DVT Socks Worked for Me

[doggroomer]

I've had RLS on and off for years, getting worse as I get older. My GP prescribed Amitriptyline which really helps but makes me dopey the next day so I only use it when I don't work. Just found the BEST thing - DVT socks. I heard about wrapping the legs and tried my old DVT socks (from NHS). They WORK. Even if I have been asleep and have woken with RLS I put them on and PEACE. They fit tightly over my foot, calf and knee. This is my first blog ever, just want to help RLS sufferers. Hope it works for you.

[Fazer]

Thanks doggroomer - will have to try this. I'm fairly new to this site and soon realised that many are worse off than me. However, I am kept awake for several hours a night and it is a problem. This could be the answer.

[peterk]

Hello. Yes these type of stockings I have heard can help in mild cases. May I ask do you have painfal RLS?

[Hidden in reply to peterk]

They are a little tricky to put on.

[doggroomer]

Hi, No pain, just really annoying sensation where I have to move every 20 secs. Hope you find a way to relieve your symptoms.

[peterk in reply to doggroomer]

Thanks for your comment on my question to Frazer. Thanks for your well wishes.

[Hidden]

I used these socks on a plane to australia , they hurt my legs . After five mins of thinking oh yea these are good , my legs started to itch then throb then restless they went all the way from the uk to Australia . I kept the stocking socks on because of blood clots anyway and when the plane landed I got a tension pumothrorax ( sorry bad spelling ) the nice bit of the flight was I paid out first class because I thought my restless legs a small space on an airplane 24 hours no its not happening . So glad I went first ,lots of room for me too walk around . I swear that if my brain thinks or worrys about restless legs kicking off . they do it even more .

[doggroomer in reply to Hidden]

The socks could be psychosamatic but whatever the cause of the relief I'm very grateful the RLS disappears. Regarding the pneumothorax this is usually due to air pressure or injury, unlikely to be due to DVT socks. Lucky you going to Aus 1st class. Hope it was all you expected.

[cumoneileen in reply to Hidden]

Yes zennadream, i find the same, I really try and concentrate on other things,sometimes if i think about it the jumping starts!!!! Iwonder if i am going mad.How could i possibly start jumping just by thinking about it it?

I have suffered for 48 years!! Much worse since i turned 60.

[peterk in reply to Hidden]

I understand this as I hate the sheets touching my legs!

[nightdancer in reply to Hidden]

you have to get the right ones that are not too tight for you.

[Wendy1 in reply to Hidden]

How true is this! Same here-if I think about my RLS it starts! I have tried mind over matter (I have some experience of this working on other matters) and to a small degree it has lessened the twitches occasionally, but it is so exhausting to focus on not moving my legs and feet that I cannot keep it up for more than about a minute. It is not 100% either.

[Wendy1 in reply to Hidden]

Yes! If I think about my RLS it definitely gets worse! Why is that?!

I try distracting myself but it is so hard as I know in the back of my mind that I will not sleep if my legs start dancing!

[popmaster]

Hello, yes i've had good results with these type of socks BUT i've used,

the sport support one's which are not as tight as the proper DVT Socks,

+ for me where more comfortable to wear all night.

I only really use them if i'm having a very bad night BUT it's nice to know,

i've got a back-up should all else fail!!!.

[doggroomer in reply to popmaster]

Hi Popmaster (never scored more than 160 online!), Haven't tried the sport socks but if they are more comfy will give them a try.

[dangermouse]

Thanks for that doggroomer! Good to know that there's another alternative to upping the meds. I'll definitely try them! Glad they work for you.

[fatima]

Hi everone , i am taking pramapexole 4 x 0.88 although they help i have got to take them early in the evening so i can get peace to sit and watch some tv, i tried amytriptyline at night and they worked at first along with pramapexole , but have stopped amyt and have now for the last 2 weeks have been taking 2 co.codamol , 30 x 500 and i have been getting a great nights sleep , so i pray that this will last , worth a try

[peterk in reply to fatima]

Hi Fatima. Can I please ask why you stopped taking amityptyline? Did it cause you problems. You will recall this was suggested for me and I an reconsidering it with other options.

