Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Discussion Board

Hi again,
I got off requip successfully but still on klonopin & plan to taper off that too. RLS has been more manageable but it’s recently gotten worse as I’ve increased a supplement that acts as an SSRI (methylene blue). My dilemma is having RLS & a mood disorder to which I can’t take an SSRI & need an alternative med to alleviate this painful depression I’m in.
I have bipolar II and was successfully treated w/ Prozac & lamictal, but since getting off prozac due to RLS my mood has been pretty unmanageable. My question is this:
What other psychiatric meds can be helpful in place of an SSRI for a mood disorder? I’ve tried Wellbutrin & it made panic attacks worse and was taken off. Any antipsychotic meds that don’t cause weight gain that may be helpful?
Thx
Ali

Ali, if Wellbutrin didn't work, then you are pretty much stuck. The RLS experts say that it is more important to treat your mood disorder first and then to treat the RLS that the antidepressants or other drugs produce. If this means having to take a daily opioid for the rest of your life, so be it. The point that they made was that mood disorders can kill (via suicide) whereas RLS just makes life miserable. Recent research has shown that RLS also can cause people to resort to suicide, so it is important to treat BOTH conditions and that your two sets of doctors communicate with each other.

If you are in the New England area, there are two RLS Quality Centers where the lead doctor is also a psychiatrist. The two centers are Mass General Boston (Dr Winkleman) and Yale (Dr Koo) in New Haven.