Bad night but some relief

[Sara]

Hi, all--

I had been having a pretty "quiet" time for a week or two with my RLS symptoms, a respite I definitely appreciated. But last night was a particularly bad one. Boy, was it nasty.

I got to bed fine, and was VERY sleepy from a long, hot, busy day. Read a half-dozen pages of a novel, then put it down, kissed the hubby, and fell asleep while he read on.

I think it was about an hour later that I woke up. I thought that it was when he turned out the light that woke me up, but looking back I'm not sure. At any rate, I woke up HARD, if you know what I mean, and in distress. Feet "crawling" excruciatingly, head pounding, and very agitated. I thought for just a few seconds that I would be able to turn over and go back to sleep, but ONLY for a few seconds. I was in real trouble, RLS-wise.

To be honest, I didn't want to leave my husband alone to sleep (he works nights, so a night in the same bed is something to be cherished)... and I was just danged tired and wanted to go back to sleep!!!! So I figured this was not a night to wander about, type on the computer, or lay in bed and hope. I could tell I was to the point where my RLS was going to get worse, not better, because I was so tired already (and mine always gets worse the longer I stay up if I'm tired) and because it's unusual for me to have it so severely in the middle of the night in the first place. It's happened a couple of times now, and it's never been a good sign. Frankly, I just wanted to cry and hit things... I woke up THAT frustrated.

But I know that "feeding" my anxiety and stress is bad for my RLS, my chances of sleeping any time soon, etc. So I got control quickly.

I scooted myself downstairs for something for my headache and for the bottle of Miracle II pH neutralizer gel I'd been using by the computer for a mosquito bite that was itching horribly. I've used Miracle II (for those who've not heard Becat or me talk about it) on numerous occasions for RLS, and I knew that this was probably my best option for getting any sleep last night. Back up in bed, I slathered my feet liberally, told myself it would help (because hey, it's not all in our heads... but our heads CAN help as well as hurt us a lot of times), enjoyed the sensation of cooling on my feet (it's been miserably hot for weeks here), and layed back down.

I wouldn't say that Miracle II is any "miracle cure", but for whatever reason (the calcium, potassium and magnesium perhaps? who knows) it really HAS consistently been a HELP each time I've had RLS that I couldn't just lay down and sleep to get through. In just a few minutes, the "edge" was off the sensations, and I was able to lie still without determination. And tired as I was (and relieved to have the worst of the sensations dying down), I got to sleep almost immediately after that. THANKFULLY.

I slept restlessly (sheesh... no pun intended) with lots of dreams, but I slept, nonetheless. My RLS is not good this morning, either, but in a few minutes I'll be up from the computer and started on my day, so I won't notice it so much at least. Normally I don't put on Miracle II when I'm going to be on my feet (only when trying to watch TV with my husband or when I'm laying down to try to sleep. But if activity doesn't change things, I might try it again this morning. Can't hurt the symptoms... and it does make my skin nice, too.

And tonight, just in case, I'm going to retire my current bar of soap in the bed and replace it with a new one. I have nothing to lose.

Take care everyone.
A not-as-sleepy-as-she-might-have-been Sara

[Maggiet388]

Hi Sara, My name is Maggie and I have had RLS for a few years now but have just basically put up with it. Spent many nights walking around my house or watching TV standing up.

I am curious as to what Miracle II is for one thing and since I'm so new to this site, what is the deal with the soap in your bed????

I am open to any suggestions to stop the legs from having a mind of their own. Is Miracle II over the counter stuff??? Can't wait to hear from you...I sure hope your day is better than your night was!

Sincerely, Maggie

[Sara]

Hi, Maggie. Nice to hear from you. So sorry you also suffer with RLS, but glad you found us here, at least. There's some comfort in empathy, I find.

Another member, Becat, and I have discussed Miracle II before, but not in while, and I don't think that we used the name in the subject line, so it would be hard to find.

Miracle II is a line of products for health and household use. pH neutralizing is a major feature of them. There are liquids, gels, soaps, and lotions. I think that they also have a laundry "ball" for fabric softening? but I don't have that. The gel is the one that I use for my RLS. I've tried the lotion, but it doesn't seem to work as well for me. Not sure why, since the ingredients of all the products are very much the same. It might have to do with the level of concentration of ingredients, since the gel is the concentrated form of the liquid, for example.

I first used Miracle II at a friend's house, for insect bites and an abrasion I had when visiting. Our son also used it on a wound from being nipped by a dog. My friend warned me, and I'll mention to you, that the marketing for Miracle II can be a bit off-putting, because the man claims to have been given the formula by God. I can't comment on that... .it would be between him and God.

But whatever the inspiration for the product line, I'm impressed with it for a number of different uses... reducing itchiness, soothing burns and mouth sores, easing pain from abrasions, clarifying shampoo build-up out of hair, regulating digestion, taking the edge off my RLS, and more.

You can find the products in some health food stores (there's also a Master's Miracle line, I think the precursor to Miracle II perhaps, which seems to be in more stores, and it seems to work well, too, though I dont think I have tried that one on RLS specifically). But the people I know who use it all buy it through on-line resources. You can do a search for "Miracle II" and find lots of outlets for it, if you can't find it locally.

