CBD cream/lotion helped me.

[grandpianoman]

I have had RLS for 50 years; just went off DA and am not going back, but now am floundering and sleep-deprived as I try to find something safer that enables me to sleep. I rubbed CBD cream on my achilles and hamstring tendons 4 times over the night, and it really seemed to reduce the tightness and hence the intensity of the restlessness. For me, by itself the cream not enough, but even the reduction makes possible an hour or so of sleep before getting up, when--I think--the dopamine in my brain starts to increase, permitting sleep since the legs are already calmed down a bit.

[Hidden]

Well done for getting off the dopamine agonists, not an easy thing to do.

Unfortunately, you didn't seem to have a plan for what to do once you'd stopped it.

There are a few things which you might not know about, or haven't thought to do, I have no idea. I thought then, it might help you to mention a few things.

THere are a few nutrients that can have an impact on RLS, minerals and vitamins.

Iron is the main mineral associated with RLS and Brain Iron Deficiency (BID) is strongly associated wth it. BID can exist in he absence of iron deficiency anaemia. THere is a simple blood test that can indicate if BID might be a factor in your RLS and this is a test for ferritin. It has been found that 50% of RLS sufferers benefit from having a ferritin level of at least 100ug/L. Some experts now say it should be 300ug/L.

Unfortunately, anything above 12ug/L is considered normal and even doctors who do know a little about RLS think it's OK if it's at least 50ug/L.

The two main vitamins that influence RLS are B12 and D. If you have a deficiency of either of these then correcting the deficiency can help improve RLS symptoms.

Some people think that magnesium can help RLS, either tablets or as an ointment.

If you've had RLS 50 years then I assume a you're a bit older and it's likely you have other health conditions and may be taking other medications. There are quite a few medications that can make RLS worse or even cause it. These include SSRI and tricyclic antidepressants, proton pump and H2 inhibitor antacids, some anti-nausea/anti reflux medicines, some statins, beta blockers and alcohol.

Some foods can make RLS worse, this includes refined sugar but also a variety of things that you might have to discover for yourself.

Perhaps you weren't aware that there are medications other than L Dopa or dopamine agonists that can help treat RLS. The alternative first line medications for RLS, and in fact now recommended as the first ones to be tried ,are the alpha 2 delta ligands, gabapentin and pregabalin, plus, if you live in the US, gabapentin enacarbil. These can be effective for the sensorimotor symptoms of RLS, but are more effective than dopamine agonists for sleep. The advantage of these is that they do not cause augmentation as they are not dopaminergic.

Where first line medicatiions for RLS have failed, opiates are recommended. However, it isn't easy in the current climate to get a prescription for an appropriate opiate for RLS.

I hope this gives you a few ideas.

I think you'll find that CBD has no reliable or predictable value for RLS. You'll read quite a lot of posts on here about CBD and you'll see at the moment, it's a bit of a fad, without any real benefit.