BI-POLAR

[Phogan]

Just wondering .. do any of you guys also have bi-polar.

[Hidden]

Thankfully not, I have know/do know people that suffer with this condition - it can be quite difficult.

[Phogan in reply to Hidden]

I was diagnosed with Bipolar 12 months ago when I was at Buderim hospital. And when he said that I said 'so how come I never have the high highs, I just experience the low lows'. He said it was because of my sheer determination of being too afraid of happiness. That I fought it.

So he put me on this drug for bipolar .... OMG. RLS went absolutely apeshit. I took it for two nights and that was enough for me.

The reason I bring this up is coz the last couple of days I've had good reason to be supremely happy. But I was too afraid to let it go and enjoy it. It turns out I was right. The reason for the happiness went up in the air.

Tonight I did a survey online with the Black Dog Institute .... I don't know if you have that o/s. If you score more than 22 it means you probably have bipolar and should see your doctor. I scored 36. Not happy Jan (sometimes I even make myself laugh). Umm, you guys probably don't get that joke over there hey? Sorry about that. But the aussies reading it would.

[Hidden in reply to Phogan]

It can be a dreadful affliction with many worrying about feeling happy and how to distinguish it from a high.

The 2nd best advice I can give you is to enjoy being happy, it is a natural part of day to day living, and even brief moments of joy can be felt - say you go for a walk and you notice a lot of wildlife and they are doing their thing and at peace and a part of you feels joyful at the scene as 'everything is in its correct place and you are where you are meant to be as a witness to this.'

These however are generally fleeting things so if you find yourself running joyous and getting ideas along side that are a wee bit OTT, (you work out who is going to buy a certain house on a TV show and then start to seriously think about quitting work to become a real estate agent in Spain) then you need to look at what's going on.

The best advice I can give is to contact support groups or lurk on forums a bit, see what others have suggested. I think a diary is a good way of tracking mood too.

Hope this helps P, take care.

[TSH110]

I don’t but the other half has super fast cycling bipolar which is a really dreadful affliction. RLS has plagued him but he has found soligor chelated magnesium (magnesium malate) the only thing that has really helped the RLS.

[Vonnie70]

Yep I have bipolar type 2, which means not extreme but bad all the same, they tried me on Lyrica as can help BP and RLS, nope I ended in hospital after having 2 seizures, so that went out the window!

now I’m stable, no major bad downs (still do get them), I do get the highs (makes my spending money tricky, as I don’t always think), I can be very ‘silly and immature’ (I’m 47). I don’t mind the highs so much but the lows mean I have to be mega strong and fight like hell not to let the ‘black hole’ drag me in.

At the moment both my BP and RLS is under control with medication, I get a bad bout of RLS a few times a month...and it’s hell😕. But compared to a couple of years ago I’m happy with that.👍🏻

[RupertMac]

Yes. I was diagnosed with type 2 bi-polar 15 years ago. I have had stick to regime of SSRIs and sodium valproate since then and, whilst the SSRIs have probably contributed to my RLS, the RLS medication I am now on (in addition) has helped greatly over the past two years.

[mjoycen]

I was diagnosed with RLS about 20 years ago. I also have bipolar II and fibromyalgia. All three conditions ebb and flow, and it is difficult to figure out the puzzle of getting balanced out again. I've had an especially awful time the last four years with these disorders, and increase stress in my personal life, which of course exacerbates everything.

Hard to make this extremely long story short, but I will skip to the last couple years when my depression became disabling and my RLS became out of control. My depression is lifting a bit, and I was able to realize that my RLS was absolutely ruining my life, and made a decision that it had to be addressed first. I've became weary and leery of all health care providers they don’t seem to be able to see the big picture that all my health concerns need to be addressed holistically. I am going to punch the next person that says to me, “You know, research shows that exercise helps insomnia.” (I’ve had severe chronic insomnia for a long time and am up most of the night.) Finally, I began researching all three conditions. I saw that getting better was largely on me.

I was up to taking 4 mg. of ropinerole at about 4 pm and praying for mercy each night that it would help. No mercy, as the RLS became increasingly worse. I learned that I was in 'augmentation' with ropinerole. I learned that I am taking three other meds known to aggravate RLS, and sometimes even causes it. I am in the process of eliminating them very slowly by working with my doctors. Off one already. Surprise! Ropinerole and pramixerole are among those listed. How ironic is that?

