007, 8:03 AM

when i was taking a prescription, i experienced what i thought was restless-leg-syndrome. after doing a little research in the library, with actual books (not just the internet) and reference journals, i came across a side-effect of many medications. it's very similar to restless-leg-syndrome, but it's called "akathesia", and involves the involuntary twitching, kicking and discomfort associated w/ RLS. it had the unpleasant feeling that my nerves and muscles were trying to escape from my legs. i brought this to my prescribing doctor's attention and we cut back on the dosage, which alleviated the whole problem. i say all this while wondering if the OP takes any kind of pills on a regular basis? if not, have you ever seen a neurologist? i strongly believe that this is a result of some chemical imbalance in the brain or maybe abnormal nerve patterns or misfirings of synapses and can be controlled. good luck!

Wednesday, September 26, 2007, 8:23 AM

OP here. As for needing to move, I do 30 minutes of cardiio 5 days a week with a heart monitor working in intervals up to 90% of my maximum heart rate. I lift with a trainer 2-3 days a week. An hour of Pilates twice a week and I hike with my dog in the mountains on weekends. I also bike and swim. Is that enough moving? I am 50 years old and have been active all of my life.

Apparently the reason Requip and meds like it work is due to the increase in Dopamine levels when the drug is taken, same thing given to Parkinson's patients who also suffer from uncontrollable movement. Personally I do not take medications. I have suffered from RLS since I was a child and began taking Requip over the summer. I am a nurse and in graduate school. I am fully aware of the strangle hold the Pharmaceutical companies have on Americans. I don't use doctors; got the Requip prescription from my Gyn provider who is a midwife. I have used Chinese Medicine for almost 20 years and this is the one problem they have not been able to address long-term. There is an accupuncture point (kidney 1) that relieves the symptoms during a treatment but doesn't help at night in bed.

I was under the false belief that RLS would not produce one of these caustic threads. I was obviously wrong. If you don't have something helpful to post then leave the thread to people who do.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007, 8:34 AM

I have heard that a great remedy for restless legs is a banana. The symptoms of RLS and potassium deficiency are very similar and therefore RLS often goes misdiagnosed.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007, 8:36 AM

Try the bar of soap trick under the bottom sheet near your feet. Any soap but dial. I swear it will work!!!!!!!

Wednesday, September 26, 2007, 2:29 PM

I have a very active 85 year old aunt that swears by the soap trick. What can it hurt?

Thursday, September 27, 2007, 11:02 AM

runner's world thread on same subject

This is an issue even for people who run 100-mile races. The link below goes to a thread on the runner's world website with some advice about Requip, plus deep tissue massage, soap, hydration.... all sorts of suggestions!

Link

Thursday, September 27, 2007, 12:33 PM

OP here..I tried the soap last night (Ivory) with no luck. However I put it under the fixed sheet of the bed and one of the postings from the previous link suggested putting it directly on your foot. I'll try that tonight.

Friday, September 28, 2007, 10:36 AM

I had this pretty bad when I was a kid and occasionally now. I notice it acts up when I haven't been getting enough sleep. Exercise or lack thereof seems to have absolutely no impact on the RLS for me. I find the best solution is to make sure I get enough sleep.

Friday, September 28, 2007, 9:28 PM

Give the soap a few more tries. It can't hurt. Hope it helps!

Friday, September 28, 2007, 9:42 PM

OP, I know it's been a while, but did the soap every work? I've had mild RLS all my life and occasionally I can't sit through a movie and my husband also complains that I kick at night. My mom has sever RLS and can be up walking in the middle of the night. Shes taking requip now, and also ultram, and sadly, drinkng 3-4 glasses of wine in the evening (she won't admit to self medicating tho) just to get herself knocked out to sleep. Most of the time the requip works, so the doc is trying to get her off the ultram. There are several 'night walkers' support groups online that might provide many better suggestions than this group. I hope you find relieve - RLS can be terrible.

Wednesday, November 28, 2007, 10:30 PM

I've had RLS for as long as I can remember. My mom claims I must have had it in the womb, lol. It is hard to deal with. There are times when it is so bad that it is almost like experiencing pain. Sometimes I just have to stand and stomp around or jump. Its like my feet are on fire and I can't stand it. I wish there was a med that really worked. My husband complains about it all the time. We even sleep in separate beds now. I notice it gets worse when I am tired. Sort of a catch 22, lol.

Thursday, November 29, 2007, 3:40 AM

RLS is a neurological disorder, and my father, who exercises more than anyone I know, has suffered from it for a few years now. My father has exercised every day for 40 years (a former marathon runner in his hey-day), eats a vegetarian diet, and is the picture of health at age 63. His RLS is worse at night, so he moved his exercise regimen to the evening instead of the morning, and that has helped a little, but he can't sleep without his meds (requip- it knocks him out). He also went through a period of time when his iron levels were low, and his RLS symptoms were at their worst. He got put on a prescription dosage of an iron supplement, and that made things a little better, but he still needs his requip.

Monday, January 28, 2008, 2:00 PM

I Had Success!

Hi there I have had restless legs a few months ago at the end of my pregnancy I mean I kept just flicking my legs while in bed and kicking the sheets my poor husband he would try and massage them ,that did not work but this did,my sister gave me this lotion as a gift...it's made by Mustela it is called " Instant Comfort Legs" (Maternite 9 Mois), oh my God I am not joking I would not know what to do otherwise even though I was exhausted I was unable to sleep when that leg sensation thing started but w/ this lotion w/in 5 minutes it was so incredibly soothing ..I hope you have success I can not imagine having to deal w/ that on a daily basis. Then to think of having to deal w/ peoples rude comments, well I do not get that at all. Perhaps you just have to experience it and then you will understand. Regardless I hope you find some answer and quickly. try what ever works this is the website for the lotion that worked for me: www.mustela.com I'm reading the container now and it says it is made in France...All I have to say is God Bless the French!

Monday, January 28, 2008, 4:27 PM

I have RLS intermittently - not really related to stress altough stress can make it more nerve-wracking, exercise usually doesn't seem to have any influence, unless I overdau - in which case it would become worse. There seems to be some connection to my menstrual cycle but it's not 100% consistent. Being dehydrated seems to trigger/intensify it.
Luckily, even if the sleep is still a bit less restful, Levodopa usually works well enough to help me fall asleep eventually, and so prevent the vicious cycle of less sleep, more RLS etc. While waiting for the meds to set in I found it relieving to cool my legs wearing half-length stockings stuffed with cool packs (from the fridge, not from the freezer). Maybe replacing the cool packs by soap would also work and it's all just about direct physical stimulation, by whatever.

Thursday, November 25, 2010, 4:46 PM

I've had RLS for a couple years and it's been getting worse. My symptoms start late in the evening. Last night I had been squirming in my chair for about an hour trying to escape the agony of the RLS when I decided I had to do something about it. I did a web search and found a page where people were talking about the bar of soap remedy. I put a sock on one foot and slipped in a thin bar of soap. IT WORKED IMMEDIATELY! I sat back down at my computer for another hour and didn't have any more symptoms. I am incredulous that something like this could work but it did! It‘s wonderful!

It turns out that real old people are more likely to know about this remedy than young people. At Thanksgiving dinner today I talked to two women (80 and 88) and they both knew about it.

If you have RLS, by all means give the bar of soap remedy a try. It's free; it's painless; it's readily available; there are no prescriptions; you're not taking drugs... It's like it's too good to be true!

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