Restless Leg Syndrome – An Introduction

Recent news stories and television commercials have brought home the discomfort of Restless Leg Syndrome sleep disorder (often known as simply RLS) to everyone. While naturally those people who have suffered from this disorder for years know only too well the way RLS can disrupt life. As information about RLS becomes more widely known people may well discover the cause of their mystery symptoms and start to ask questions of their doctor. More importantly they will come to see their symptoms as real and they are not alone. 

The easiest description of just how RLS affects a person is to say that it is a disorder in which you experience an inability to relax. Whenever a person sits down or lays down at night their legs start to feel like pins and needles are sticking them or suffer a creepy or crawling feeling and the need to constantly move, making it just about impossible to sleep. This alone explains why one of the principle results of RLS is insomnia. 

As research data has become available it has become clear that many of those with RLS also have family members with the disorder and that there is thus undoubtedly a genetic component to the disorder. This genetic element is an important one when it comes to diagnosing children because they often do not vocalize their discomfort or pain in the same way as adults and the disorder is frequently misdiagnosed, as stress, muscle cramps, arthritis and insomnia and attention is often focused on the child’s inattentiveness, restlessness and irritability as what is referred to as merely growing pains.

Additionally, at times pregnant women find themselves with the symptoms of RLS throughout their pregnancy with the worst symptoms coming during the final trimester. However, because of their pregnancy, medication is generally not recommended until the last two or three months of their pregnancy when the effects on the unborn baby are going to be minimal. 

The main concern for anybody with RLS should be diagnosis because it is after diagnosis that treatment can become the focus and relief begins.

Treatment for RLS varies widely from one person to the next and depends upon the severity of the restless leg symptoms being experienced. Medication is often used for severe cases with Requip and Mirapex being the most commonly prescribed medicines. For individuals who do not like to take medication there are alternative methods like acupuncture and a variety of homeopathic remedies. In addition, changes in lifestyle such as using hot and cold packs, exercise and relaxation are also used to provide symptomatic relief.

While it may feel normal to look for the best relief for your symptoms on your own you should check with your doctor first as RLS can sometimes be a secondary condition and result from another condition or disorder as, for example, when it appears during pregnancy. Using your own treatment plan could well result in additional problems and thus not bring about the relief you want. 

Because each of us is unique so too are our symptoms and an understanding of this is central when it comes to a disorder like RLS. It is only with sound knowledge of this disorder that appropriate restless leg syndrome treatment can begin and the leg pain of RLS will become a thing of the past.