Help sleeping with RLS

[Koritzi]

I take one baby aspirin as needed to settle down RLS. It slowly… within 30 minutes or so… unwinds my springs and I fall into a tranquil restful sleep.

[Madlegs1]

I'm delighted to inform you that you don't have Restless Legs Syndrome.

It isn't relieved by aspirin or acetaminophen or Ibuprofen.

Isn't that great news for today!😎

[LFIT in reply to Madlegs1]

Aspirin is also a blood thinner as I understand it and dipyridamole is a prescription drug with similar properties that is showing some positive results on rls in some limited trials - so maybe? Improved blood flow to extremities can help for some I believe ….

[LotteM in reply to LFIT]

Dipyridamole for RLS doesn't work through its blood thinning property. Actually, that is an -for most unwanted- side effect.

If you think this is how it relieves your RLS, maybe it is wise to have your veins checked by your doctor? It can be a / is a well-known cause of secondary RLS. If so, hopefully it is still mild and easy to treat.

[Hidden]

Hi Koritzi, don’t listen to the know nothing naysayers. Heparin, which is a blood thinner, is a well-known antagonist of hepcidin. Heparin is used for anemia because by lowering hepcidin you allow greater influx and transport of iron. Low brain iron levels contribute to RLS. Aspirin is similarly a blood thinner. And as LFIT brilliantly points out dipyridamole is a blood thinner that has had success in treating RLS, however, it is believed the mode of action is by modulating adenosine in the brain, not via hepcidin. Everyone who is suffering should try one aspirin one night. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/283...

[Bftalbert in reply to Hidden]

My labs are all where they should be. I have great iron levels. I also have severe RLS. Not ASA, APAP, nor NSAIDS do a thing for my RLS. A small amount of caffeine does.

[Hidden in reply to Bftalbert]

Any ideas why it works?

[StJulian1305]

Sad to say, that doesn’t work for me. Had a sleeping tablet last night, as just been tested positive for COVID. And legs behaved themselves, no disco dancing, a very slow waltz instead. I’m an absolutely useless sleeper. Sleeping tablets for emergency only. 😜

[SueJohnson in reply to StJulian1305]

What medicine are you taking for your RLS?

[Bftalbert]

I'm a nurse living with severe RLS for over 35 years. Caffeine is the answer! It's a must for me before boarding a plane or going to a movie. It is also my go-to sleep aid, since my sleep problem is not insomnia, it's RLS. The trick is to consume only a small amount. Start with a 1/4 cup of coffee. If needed, up to 1/2 cup. More is not necessarily better. I actually use caffeine pills, splitting them into pieces. I have suggested this for more patients than I can count and it has worked for every single person. If it doesn't work for you, you probably don't have RLS.

[Butterflysun1 in reply to Bftalbert]

Caffeine works for me too but doesn’t last long. Dypiridamole sadly had no effect - I had great hopes but it didn’t work. I’ll try aspirin as I’ll try anything ( within reason ) but I would expect eg Dr Buchfuhrer would know if it was effective

[twizzle303 in reply to Bftalbert]

How interesting, I take gabapentin nightly which takes the edge off but on my totally sleepless nights I often give in to the desire for a nice hot cup of tea - invariably I drop off afterwards so its probably the caffeine in the tea. I will try a little aspirin tho 🤩

[KickininAz]

I shall try a baby aspirin. Perhaps it will help. Thank you for sharing.

[Bftalbert in reply to KickininAz]

Try a small amount of caffeine, like 1/4 cup, maybe up to 1/2 cup. Less is better. If you truly have RLS, this WILL work. If it doesn't, I suggest you get reassessed for a new diagnosis.

[zeusop]

Interesting name. Girl in Greek. How long has the baby aspirin been working to relieve your RLS symptoms?

[SueJohnson]

Interesting comments that caffeine helps RLS symptoms, as for most people it is a trigger.

[restlessstoz in reply to SueJohnson]

I'm one of those people SueJohnson. If my legs are mildly bad at night, a small cup of coffee will settle them down. I need to try caffeine pills as they would be more accessible and not have me getting up to the loo!!! Also tried nicotine chewing gum and found that helped too, until it made me so anxious that I had to stop it. (I've never been a smoker but read on this forum...) I know one of the older posters; in time on HU rather than age, also find coffee to be settling and took a thermos of coffee to bed! Apparently it targets the same receptors. (???). As with all things RLS related, it's 'suck it and see' for each person. What works for one may not work for all.

[SueJohnson in reply to restlessstoz]

Absolutely true ("What works for one may not work for all. ")

[Butterflysun1 in reply to SueJohnson]

I think the story about caffeine being a trigger may have been an assumption long ago based on it’s quality that it prevented sleep & it went into the folklore.Maybe a year ago or more someone on this site posted that it had a beneficial effect & some of us tried it and reported the same. I am convinced it helps me - not as a prevention but as a means to switch off an episode & be free of RLS for an hour or 2 during the night

[SueJohnson in reply to Butterflysun1]

The RLS foundation in the US mentions caffeine as a trigger as do many other sites and I have found others on this forum and another RLS forum I am active in report the same. But we are all different and it is interesting that it helps some.

[Memmy]

Coffee really helps me too. An espresso whe to bed is a must