[fatima in reply to peterk]

Hi Peterk, amity worked for about a month , allowing me to get some sleep but makes you feel out of it next day, i though it was working and then the legs started up again and i thought they where worse than ever but my son asked me to try co codamol 30 x 500 taking 2 at night and to my surprise they are working, have been getting good sleep last couple of weeks , but remember i still take pramipexole as well , good luck

[Hidden in reply to fatima]

hi Fatima, i also take coccocdamol (for arthritis) and i find if i take a big dose at bedtime, it really help me to sleep also, and im also take the prolonged release mirapexin, this realy help my RLS a lot.

[Hidden in reply to fatima]

HI PETER, YOU HAD SAID YOU WERE NOT GOING TO TAKE IT AS YOU HAD IT ON GOOD ADVICE NOT TO TAKE IT..WHY CHANGE YOUR MIND

[cumoneileen]

I have NHS dvt stockings, will try them. Any thing for a good nights sleep. Its true, it gets worse as you get older. At the moment i am having acupuncture.Desperate!!!!

[doggroomer]

Acupuncture is a new one to me. If my socks stop working I'll give it a go too. Thanks.

[Hidden in reply to doggroomer]

hi, ive tried both the socks and acupuncture, but neither work for me, in fact the socks made me feel worse

[Hidden]

My own experience is that ANYTHING that puts pressure on leg muscles/nerve endings alleviates the symptoms (that's why night-walking eases the pain), though I'd imagine DVT stockings would be uncomfortable for some. In the evenings I sit in my computer chair/on a high-back kitchen stool, and sometimes lay sideways on the carpet to watch TV, and after a while or so am able to return to an armchair wihout the yipes. Of course, this is not a practical option for sleeping, though I have been able to find sleep sitting on a kitchen chair with my head on the breakfast bar! Good look - keep searching.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

sounds a bit like me, i allways watch tv laid on my tummy, and i can wiggle and kick my legs while im there

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

same here Keeley i always watch tv or use the laptop whiles laying on my tummy the only place i find that RLS doesn't feel so bad although legs can be kicking off but at least can be moving them about easier only time i can't use laptop is when my arms going wild gggrrrrrrr

[peterk]

Can you please tell me your experience of amitryptyline? This was suggested for me and I wasn't considering it but I am now as a few seem to benefit from it with RLS. May I please ask what dose you are taking and whether your RLS was previously painfal without it?

[nightdancer in reply to peterk]

a VERY few people think it helps, Peterk, trust me, or at the very least there are a FEW people who `can tolerate this med with rLS, but few and far between. This is ONE thing all the RLS experts agree on. Tricyclic ant-d's and the SSRI's are just bad news and you will most likely have to take more meds to counteract it, so that seems kind of foolish. Not to say I do NOT know a VERY few peoplw who can tolerate it. But, if you are having more trouble lately, I would strongly suggest that should be the LAST med to try of anything ou there.. You know me and I am brutally honest, because after all these years, I just can't and won't sugar coat things any more . You know all the good RLS web sites, by now,Peter, so please re-read what they say, and I am begging you and trying to tell you as a internet friend that it is abd idea for MOST peiople. You canask and read all you wnat, but you really will not know until you try it. You will know right away if it is going to bounce you off the walls, literally o the first or 2nd night. so, it's up to you, but we can tell you our experiences til we are blue in the face and iun the end it is your decision, and since I have talke d to you more than a lot of people on here, I am telling you out of extreme concern that is that LAST med you should try. The tramadol also will not work as well for you if you are taking a med that will most likely drive your legs nuts, and and full body RLS at times. I can only draw acys from what I kow to be true, and this is sooo true it hurts. Google "Tricyclics and RLS". You will get lots of hits, and no web site worth it's time will say that amitryptiline is a good choice, if you do not wnat make your rS worse. Then you will be back on a big meerty gob round with meds. taking more RLS meds because AMI makes it worse, so you will have to counteract that, which is also a bad idea. You know I can back all fo bthis up, so I am begging you to take this seriously before you decide anything.

[peterk]

Hi. Amityptyline was proposed for me with other meds. Does it help with the nasty sensations? I ask as I am reconsidering this drug along with others proposed. Bit of a nightmare really.

[nightdancer in reply to peterk]

see post above. It will make the ugly sensations worse, more than not, and it is a nightmare that has been documented in studies and in our own stories. Just trying to save you some misery.