Here's is what I decided to try after all I my research, 80% of which was information coming from medical journals and trial research results. I ordered two good quality supplements, one of Malic Acid (MA) and the second of Magnesium Malate (MM), both in capsule form hoping for better absorption. I went with the suggested dosage of 2400 mg MA/day, spread over the day. I also take 625 mg. MM/day), taking it with my mid afternoon ( 4-5 pm) supplements. These are the approximate dosages recommended. In addition to the MA and MM, I take one tab of inexpensive OTC Valerian, two ibuprophen, and my reduced amount of ropinerole. Then when I’m ready to go to sleep I take the third MA, 2 caps of Valerian. I would suggest reducing your RLS med. by .25 mg. at a time with at least three weeks between each decrease. Check with your doctor on this. You might even take your full dosage of your RLS med along with MA and MM for awhile, then start reducing your RLS med. Ropinerole is supposed to be a hellish med. to wean off of, but so far my RLS is improving with no real ill effects from decreasing the ropinerole.

I was amazed at the results right from the get-go. Absolutely astonished actually. I felt a difference the very first night, at least 50-60% improvement. My sleep quality has improved, I'm dreaming again, waking less often, and sleeping in until 7 am or so instead of being up most of the night and finally just getting up for good at 4 am. There were nights I felt the RLS still coming on, so after 1-2 hours I’d take another Valerian, another MM, and a couple ibuprophen. I have tramadol on hand so I take that as well if I feel I need to get the RLS under control before I’m a goner. I actually become petrified that the RLS will cross over to the point of no return. I am being kind and patient with myself. Now mind you this is only day 20! I plan to decrease the ropinerole again after another week or two.

BTW, there are many forms of magnesium as I’m sure you are aware, and everyone is different so another form and dosage may work better for you. Each MM form apparently targets different health concerns. I went with MA and MM based on the preponderance of research I found, and it seems right for me. I feel that if I can get the RLS under control, get some quality sleep because of it, the depression and fibro will also continue to improve. I’m seeing a shrink to help get my meds right again, and a therapist as well.

The other thing research has shown to help is getting your ferritin level up to 100 mg. You may not show you are iron deficient, yet still need an increase of ferritin. I plan to talk with my doctor next week about this as I want her guidance before taking more ferritin. Also apparently there are sprays and gels of magnesium to apply to skin, and the good old fashion Epson Salts bath can also helps you to absorb magnesium via the skin. I may try that also.

So that’s my story watered down. I have hope beyond belief again. I hope that this may help someone out there. Remember to work with your doctor. My experience is mine alone and should be taken as such. I wish you luck. RLS is tortuous, and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.

[lauraflora in reply to mjoycen]

You are right that you often have to do your own research, in order to see the big picture. And prioritize what you have to work on first. For me, I realized my very bad problems with sleep had to be worked on first, as often I could not sleep or very little, and yet I had no RLS or else it started up badly after a few hours of no sleep. So, that was why I decided to work on things from the other way around.

I looked into adrenal fatigue, HPA axis dysregulation, high cortisol, circadian rhythm dysfunction, and that is where my worst problems lay. Also as I prefer a non-drug approach, I learned a lot from various alternative sites and books.

So, to keep my story short, tho I have posted a lot on here about my approach, I am happily counting the nights of good deep sleep and dreaming, which has NOT been the case for the last 7 years (counting from the occurrence of a devastating family tragedy.) I know I have to keep on top of this, as these things are not cured overnight. But the sleep itself is a big part of the cure.

So where does my RLS lie in all this? It is there but very minimal now that I can sleep. We are all different, as these post show, and what works for one might not work for another. But we all have to do our homework and analyze how best to go forward. There is no one simple fix.

[falling2peices]

Yes I have bipolar 1 mixed rapid cycling w psychosis RLS LA positive 2 times fibromyalgia hypothyroidism GERD GAD and bilateral vestibular loss

[Tazmania1]

I am borderline bi-polar.I think the Abilify they put me on aggravated my RLS. I also gained 40 lbs.So I went off of that. However, I have been told that Gabapentin will treat both.However as we all know there may be side effects. Maybe water retention weight gain. Luckily I am manic so I hardly ever crash. Also I am on Wellbutrin,which is an RLS Friendly antidepressant but half a dose.

[lauraflora]

It does run in my family. My mother was bi-polar and so was her aunt and 1 cousin. One of my daughters seems to be and does take some lithium for it. But, interestingly, neither my mother nor my daughter had/have RLS. (I don't know about the others.) One of my sons, who does have RLS, tho he also had a rather bad spinal injury, is not bi-polar.

So, based on my family, I would imagine there is no link, tho a person could, by chance, have both, I suppose.

[lauraflora]

But after reading all the above posts, I'm not sure if perhaps there IS a link.....