A funny thing happened...perhaps it was RLS, in reverse!

[lauraflora]

Usually RLS travels down the spine and into the legs. That seems to be the usual experience of most people. But one day about 2 weeks ago, I stubbed my toe rather hard on a corner of a wall. It was quite painful immediately after (and turned black and blue later) and within about 15 to 20 minutes, I started to feel the electric tickle of RLS around my knee and starting to go up into my thigh, then travelling around to my lower back.

Well, I was at a place where I could not do anything about it for awhile, so tho at first I had thought it might be my imagination, within a short period of time, I was sure it was not. It was RLS triggered in reverse! The nerve of the injured toe was sending messages upward, which had set things off.

Now I have stubbed a toe or two (even broken one or two) particularly on the other foot, and never had this happen before. I have even recently stubbed a toe on the same foot, and this did not happen. But it was a toe I had not stubbed before ( next to the little toe) and I suppose it was the one where a nerve that runs a long way upward was hiding out. It was also the leg where, if I have an RLS episode, it will 80% be in that leg. Very rarely in the other one.

Anyway, when I could I took some Ibuprofen for my aching toe, and interestingly, the RLS soon went away also. I'm not sure if ibuprofen works for RLS coming downward, as the trigger would be different, coming from the brain, I think.

But, anyway...particularly since it went away with the ibuprofen - I had a snicker about it.

[DicCarlson]

Ibuprofen is a Glutamate blocker - promoting less excitability and more GABA the relaxing neurotransmitter. I take it most nights to get back to sleep. Excess Glutamate is the bane of my sleep. If you solve the RLS symptom puzzle with Dopamine Agonists or Iron - insomnia frequently remains, and it's the Glutamate/GABA imbalance. hopkinsmedicine.org/news/me...

[lauraflora in reply to DicCarlson]

You are always good for some scientific info, Dic. And didn't the (much- maligned- here-on-this-site by- some- people) rlcure.com site talk about the problems with glutamate, and how to increase GABA and decrease glutamate?

As for me and my sleep, I have found that taking 25 mg of pregnenolone in the afternoon and again right before bed, with tryptophan and glycine, seems to set things up nicely for sleep. I usually wake up once for the bathroom, but am able to get back to sleep quickly. I have gone, thru trial and error, from waking and having disturbed sleep several times a Week, to maybe 2 or 3 times a Month, which is pretty good, I would say. If I do wake and sleep seems illusive, another 25 mg of pregnenolone does the trick (with another tryptophan and glycine.) My confidence in being able to sleep has returned, which is important also.

This works altho I know it could change or need tweaking. I don't know if pregnenolone has anything to do with Gaba in the brain (altho I have read that progesterone does and pregnenolone can turn into progesterone in the adrenal cascade, so maybe it does!) I have read lots of things on how much or how little pregnenolone to take, but my body seems to like this amount, so.....

Thanks, Dic, for your info.

[lauraflora in reply to DicCarlson]

Isn't taurine helpful for that also? I have added it back in since your post, and then checking what rlcure.com has to say about glutamate and taurine. Interesting about ibuprofen, tho.

[lorrinet]

My RLS has almost always risen from my left foot, sometimes the right foot. That's why I cannot visit my podiatrist later in the day without medication.

[lauraflora]

Interesting. So I am not the only one whose RLS was set off from the bottom up!

[DicCarlson]

What is the reasoning for the pregnenolone. It's a steroid, used for anti-aging and insomnia in low doses. That's all I can come up with

[lauraflora]

The insomnia particularly was the reason I decided to start taking it.

According to various sources (Raymond Peat is one) pregnenolone can counter too much cortisol, which seems to be what wakes people up suddenly in the night, or prevents falling asleep in the first place. I had both, sometimes together, sometimes on different nights. Since Pregnenolone is at the top of the adrenal cascade, the body can turn it into whichever it needs of down-the-line-hormones. (Dhea is already down-the-line so can only be turned into things below it, if you understand what I mean.)

Dr. James Wilson, in his book on Adrenal Fatigue (which is now more accurately called Adrenal Dysregulation by many alternative doctors,) recommends pregnenolone, especially for women. But men can, and do, use it also. It is an adrenal hormone, not a female hormone.

I have read several sources that recommend small doses 5 or 10 mg per day, or 5 or 10mgs 3 or 4 times a day. I have also read larger amounts 50 mg- even up to 150. Dr. Wilson recommends 10 - 40 mg. Generally, advice says to start small and see how it goes. It seems to have a rather safe record, from what I have read, even in large doses. So, I have been experimenting, and have found the sublingual ones in 25 mg to work the best. They can be broken in half, as well.

Dr. Mercola has articles on pregnenolone, (and an article on Dr. Kalish who uses pregnenolone and dhea for adrenal fatigue) as does Raymond Peat, Dr. Teitlebaum and others.

Also, I have found (having read about this also) that taking something like this, spaced thruout the day, is better than taking it once, such as before bed. The reason being it balances one's system thruout the day, rather than trying to play catch up suddenly before bed when one's system is out of balance. Thus I take one in the early afternoon, and one before bed, which seems to work well.