Please share your experiences, successes, and failures in using non-drug therapies for RLS/WED (methods of relief that don't involve swallowing or injecting anything), including compression, heat, light, stretches, acupuncture, etc. Also under this heading, medical interventions that don't involve the administration of a medicine to the body (eg. varicose-vein operations, deep-brain stimulation). [This forum contains Topics started prior to 2009 that deal with Non-prescription Medicines, Supplements, & Diet.]
Basically says that L-theanine has recently been shown to help with RLS. More interesting to me (since my RLS has long since passed the "cure" with anything phase), is that this says L-theanine helps with deep sleep.
I didn't check out this blog at all to see if anything on it is valid, so please don't kill me if it's selling salt cures, lol.
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Yes, I was using "Targeted Amino Acid Threapy" and I was getting good results, but recently I started tapering off them and am experiencing terrible RLS symptoms again.
Ironically, one of the two that I'm still taking (I was on four different supplements) at bedtime contains L-theanine however it does not seem to be working since I stopped taking my daytime supplements. This is exactly what happened the last time I stopped taking the supplements, looks like I need to stay on them.
Edit: The article also mentions tyrosine, this is an ingredient (actually N-acetyl tyrosine) in the two supplements that I stopped taking. Perhaps it's the combination of tyrosine and L- theanine that works. I may try adding tyrosine back into my daily supplements and see if it helps.
I had to laugh at the suggestion in the article that you should have your "doctor" analyze your blood and urine to detect amino acid deficiencies. Good luck finding a PCP who has even heard of this. I had to see a Naturopath to get a test like this done. They do urine and saliva tests (not blood) because blood levels are not as reliable in dectecting neurotransmitter levels.
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Yes I was taking both but at different times of the day.
L-theanine is reported to provide a calming effect, it's in my bedtime supplement.
tyrosine or N-acetyltyrosine (along with mucana pruriens) is in the daytime supplement I was on and supports dopamine and catecholamine (epinephrine or adrenaline and nor-epinephrine) levels. I think this part of the therapy is the key to my success since it's when I run out of this one that I run into trouble.
Just for kicks (pun intended) I'm going to try the daytime supplement without the L-theanine night time supplement to see if it works alone, since I already know that the night time supplement does not work alone.
I'm also doing a trial with natural progesterone cream to see if that helps. I am most definately in pre-menopause and suspect estrogen dominance (more estrogen than progesterone).
As always I'm trying multiple things at the same time making it hard to figure out what's working. When I get it all sorted out I'll let you know.
