Hi,
I wondered if anyone had had any success with treating RLS with hormones? My RLS got MUCH worse when I took HRT and I also had bad RLS during pregnancy so I'm wondering if it's my hormones? Has anyone been able to get a hormone test then improve symptoms with progesterone? I think my RLS gets worse with estrogen - maybe I have high levels of estrogen and not enough progesterone?! My GP didn't think it could be related to hormones and therefore won't give me a hormone test.
Thanks!
Progesterone therapy alone has made some members RLS worse, including mine. Please tell us what other medications you are on such as any SSRIs or calcium channel blockers. I see you take iron Not sure what type (I like ferrous bisglycinate best) you’re using but you should take it about 3 hours before bed on an empty stomach. Doing this relieves my RLS in about one hour for one night. It does the same for many other people. People who have never been on a DA can get 100% relief. Less so if you’re withdrawing from a DA, but it’s a must try because some improvement is better than none.
For example:
HRT containing estrogen makes RLS worse for some. I recently did a review of the literature about hormones and RLS for an update of a (Dutch) book. This was one part of the information. Combination therapy HRT (estrogen and progesteron combined) didn’t generally worsen RLS. And one study found that for women on estrogen-only HRT with worsened RLS, most improved when progesteron was added to their HRT.
Only very few papers though, and not specifically about this topic. Which is a shame, as in most women with RLS the first serious bout of RLS is during pregnancy and return around menopause, from which time onwards it usually stays. Which is contrary to what one would expect based on gonadal hormone levels during these two phases.
This is very interesting. I’ve tried increasing and decreasing my HRT to see if there is any difference. (There hasn’t been but I didn’t change it by much)
Desertoasis suggested I come of all HRT for a week to see what happens which is something I will look at after other stuff right now.
The issue I have is. I believe in HRT not just for the obvious symptoms but the need for it in terms of bone health, cardiovascular protection and dementia protection.
The thought of having to choose between those and the RLS is a bit crap to be honest.
The thing also is, in my ow experience and advised by the top menopause gynaecologist of The Netherlands, that after you stop the HRT it lingers a while in your system, at least for two weeks. So if you want to stop to see what it does, you’ll have to do so for -say- at least a month to assess effects. And, I hear you re other positive! effects of the HRT. As always, it is an individual balancing act.
My RLS was actually bearable in pregnancy. I came off medication and surprisingly managed to get through it. The end of the last trimester was more difficult however. A general physician that I later saw suggested taking a contraceptive pill to mimic the pregnancy state. He wasn't an RLS expert but was just offering up alternatives. I didn't end up trying it.
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