Putting soap in your bed is a strategy for easing RLS that many people feel is an "old wive's tale". It's often mentioned in newspaper and magazine "ask the doc" type columns, and many here have found it to be of no help. A few of us do do it, however, and since there is no NEGATIVE to it and it's hard to know what RLS you DON'T have, it seems like it's worth doing. Personally, I believe I sleep slightly better with soap in my bed. Who knows if that's accurate or why.

At any rate, the procedure (for lack of a better term) is terribly simple. You just put a hotel-sized bar of soap (I think Becat or someone uses several??? she's out of town, but maybe she'll tell us when she's home) on your mattress under your bottom sheet. Just plain soap, though there's one kind they say not to use (Dove or Ivory, maybe?). The small bar is only important so it doesn't drive you nuts. I am currently using some assorted natural guest soaps and they seem to be fine. (I don't travel in motels much, so I ran through my stash of those bars pretty quickly. )

You hang in there and try to take good care. My day's going much better than my night, thank you. But I've been very busy and mobile, so I'd be less likely to notice my daytime RLS anyway. I'm only hoping that my busy day won't worsen my RLS tonight. The GOOD news is that I need to take a warm bath before bed, and I'll probably be able to get to bed on-time. Regular bedtimes is something that helps me a lot, since my RLS is generally not as bad as many people's here. So, I'm hopeful tonight will be better. And if not, I'll just do the Miracle II again, and at least if it doesn't work as well, I won't be missing time with my husband if I have to get up.

Best--
Sara

[IanFraughton]

Hi Sara and Maggie,

Welcome from all of us Maggie, we like to coin the phrase " We're all in this boat together, lets take turns rowing". Guess its my turn, (((Sara))) and a cyberhug for you too (((Maggie))). Sorry to hear you had such a bad night but I was more impressed with your quick recovery and not letting you RLS take over. One of the things I have to do is remember that its my body and the mind sort of controls it so having a plan to quickly control or lessen the symptoms is definately something to work on. I will try to find Miracle II locally but if not I will have to do without as I don't have a credit card(not old enough yet ) and probably never will.lol

If I have a good sleeper I don't usually wake up long enough to worry about my RLS but if I don't I know I will wake up atleast 3-4 times a night for no reason(other than RLS) and eventually drift off into a dream like state for the last 3 hours and thats when I seem to get some sleep. Its almost like being awake but am sleeping too, which is weird because I can sometimes remember thinking about things but at the same time I know I'm asleep.

My symptoms haven't been too bad lately despite the constant bike riding, as I'm back on Calsium/Magnesuim with Vit D which seems to be working but I've also been self-prescribing drugs like valium, oxazapam and percocet to finally get a little bit of rest at night. I'm almost out of oxazapam and have a doc's appointment on Friday, should be interesting as he said Amitriptylene would be my last sleeper and there is nothing left to dx me.lol I have a list of drugs from my last RLS support group meeting so I will review this list with him and hopefully he will choose 3 sleepers and try each for 3 weeks at a time so I don't rebound and have to augment which is useless anyways because your just going to rebound again.

Will look up Mirapex so I know what it is and what it does so I know whether my doc is giving me b.s or not. Seems to be a lot of people on it and they say it works so I might as well try it and see for myself.

Hope you two have a great day and hang in there, we'll get through this eventually. If those docs would stop wasting time going to sleep and get to work on this problem they might get somewhere faster.

Peace

Ian

[Sara]

Hey, Ian... good point, if the docs and researchers weren't wasting all that time sleeping, we MIGHT be much closer to a cure! What selfishness! Don't they know that there are 24 hours a day for a reason? I sleep more than most of you, but over the years I've certainly made wakeful use of every one of those 24 hours at one time or another.

I'm also trying to remember to take a cal/mag supplement (but haven't in several days) because it could be beneficial for several different conditions I have. If I can get back into the habit of taking it, maybe I'll see some good results on RLS as well. (I hope.)

Glad you're feeling well and getting lots of exercise. With RLS, exercise IS a tricky balance. But lately I've not been getting as much sustained exercise as I should, and I miss it.

I found Master's Miracle in the tiny health food store in the town where I live, so look around. Either Master's Miracle or Miracle II would probably be worth buying a bottle of (get the neutralizer gel). If it doesn't take the edge off your RLS, you can use it for scrapes, bruises, burns, insect bites, etc.

Hugs back at you, Ian.

Sara

[IanFraughton]

Guess docs need their sleep so they can be bright-eyed and bushy tailed so they keep their consentration working on what must be one of the most confusing diseases their is, besides Lupus. I just get a "little" annoyed when docs say they understand what sleep deprivation is like as they often have to go without sleep for long periods and still have to function in a very stressfull environment. What ticks me off is when they finally get to go home to rest and sleep, they actually rest and sleep. I was musing about them staying up for days at a time so they could see what its really like for us. Then have them imagine a life-time of it....lol
But I'm sure they are doing everything in their power to come up with a cure for the future, I'm just hoping it hasn't taken a back seat for a treatment today.

I'll check around for that Miracle II product, hopefully one of the stores in this city has it. Would try about anything right now to get as much relief as possible during the evening so I can maybe go one night without being reminded about RLS.lol

Got a message from Brady yesterday. Will be talking to him on messenger tomorrow hopefully, if I can get the computer booked between 10-11am. He sent me a message before by messenger but I didn't realize it was him, I thought it was another cpl I met at a BC Dragoon recruitment meeting.lol Oh well, at least we get to keep in touch.

Peace

Ian