[doggroomer]

Hi, I take one 10 mg Amitriptyline tablet when my RLS starts and it calms the sensation so that I can sleep. Trouble is I still feel dopey in the morning and this can go on til lunch time. Alcohol is definitely a trigger for RLS and also does not agree with the Amitriptyline. My GP says that 60 mg turns you into a zombie! Hope this helps. RLS is torture.

[nightdancer in reply to doggroomer]

You are one of the very few I have been talking about. It is as much a trigger for rLS as alcohol is, and more so in MOST people. In MOST people it will have the exact opposite you wnat. And alcohol does NOT go with ANY of our meds, and yes, it is a trigger, too.

[Hidden in reply to doggroomer]

wow, shows we are so different, i drink and it doesnt bother my RLS one bit, i have tried periods of not drinking alcohol, and it didnt make a jot of difference to me, so glad i can have the odd drink

[nightdancer]

soscks can help SOME people or wrapping legs in ace bandages. never worked for me, but we all get relif form differnet things. However, I am extremely concerned over the fact that that your doctor is giving your amitrityline. That is a tricyclic antidepressant, and is tops on the list for the "no-no" RLs drugs. Yes, a very few people can use it. I can tell you whe my doctor out me on it years ago before i knew better, I had my worst RLS of my LIFE, and was literally ready to end it all. That is when I got MAD and started doing my own research and establishing online support groups so that people couold get accurate RLS info. I beg all of you to read the lost of meds to use for RLS on rlshelp.org. It is a US based site by an RLS expert that I know very well, and he is an advisor to the US RLS Foundation. His word is golden when it comes to "drugs and foods to avoid" on the treatment page of that web site. Old info on there is the "blood pressure med" one, which he has to take off of there because it is so old and found not to be true after all. BUT the list of drugs to avoid is essential reading for ALL RLSER's. I promise you it will open up your eyes if you have not been to that site before. There are many other meds to try that will not exacerbate RLS. DISCLAIMER- We are all differnet, and like I said a very few people can take that drug, so it must be said, because that drug is 99% of the time a really bad idea for RLSer's. This is a fact, so keep it in mind.

[Ciduoc in reply to nightdancer]

This page is excellent, but he also needs to remove his recommendation about Requip.

[nightdancer]

made my RLS so bad I was literally suicidal for the first and only time in my life. if one is even thinking about this med, REALLY do soe rading on and how it will mostl likely affec your rLS. We ae all different, but not so much when it comes to "no no " meds for rLS. Amitryptiline is tricyclic antidepressant, seciond onlt to sSRI's as far as worseing RLS or even causing it. I know people how NEVER had RLS until they starte dtaking the wrong meds, and once your RLS gets kickstarted with a med, it may never go away, because thos emeds really WAKE it up. again, being honest here. I assume peope would not wnat me to lie about it. And, after all my reasearch, that is one fact I will stick to until my death. Tricyclic antidepressants (amit)and SSRI's like Prozac or Paxil DO and will make RLS worse for 99% of the RLSer's who take them. Them's the facts as exoerts know it, and have taught me, and also from personal experience, those clases of meds are usually poison for us. and, as most of you know, I am not spouting off against drugs, just those! My med list is a notebook page long, and the ones I have tried over the years, whether they work for ME or not. It is an excellent tool to help us communicate with doctors, too, because we know WILL forget someting we want to ask when get to the doc's. BEFORE anyone take drug s in those classes, please listen to us with the experience, too. That is why we are here, to supoort, adsvise, tell our own stories and hand out factual information. I van back up anything I post, trust me. so, I am with you romany on that amitryptiline. I have 17 years of nightmare storeis collected about that! PLEASE, for those of you ahve not, please see what Dr,. B says on his web site about this. rlshelp.org he will not say anything difffernet than what we have siad here, though.

[LongtimeRLSsufferer]

I cant wear socks at all, anything at all that resticts any blood flow anywhere on my body starts me off. All my clothes have to be really loose, which due to the weight gain can be interesting. It used to be a running joke with mum about knicker elastic being too tight is we both started fidgeting. Which also then means that my feet are always freezing cold so a vicious circle of cold or RLS?