Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Discussion Board

If you can't get an opioid prescribed--or even if you can but don't want to use a strong prescription opioid--you might try kratom, which is a mild, non-prescription herb with opioid properties. I've been using it for the last 7 months to control my RLS/WED. Amazon is carrying it now: m Good luck to...

I also laughed so hard I was crying. Thanks for the link! My daughter is going to send a bag to her old (much hated) boss.

Hi Tracy, I read the Wiki article and I see that they report a search of the literature and found that up to 12 grams a day seemed safe. If you're only taking 2 250 mg. tables a day (500 mg) you would have to take 24 times the amount you're taking now to move out of that safety zone. Anyway, it cert...

This is very interesting, Bob, and I appreciate your posting the info. I would also be curious about the relationship between glutamate and GABA. The Johns Hopkins study--as I understand it--is seeing if the level of glutamate is higher in the brains of RLS/WED sufferers, causing the hyper alert fee...

Hi Betty, Please keep in mind that I'm not a doctor, but I wanted to respond to your cry for help. We are close to the same age (I'm 69) and like you, am tired of dealing with this illness. A few of us on here are using a herbal drug called kratom. It's a mild opioid that is grown in places like Ind...

I think the way calling in specialists works (and I'm not a lawyer; keep that in mind) is that they are paid up front (expenses and a fee) for testifying. The law firm makes these payments, in hopes that they will win the lawsuit and get a good percentage of the award. I imagine that a good malpract...

Really, Ann, when hearing your story, words fail. Here's what I'm thinking. If you could find a good law firm willing to take the case, I don't know how much you yourself would actually have to do, outside of testifying, of course. And the law firm would make the call on which doctor or doctors woul...

My son-in-law is a V.P. in a big, national insurance company, and tells me that lawsuits work like this. If a malpractice suit is brought against a doctor, the insurance company lawyers look at it. If it looks like the plaintiff has a good case, the insurance company settles out of court. They only ...

The last think I want to do is make light of the suffering so many of us are going through. Yeah, a movie, but even more all of the newspaper stories describing what is happening. Surely there is a great lawyer somewhere willing to bring this suit. Plus I am sure there are other people in pain who n...

All good issues. As far as the financial issue, clearly we would have to find an attorney who does it on a contingency basis, which I think is how most malpractice suits are brought anyway. The attorney absorbs the expenses and, if wins, gets a hefty percentage of the award. Otherwise the attorney g...

Thanks Ann and Polar Bear. I understand the fear of opioids, and I understand that many (most?) doctors are not up on current treatment protocols for RLS/WED. I think the "ignorance of the law is no excuse" means, however, that doctors have an obligation to keep up on current treatments an...

After reading the excellent book Restless Leg Syndrome: Relief and Hope for Sleepless Victims of a Hidden Epidemic by Robert Yoakum, I see that there are definite protocols to follow in prescribing drugs for this disease, and that opioids are recommended for certain severe cases. I am wondering what...

I take 200 mg. of theanine, which works fine--two capsules. I've found that the powdered kratom works much better for me, not sure why. It works faster (no capsules to disintegrate) and doesn't upset my stomach, which the capsules do, just a little. I also think the powdered may be a little fresher ...

I am so glad that things are at least looking up for your wife. I do encourage you to try the L-theanine. Last night I went to bed as usual at 11, and was still awake and feeling hyper at midnight. Lately, since I started the kratom, this has been very unusual, but then I remembered that I also star...

Hey Bob, as far as these doctors who insist on following their own feelings about treatment, you might work the term "malpractice" into your conversations with them. Because that is what it is. Good luck.