Thoughts, do I even have RLS?
Posted: Fri Oct 07, 2022 3:12 pm
Hello everyone, I am very concerned with some symptoms I’ve been having here of late, and would love some opinions on if I even have RLS because some other folks have told me they don’t think so.
In early 2020 I got severe anxiety symptoms, so my doctor got me on Zoloft. Well after a couple months, it was making me feel like a zombie so I decided I wanted to try to wean off. Following my doctors instructions, I weaned my self off. As I did this though, I got INTENSE restless symptoms in both my arms and legs, immediately. The urge to move and stretch was crazy. And it was all day long, not just at night. The symptoms were not worsened at night either, it was just a morning to night, all day strong symptom. I convinced myself it was withdrawal and tried to live with it until it went away. Well after about a month, it was unbearable, so I spoke with my doctor and he put me on Duloxetine to help with my anxiety about it.
The duloxetine did not worsen the symptoms, and actually ended up helping me with my anxiety and depression about it. The symptoms never went away, I just learned to deal with them. I stayed on duloxetine for about a year, before deciding to have my doctor help wean me off in October of 2021, because I felt mentally stable, and was in a good place.
Again, the strong restless symptoms never went away. They are strong from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to sleep. Every single day.
The past year has been overall really good, though there have been some major changes going on. I got married to my beautiful wife, graduated college, returned to college to go for a second bachelors degree, and my grandfather recently passed away. But overall, my mental health had been stable. And have had no problems functioning or sleeping with these restless urges.
Well I just turned 22 this year, in August. About 2 weeks after my birthday, in early September, I was having this weird sensation in the back of my head. It was like my brain was being constantly tickled, and I noticed I had some small sensitivity to light. So I figured it was a weird headache. I took a Tylenol and ignored it and went on about my day. Well after two more days with that sensation, I started really freaking out. (I have terrible anxiety, and when something feels unnatural, I tend to spiral and freak out bad.). I went to the ER, they took a ct scan, and it showed that there was no fluid or mass, so they requested I make a neurologist appointment. So that’s what I did, I got a neurologist scheduled.
The next day, I woke up with my arms and legs burning terribly. Like it actually felt like they were completely burning. The tickling feeling that was giving me so much anxiety, started moving to other places though. It was moving to my jaw, my neck, my chest, my abdomen, my genitals, my anus, literally it was jumping place to place, scaring me terribly. My lips and tongue felt like they were burning too. I have noticed the bottom of my feet and the palms of my hands getting hot too. At this point, I completely spiraled mentally because I thought something was terribly wrong with me.
I emergently saw my personal doctor. He put me back on duloxetine to help with my anxiety and depression. He said he honestly isn’t sure why I could be having all these sensations, and wanted to wait until the neurologist saw me to have a follow up appointment.
Well finally after almost a month of waiting and freaking out. I saw the neurologist yesterday. He spent about 2 minutes checking me out, and then prescribed me a medicine for headaches (which was t even my main concern). And ordered an mri to be done, which could take another month to get done. And after the mri, he wants to follow up with me again.
I am now waiting for a follow up appointment with my personal doctor this next week. But I am not sure what this is. For the longest time I thought I had RLS. Now with all the symptoms I’m having, and at the age I’m at (22) I feel like I would have to be the most severe, most rare case I’ve ever heard of. So I’m wondering if I have RLS or something else completely.
In early 2020 I got severe anxiety symptoms, so my doctor got me on Zoloft. Well after a couple months, it was making me feel like a zombie so I decided I wanted to try to wean off. Following my doctors instructions, I weaned my self off. As I did this though, I got INTENSE restless symptoms in both my arms and legs, immediately. The urge to move and stretch was crazy. And it was all day long, not just at night. The symptoms were not worsened at night either, it was just a morning to night, all day strong symptom. I convinced myself it was withdrawal and tried to live with it until it went away. Well after about a month, it was unbearable, so I spoke with my doctor and he put me on Duloxetine to help with my anxiety about it.
The duloxetine did not worsen the symptoms, and actually ended up helping me with my anxiety and depression about it. The symptoms never went away, I just learned to deal with them. I stayed on duloxetine for about a year, before deciding to have my doctor help wean me off in October of 2021, because I felt mentally stable, and was in a good place.
Again, the strong restless symptoms never went away. They are strong from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to sleep. Every single day.
The past year has been overall really good, though there have been some major changes going on. I got married to my beautiful wife, graduated college, returned to college to go for a second bachelors degree, and my grandfather recently passed away. But overall, my mental health had been stable. And have had no problems functioning or sleeping with these restless urges.
Well I just turned 22 this year, in August. About 2 weeks after my birthday, in early September, I was having this weird sensation in the back of my head. It was like my brain was being constantly tickled, and I noticed I had some small sensitivity to light. So I figured it was a weird headache. I took a Tylenol and ignored it and went on about my day. Well after two more days with that sensation, I started really freaking out. (I have terrible anxiety, and when something feels unnatural, I tend to spiral and freak out bad.). I went to the ER, they took a ct scan, and it showed that there was no fluid or mass, so they requested I make a neurologist appointment. So that’s what I did, I got a neurologist scheduled.
The next day, I woke up with my arms and legs burning terribly. Like it actually felt like they were completely burning. The tickling feeling that was giving me so much anxiety, started moving to other places though. It was moving to my jaw, my neck, my chest, my abdomen, my genitals, my anus, literally it was jumping place to place, scaring me terribly. My lips and tongue felt like they were burning too. I have noticed the bottom of my feet and the palms of my hands getting hot too. At this point, I completely spiraled mentally because I thought something was terribly wrong with me.
I emergently saw my personal doctor. He put me back on duloxetine to help with my anxiety and depression. He said he honestly isn’t sure why I could be having all these sensations, and wanted to wait until the neurologist saw me to have a follow up appointment.
Well finally after almost a month of waiting and freaking out. I saw the neurologist yesterday. He spent about 2 minutes checking me out, and then prescribed me a medicine for headaches (which was t even my main concern). And ordered an mri to be done, which could take another month to get done. And after the mri, he wants to follow up with me again.
I am now waiting for a follow up appointment with my personal doctor this next week. But I am not sure what this is. For the longest time I thought I had RLS. Now with all the symptoms I’m having, and at the age I’m at (22) I feel like I would have to be the most severe, most rare case I’ve ever heard of. So I’m wondering if I have RLS or something else completely.