New member

[Justjudes3824]

Hi I’m new to this site and looking forward to all the helpful tips and comments I can receive. Thanks for accepting me Judes x

[Hidden]

Hi Judes! Welcome to the RLS forum. I'm sorry you have to be here, but "here" is a pretty good place to be if you need to (if you know what I mean) - ha ha. Please let us know if there are any questions we can answer.. We are not medical so no diagnosing, etc., but we can share our experiences.

[Justjudes3824 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks Caery it’s good to know you are there

[Hidden]

Hi Judes. I'm new too, both to the site and to RLS, and have already learned loads - mind you, since I joined I've probably spent too many hours on here and then looking things up! All good stuff though. Welcome!

[Justjudes3824 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you Tortoise Welcome to you too

[Leelee49]

Hi Jude’s and welcome. You will find a wealth of knowledge from certain members on here, ( not me though, ) I come on to find it myself lol. Hope you find what you need, if and when you need it 😊

[Justjudes3824]

Thanks Leelee49 I will be like you looking for all the help I can get

[Justjudes3824 in reply to Justjudes3824]

Well just to see how everyone copes I’m fed up pacing the floor at night but I’m not on any medication foe rls as I take lots of different tablets for other conditions. It’s just nice to be in touch with like minded people

[Hidden in reply to Justjudes3824]

Ok. I have a whole bunch of non-medical things I try. I’ll come back with my list when I have more energy (half-asleep at the moment! Shouldn’t be, but that’s my life right now).

[Justjudes3824 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks that’s very kind

[Hidden]

What kind of advice are you looking for?

[Justjudes3824 in reply to Hidden]

Well just to see how everyone copes. I’m fed up with pacing the floor at night but I’m not on any medication as I’m on lots of different tablets for other conditions It’s just nice to be in touch with like minded people

[LotteM]

Ho Jude. I read you write that you are “on a whole bunch of medication for other conditions. There are several medications that excacerbate RLS, which may apply to you. E.g. antidepressants (SSRI’s, antihistamines to name two types). Have a look at two websites for a more complete overview:

rlshelp.org/ on treatment page under ‘medications to avoid’

rls-uk.org/treatment/

Maybe you’ll find a culprit! Otherwise, inform yourself about iron and specifically ferritin levels (too tired now to wite you a summary) on:

hopkinsmedicine.org/neurolo... (and other pages)

And have a look around on these websites and here for non-medical treatments/approaches. Jess usually gives a fairly comprehensive overview. And last but not least, you may want to look for dietary triggers. Search for low FODMAP, glutenfree, vegan, sugarfree/low etc. Again, maybe you’ll find your culprit.

Good luck. Don’t hesitate to ask questions and keep us posted!

[Justjudes3824 in reply to LotteM]

Thanks I will check my medications out

[involuntarydancer]

Hi JJ, lots of good advice from LotteM. If you don’t want to take medication (which is totally understandable), the two biggest things to consider are iron and diet. Everyone with rls should get a serum ferritin test from their GP and get the actual figure - not just that you are ‘normal’. Normal for us is different - we should be aiming to be over 100 so take a supplement if you are below 100. Diet seems to make a big difference to lots of people especially eliminating dairy, meat, sugar and gluten - so no big deal at all.

The other thing that gets mentioned frequently is magnesium both as a supplement and in the form of Epsom salts baths.

Codeine can be helpful and it is contained in solpadeine. Just don’t take too much as the paracetamol is bad for you.

Another thing people find helpful is a very absorbing activity such as a computer game or crocheting. For some reason reading and tv don’t seem to work as well.

I would second LotteM’s suggestion of checking your medications to make sure none of them is one that makes rls worse. Over the counter medications like benadryl (in cough medicine) and some anti-histamines can also make rls worse.

If you scroll through the posts on here you will find people posting a myriad of other things that they find helpful. I hope you find some solutions that work for you.

[Justjudes3824 in reply to involuntarydancer]

Thanks I have a lot of advice to work through so will hopefully find something that works for me

[Hidden]

Hi Judes!

Ok...here is my list: (not everything works all the time, so I have lots)

-knee hight compression stockings (the tightness these provide help calm my movements)

-hand-held heated massager

-I have a jet spray option on my shower head that I put right up against every inch of my legs.

-rubber massage ball with rubber spikes (mine is small enough to carry around in my purse)

-Lidocaine Plus pain relieving liquid. This is a roll-on designed to desensitize the nerves. This actually works quite well!

-«Relaxing Leg Cream» by Magnilife. This can be bought at Walgreens (if in States) or on Amazon.

-Magnesium Oil. This does wonders for pain and has the added benefit of calming the legs (to some extent).

-Soaking in warm water. I swear I can feel the blood start to flow again!

-3 exercises in particular found halfway down this site:

healthline.com/health/restl...

-type «Rife Frequencies RLS» into Youtube, put your earphones on, and enjoy (or try). These are like binaural beats, so they aren’t the prettiest sounds, but I swear I have some success with my legs calming down! There is a science behind Rife Frequencies that says that different bodily afflictions respond to different music frequencies. This is why you need to find the RLS-specific ones.

-«WholeTones Healing Frequencies» provides calming music at different hertz (vibration per second). These are also found on Youtube, and the story behind these can be found at wholetones.com.

Hope this helps!

[Justjudes3824 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks so much Jess lots of things to try so I will work through them Thank you

[Hidden in reply to Justjudes3824]

You’re welcome.😀 I hope you find something that works for you!

[Justjudes3824 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks again

[Hidden in reply to Justjudes3824]

Sorry, one more thing then I’ll stop.

Please don’t get discouraged if none of these work for you. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that what works for one won’t necessarily work for another. It is highly frustrating and all we can do is rack our already overtired brain for ways to survive this hellish nightmare!

[Justjudes3824]

I know I will just try things and hope one works or just keep trying