Restless Legs
 

I'm wondering if what I'm thinking is spasticity in my legs is really restless leg syndrome. :confused:

It happens every night. I get settled in bed and then it starts......that feeling that I have to move my leg(s). Sometimes it's just one but often it's both.

If I try not to move them they eventually move by themselves! It's not painful but it's incredibly annoying because they don't start this until I lay down and try to sleep. They get this tight feeling and my foot will flex and if I don't move them it's like the muscle goes into a sort of spasm and they move on their own.

I've been taking Baclofen every night before bed (10 mg) and just recently I've started taking 2 pills (making it 20 mg).

Does anyone else deal with this issue? What do you do for it?

I think I get restless legs syndrome, especially if I don't walk or move around enough during the day.

If I do some isometric muscle tense /relaxing for awhile that seems to help.

Or a homeopathic remedy called Restful legs. (Hylands)
http://www.hylands.com/products/restfullegs.php

Or if none of those help I take 1 or 1 1/2 Tylenol/ Advil/ generic PM OTC.
And/or a hot bath or heating pad on the legs...

My legs sometimes do similar thing on long car rides, depending on the comfort of the seats, but not if I'm driving..:cool:

I get that every night too Kelly, but I use it to get me to sleep. I get my legs to rock back and forth in rythym and it sort of lulls me to sleep.

I've had this sort of RLS all my life and learned early to use it to rock myself to sleep.:D I sit and wiggle my toes too..lol

If ya can't lose it, use it..:D:p:D

I did just recently read that iron deficiency anemia can cause it. I'm definitely iron deficient -- maybe that's why I'm jumpy a lot when I try to lay down to go to sleep. But I also can feel it all over my body, in my arms and torso. Sometimes I have to go sleep on the futon because it drives my husband crazy!

Anyhow get your iron stores tested!

I've had it for years...I take ropinirole about 7 pm. It sometimes drives me absolutely crazy, and the only way to get rid of it is to stand and walk.
When I forget to take the pill on time, and I wait a couple of hours, I'm sometimes up until 1 am dealing with it. DH says I do it in my sleep too.

It's one of the most annoying symptoms of MS. The drug is actually for Parkinson's patients, but they give it to MSers so we don't jump off a cliff;)

Call your neuro to see if you can get a sample to see if it works for you...

I had this terribly and suddenly...with my lisinopril reaction. That is a special case I guess. :rolleyes: I couldn't even tolerate bedcovers in the coldest part of winter!

But also one very good remedy is magnesium. People low in this mineral (found in nuts, beans, yogurt, oatmeal) get muscle cramping and twitching. You can use a topical lotion/cream (which I do now) or a product called SlowMag (WalMart carries it) twice a day, or a good chelate like citrate, gluconate, or glycinate,etc. OXIDE does not work...it is not absorbed and remains in the bowel as a laxative.

When do you take the Baclofen? Right before you go to bed?
If that is the case, try altering your timing and see if that changes anything. Baclofen is a GABA agonist with complex actions.

I try to remember to take the Baclofen around 7 PM. That way it has an hour or so to get into my system. If I don't go to bed before 10 or 11 I usually take another one.

Oh, btw, I stopped Lisinopril, too. I haven't started a different HBP med yet but expect my PCP to suggest one.

I can't imagine that I'm not getting enough magnesium. I eat nuts (walnuts, almonds, cashews) plus I take a good multi-vitamin along with my slew of supplements. :rolleyes: I might just try the Slow-Mag, though. Can't hurt. :)

I am having good results so far with only 25mg of atenolol at
bedtime. I measure my BP at home 3 x a day.
So far so good. However, I have found over the years that
there can be tolerance to blood pressure drugs.:rolleyes:

I was waking up on that lisinopril about 2-3 hrs after taking it
and kicking and tearing up the bed something awful! The cats
stopped sleeping with me! Now that seems all gone, and must have been the swelling and bradykinin reactions.
That whole crisis with that drug was awful!

I guess it will be a long time now before my furry friends
return :rolleyes:.

I don't have MS, but have RLS (in the process being renamed to WED - Willis-Ekbom Disease) severely. On the RLS forum I hang out in, we have several people with MS who have WED/RLS.

Do consider getting your serum ferritin and hemoglobin tested. Low results in either can be a cause. If it's low, taking iron may help long term. For people with WED/RLS, serum ferritin should be at least 50 and higher if you want to take certain medications for the disease.

Some medications can cause it to worsen. There is a good list at the Southern Ca. RLS Support group site, run by Dr. Buchfuhrer, an RLS/WED expert. The RLS Foundation has excellent resources you can print and read along with a great online support group.

If you can avoid meds, it's probably a good thing. If you can't, you'll likely need some more guidance. I strongly suggest the above resources in that case. To deal with out meds, try these:

1. Hot or cold water. Some like hot, some cold. Lay in a hot bath or spray your legs with icy water.
2. Heating pad - again, only works if you like hot.
3. Tight stockings - such as compression stockings or heavy control pantyhose. It's another you either hate or love. I hate it, but many find it works.
4. massage - if you can get someone to massage, symptoms often go away for awhile.
5. Low vitamin/mineral levels - many of us find that if our vitamin levels are low in an area, taking large amounts of vitamins may help. iron, D, B, magnesium are most common.
6. Supplements -these are hard to figure out, but small numbers of people swear certain supplements help them. D Ribose, L-Tyrosine, and others.
7. Regular exercise - may be harder if you have active MS. Walking gently for 30 minutes a day, over a week or two, might reduce symptoms overall.
8. Stretch/stress the muscles when the attack comes. If you can, do yoga, stretches, or leg exercises that tire the muscle.

Hope some of this helps.

Good article concerning RLS. Many causes of it.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/res...ndrome/DS00191

I know a few who take Mirapex and find it helps quite a bit. I just live with it.

Hi Kitty;

I had this problem years ago and was on zantac for acid problems ---come to find out some meds like zantac and tagament --can cause restless leg. Just a thought in case you mabe be on this meds. Hope you get it to resolve!!

Restless Leg.
 

What you've described is exactly what ive been through. After several dr visits and tests the discovered my iron and ferritin levels were low. Iron supplements hv helped immensely!!

Good point that acid reducers can interfere with iron absorption. They, themselves, don't cause RLS, but can prevent you absorbing nutrients that help prevent it. I take an acid reducer at times - just make sure I don't take my iron at the same time!

Someone else suggested that Mirapex can work. It definitely can. I would suggest that no one take it or Requip without knowing your ferritin level. First, your symptoms might reduce or go away when your iron or ferritin is increased. More importantly, they have lots of research to show that these drugs (called dopamine agonists) can actually make your WED worse if you take them when your ferritin is low! It happened to me and turned my life into a nightmare.

Kitty

Don't have any advice for you since I have not had to deal with RLS. I want to wish you all the best in finding a solution that will work best for you.

Mike