Magnesium and Lavender

[27yrsncounting]

I take Magnesium capsules at night to sleep and since starting, I rarely feel RLS. If I'm particularly exhausted, I do feel it, in which case, I use Feather and Down Sleep butter. It stops it in seconds. It is lavender-based. There is a version that also has a dose of Magnesium in it. I'd surmise that that may work well for those of you who don't take Magnesium, since RLS is known to be linked to Magnesium deficiency, which also tends to be common in chronic diseases. This cream is available in the UK and the US.A spray that works just as well for me, is BetterYou Magnesium spray. I've had RLS since I was 18 and these are the first products that relieve it successfully. Much less toxic than pharmaceuticals too. I hope this helps 😊

[Madlegs1]

You can make your own magnesium spray.

Equal parts Epsom salts and water.

Very cheap and easy.

If you want a cream ,mix Epsom salts with coconut oil/ butter.

[nocturne in reply to Madlegs1]

I had no idea Epsom salts contained magnesium. Lol. Thanks for educating me.

[Joolsg]

Great to hear that it helps you. Thanks for sharing.

[ChrisColumbus]

Welcome to the forum.

It is more difficult to get sufficient magnesium in the diet now because of soil depletion linked to intensive farming.

The main deficiency linked with RLS is brain iron, which can be estimated by measuring serum ferritin in the blood. However iron was never my problem or solution.

Magnesium citrate tablets were my great breakthrough leading - with care over diet and non-RLS meds - to controlling RLS without medication.

I tried magnesium and other oils, creams, ointments etc to no effect - but that's not just magnesium: I get no or very little benefit from rubbing in Voltarol, ibuprofen etc.

[TheDoDahMan in reply to ChrisColumbus]

Hi, Chris,

So you're saying that "Magnesium citrate tablets", as opposed to the oil thereof, (perhaps including bathing in Epsom salts?) is what you credit for your current ability to sleep?

[ChrisColumbus in reply to TheDoDahMan]

Firstly, magnesium doesn't work for everyone - it doesn't work for my brother - and I find that it's easily 'overwhelmed' by dietary and other triggers. I also theorise - admittedly on little actual evidence - that like dietary changes it seems much less effective after one has been on a dopamine agonist and certainly after augmentation.

I spent 30+ years suffering mild to moderate RLS symptoms: most nights lying on the bed with my legs up the wall or hanging off the edge, or kneeling on the floor, or having to get up and walk around - the usual stuff. My ferritin levels were generally 200 or even 300+. I never took any meds for RLS because when I asked anti-depressants were recommended, and I was afraid of getting dependent/addicted.

Then magnesium was suggested by someone (not a doctor), possibly someone here during my early incarnation on this forum. I first tried magnesium oxide tablets, then various magnesium unguents: none did anything. Finally a relative urged me to try the bio-available form magnesium citrate and it worked a treat (if I'd been in the US magnesium glycinate might have been recommended instead, with similar results). I eventually realised that magnesium needs to be readily absorbable from supplementation or readily absorbed through the skin. Magnesium oxide isn't, and dermal absorption generally doesn't seem to work for me.

While taking citrate led to an immediate dramatic improvement, it didn't work every night - for reasons I couldn't explain at the time, but only later found were mostly dietary,

Then in 2021 I was put on atorvastatin and RLS went through the roof: I found here that statins were often a bête noire for RLS, and eventually got taken off. Relief!

But RLS symptoms continued to break through quite often: after a period of experimentation I found that the artificial sweeteners in 'diet' food and drinks - particularly aspartame - were triggers; that I needed to reduce sugary foods and drinks, particularly late in the day; that I needed to reduce caffeine; that I needed to try to stay hydrated enough but not too much to have me getting up in the early hours; that I needed to try to take regular moderate exercise; that I needed to try to stay cool in bed (temperature wise!); that if I still feel symptoms are about to start that I should sleep as much as possible on my side - or better still front - rather than on my back.

So that's what I do. For well over a year now I've only had very occasional symptoms, and can always pinpoint where I broke my own guidelines to cause this.

(At the beginning I took 600mg - 3 separate doses of 200mg taken with meals during the day, to reduce the laxative effects of citrate; I then reduced to 2 x 200mg taken with breakfast and lunch; now I just take 200mg with breakfast.

Magnesium (bis-)/(di-) glycinate is not readily OTC in the UK, it has to be ordered, which is why I stick with citrate; it is however supposedly preferable to citrate in that it doesn't have a laxative effect and if taken in the evening can help sleep).

[TheDoDahMan in reply to ChrisColumbus]

Profuse thanks for your thorough reply. You're a fabulous component of the gang who make this HU site so valuable for those of us who suffer from the scourge of RLS symptoms. Here's hoping we all have a good upcoming spring (or autumn for our sub-equatorial friends).

[Summer194]

Many thanks for this - and good news that what you suggest has worked for you, and so it may work for others also. Anything within reason is worth trying.

[nocturne]

Thank you for the recommendation! I tried another brand of magnesium/shea butter to no effect, but will keep on trying.

[CalmRestPeace]

Good to know, thanks.