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Weighted Blankets
Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2020 3:49 pm
by Debrasuzan
It has been awhile since I have been active on the RLS Discussion Board, but I am back. Recently I have been asked if a weighted blanket would help with night time RLS/PLMD. Does anyone have any experience or knowledge about this subject?
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 8:52 pm
by badnights
I have never committed the funds to buying one to find out, but I admit I have often wondered. I think sometimes it might help and sometimes it might drive me mad.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2020 2:02 am
by Polar Bear
I haven't seen enough to convince me that the high cost of a good weighted blanket was worth taking a chance.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2020 8:17 am
by Yankiwi
I think a weighted blanket would make my legs worse, as anything confining does.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2020 7:53 pm
by ViewsAskew
Yankiwi wrote:I think a weighted blanket would make my legs worse, as anything confining does.
I tend to agree. I don't even like the feel of fabric on my skin.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Mon Apr 20, 2020 7:57 pm
by Stainless
I would feel confined and my legs would go crazy. I know this going back 50 years when my RLS was a tiny fraction of what it is now.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Wed May 13, 2020 6:52 am
by MaryW
I use a weighted blanket and can’t sleep without it. It helps my plmd/rls immensely. I waited 3 years for a huge sale.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Wed May 13, 2020 9:53 am
by Polar Bear
Thank you MaryW. It's good to also hear from someone who has been helped by using a weighted blanket. Another example off what works for one doesn't necessarily work for another.
I hope It works for you for a long time.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2022 4:21 am
by karmamido
Newbie forum poster here ... user name is karmamido and (until the wind blows me away) I'm on the Central Coast of California, USA.
Wanted to "weigh in" on the topic here. I had never heard of these "weighted blankets" things in my life ... until about 6 months ago when my sister bought me one as a gift. This dude is heavy! That weight factor concerned me quite a bit. I left it sitting on the couch.
Flashforward a couple of days: My RLS was extremely bad, and hubby was NOT happy. I chose to go sleep out on the couch. That was the first night I tried out my new blanket. People, I tell ya, I slept for a full 2 HOURS! (For me, 2 hours is a miracle!) AND I even felt halfway decent when I woke.
I have used the blanket several (!) times when I have taken my legs on a walk out into the living room, and found the couch. I can't tell you what it is, but that weighted blanket turns into a "wet blanket" (joke) for my RLS. Thinking I should probably take a walk into the living room every night!
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2022 12:10 pm
by Polar Bear
Another success for a weighted blanket despite most of us cringing at the thought. Thank you for telling us.it is good to hear opinions.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Tue Nov 08, 2022 4:34 pm
by badnights
karmamido wrote: ↑Tue Nov 08, 2022 4:21 am
Newbie forum poster here ... user name is karmamido and (until the wind blows me away) I'm on the Central Coast of California, USA.
Wanted to "weigh in" on the topic here. I had never heard of these "weighted blankets" things in my life ... until about 6 months ago when my sister bought me one as a gift. This dude is heavy! That weight factor concerned me quite a bit. I left it sitting on the couch.
Flashforward a couple of days: My RLS was extremely bad, and hubby was NOT happy. I chose to go sleep out on the couch. That was the first night I tried out my new blanket. People, I tell ya, I slept for a full 2 HOURS! (For me, 2 hours is a miracle!) AND I even felt halfway decent when I woke.
I have used the blanket several (!) times when I have taken my legs on a walk out into the living room, and found the couch. I can't tell you what it is, but that weighted blanket turns into a "wet blanket" (joke) for my RLS. Thinking I should probably take a walk into the living room every night!
Ha ha that's awesome! I have two of them, I parked the heaviest one away in a closet cuz it was awkwardly heavy but I still have the lighter one on my couch, where I use it frequently. It's not a cure-all, but very helpful if the legs aren't too bad already, like, if they're just thinking about it.
Are you on any medications? It sounds like your sleep is very disrupted.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2023 1:46 am
by nomoboh
I did try a weighted blanket my daughter lent me a few years ago. My impression is that it made it worse at the time.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2023 10:23 pm
by purpleamaru
I have been using one for the last 6 months or so, I keep it in the spare bedroom bed so not to disturb my husband if I'm tossing and turning. I have to say often its the one thing that works to settle my nervous system and i can fall asleep after that usually. My RL has decreased in intensity quite a bit since i started acupuncture every 2 weeks; its been a couple months now; I've had RL for over 20 yrs now so this has been a very nice transition
And i have to say as well, when my husband first suggested it last yr i almost pushed him over with my emphatic no lol. The pure idea of it gave me anxiety. But after a transition time of about a week, now i cant imagine not having it in my life. I find it very safe and comforting, which i realized is very much connected to why my nervous system is so disregulated in the first place, contributing to my RL .
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2023 4:32 am
by TimG
I never thought much about a weighted blanket until I got a torn right shoulder rotator cuff. I move around a lot at night, in addition to RLS, and any time I'd shift to my right side, the pain from pressure on my shoulder would eventually wake me up. My reasoning was that a weighted blanket would keep me in a position and prevent so much tossing and turning during sleep. It has worked well for me in the few months I've had it. I found a good one on sale--15 lbs recommended for my weight. It works well and helps keeps me in the same relative position throughout the night.
Re: Weighted Blankets
Posted: Thu Dec 21, 2023 3:08 am
by TimG
Let me weigh in with an update on my weighted blanket experience. I really like it and the way it holds me in place at night. I still get occasional middle-of-the-night episodes of restless legs, in which case I get up and walk around for awhile. I am leary of exceeding the 0.125 mg daily dose of pramipexole, which has been low enough to prevent augmentation for 11 years now.