Positioning

[RLSdaily]

Anyone have a position they sleep that works better for relief. I find some relief on my stomach ( bad for my back)

Taking gabapentin 400 mg an hour before bed, once I shift to my stomach for sleeping I do find relief. Of course I can't sleep with pants or socks, my feet hang off the end of bed and I can't shake my legs a little better

[Madlegs1]

I sleep better with something firm at my back. Pillow, bolster, wall or sofa are all good.Security? Comfort?

It works, and lessens any RLS.

[RLSdaily in reply to Madlegs1]

I have heard of people benefiting from weighted blankets. I myself did not. Perhaps if there was a fairy to cover once I was a sleep. Lol thanks for reply

[Madlegs1 in reply to RLSdaily]

I'm like Sampsie- can't tolerate heavy bed clothes. Legs need to be out in the cool.No fairies in my bedroom!😜

[brickscrawling in reply to Madlegs1]

Can you plz tell me what Sampise is?

[brickscrawling in reply to brickscrawling]

Is that someone's name? Ima dumbass thought it was a new treatment.... 🙄

[Kaarina Administrator in reply to brickscrawling]

Sampsie is a member of our RLS community and their username is Sampsie.

[Sampsie in reply to brickscrawling]

It's me 😀 My forum name in memory of my beautiful cat, who never sat on the bed because I was always moving my legs!!

[Sampsie]

I have to be able to hang my legs and feet off the side and the bottom. Sometimes I put a really small cushion in between to knees if I lie on my side, in case the top leg starts any RLS malarky.

[WideBody]

This is strange. Sleep on my side and tilt my head back, looking up. I seem to breath better? Definitely not back or stomach.

[SueJohnson]

I sleep on my stomach and have a foam piece about 1 inch high that I put my feet over which takes some of the pressure off. When I finally get up in the middle of the night because of restless legs, I lie on my back on the sofa, slanted up against the back and almost never have restless legs there.

[sudokufan]

Mostly I sleep on back or side, BUT I find if I detect RLS starting up ("creepy maggots" getting busy in my knees) I find it can be most helpful to pile up 3 or 4 pillows under my head and lie on my stomach. I'm sure this also partly relates to my worn out old back, which aches quite often. But having my back bent backward when in this position can quieten the RLS quite well sometimes. Trouble is it's difficult to get my head in a comfortable position so I can breath!

[Sampsie in reply to sudokufan]

You must be very bendy 🙂

[sudokufan in reply to Sampsie]

Yes, I am - thanks for the compliment!!🐬

[RLSdaily in reply to sudokufan]

Yes I wouldn't be able to breathe either. Oh the things we do to sleep or get some relief

[Berteau]

I take 600mg gabapentin at 5pm and 9pm and pramipexole 0.5mg at 8am, 5pm and two at 9pm. I also seldom sleep more than 2 hours at a time or 4 hours per night. By the end of the day, I am so tired that I can barely get out of a chair. If I do a lot during the day, nothing helps the RLS or neuropathy in my feet and ankles. However, if I miss the 9pm pills, I won't get to sleep until 2-3am. In general, I have no idea what the hx## is going on with my meds and I get depressed knowing it is coming every evening and may be worse in the future. Like Sampsie the cat (below) our chihauhau Mazi, would rather sit on the lap of my wife rather than on my up and down lap. I believe that pramipexole and the food of south Texas have contributed to a 7 year, 50 lb weight gain and every pound seems to worsen my sleep apneas. Compression socks help sometimes and I have a CPAP. I am almost 75 and moved from Wisconsin. Sleeping pills create weird behaviors- I wrote 3 personal, unreadable checks one night.

Sorry that I can't help RLSdaily, but knowing there are more of us out there has a calming affect. My handle Berteau is the north-side Chicago street I was born on in case there are any Windy City folks.

[RLSdaily in reply to Berteau]

Is the pramipexole for RLS? I would investigate that, depending how long you have taken it. I can not take that ( mirapex) at all made my RLS so much worse. I wish you well and rest.

[Berteau in reply to RLSdaily]

Yes pramipexole is used for RLS and Parkinson's. I have been on it for 8 years and take 4 at 0.5mg per day. I need to read up on it. However, I believe it works for now.

[involuntarydancer in reply to Berteau]

Berteau, I think your suspicions about pramipexole are likely to be spot on and you are right to read up on it. That sounds like a far too high dose. You will find that pramipexole has a terrible tendency to actually worsen rls symptoms in a process known as ‘augmentation’. This is particularly the case in higher doses. Currently experts suggest that the dose of this drug is kept very low (much lower than yours).

Many people find that when they discontinue pramipexole the severity of their rls diminishes appreciably. Unfortunately, the withdrawal process is extremely arduous. It must be done very, very gradually and generally symptoms get very much worse during the withdrawal. Most people find they need an opioid to treat their symptoms and enable them to get some sleep towards the end of the withdrawal process. However, most people feel enormous relief when they finally free themselves of the drug. There are LOADs of cases of misprescription of pramipexole for rls on this forum and you’ll find a lot of support and assistance as well as information on here.

And yes, it does also contribute to weight gain.

[Berteau in reply to involuntarydancer]

Thanks! At 184lbs I snored but had less than 5 apneas per hour. Two years later at 196 lbs I did another sleep study and had 20 apneas per hour. You all may know that apneas are when you stop breathing for 10 seconds or more. "I am an expert on losing weight, I've done it a thousand times." (Mark Twain on quitting smoking)

[involuntarydancer in reply to Berteau]

I lost weight without trying when I discontinued mirapexin (pramipexole)

[Hidden]

Hi RlsDaily, have you thought about taking magnesium supplement daily? Also not proven nor how this came about but try putting a bar of soap at bottom of your bed in between sheets, apparantly it works! I'm certainly going to add to my daily magnesium take. Other thing which can help is whilst sitting in evening try using a posture support pillow as this can relieve pressureon spine. Hope this is useful.

[RLSdaily in reply to Hidden]

I have tried the soap, tried the magnesium, had iron infusions, been on dopamine agonists. Diet plays a role for me. I can't have red dyes at all. Gabapentin is working at a low dose( which I prefer ) the car and the evenings are tough for me. Thank you

[Hidden in reply to RLSdaily]

You sound a bit like myself, tried lots of things. However based on your reply it might be worth looking into effect sitting in car has on your spine. I find the posturite cushion does make a difference and now take that in the house and sit on it in the evening. Seems to take pressure off spinal cord and hence nerves don't get compressed or trapped. Apparently it has something to do with ensuring your knees are higher than spine when sitting. Might be worth getting back/spine checked out. I wish you well.

[Goldy700]

I find that when I have a massage and lay on my stomach I don't get RLS. However when I lay on my back I do. Being on my stomach seems to relieve it - however I cannot sleep on my stomach so next best thing is on my side twisted over towards my stomach and that seems to relieve it.