Currious to hear how all of you are doing that are currently taking requip.
My son, 15 years old, was just diagnosied with RLS after the gamot of test that you do to eliminate everything else; eeg, cat scan, x-rays, blood tests (no iron, calcium or mag defficieny found).
He has had nightime symptom since about age 12, worsening in the last six months and spilling over in to the day. At night, he has what appear to be seizures (but are not as per the eeg). When he is awake the "seizures" are not as bad but he complains of VERY severe pain in his right knee. He fits all the criteria for RLS except the complain of extreme pain is not that common from what I can tell.
Here is the kicker, he drives race cars. Now that he is having day time symptoms where he his leg and arms go into spasms we are wondering if he will have to forgo his choosen career.
He was given requip once before but .25 to be taken at bed time - obviously that was not the right way to prescribe it and it had no effect.
Our doctor did a lot of research on RLS and has now prescribed
.25 three times per day, morning, after school, bed time.
.5 three times per day the second week
.75 three times per day the third week
1.0 three times per day the fourth week
We are on day three and no results so far. Here are my questions:
1. Is it true that RLS rarely occurs when your mind is very active. He has never had a "fit" while racing and I wonder if it is because he is so focused.
2. How long does it take for you to see requip start to take effect. At what point should we give up and switch meds.
3. Do you find that the better quality of sleep you have at night, your more alert state during the day prevents day time episodes. (This is my theory - if you are not sleeping at night and are tired and relaxed during the day- you have more day time epidoses.)
4. What tricks are there for preventing day time episodes? It seems that talking or humming helps prevent epidodes during the day.
5. How much does avoiding caffine and salt benefit symptoms.
Requip and other questions
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umpwidow
Hi there,
I saw that your post hadn't gotten much attention and wanted to offer you what I've experienced and try to answer your questions as they apply to me.
I'm also on requip. I take 1mg/day and that has had a good affect on my RLS. I didn't feel anything until about .5mg. I still need a benzodiazapine (I take tranxene) at night to keep my sleeping patterns regular, and to ward off the pain. I no longer have the daytime symptoms that you've described your son has. The requip took care of that rather quickly. I've been on it since february 9.
Now your questions:
1. Is it true that RLS rarely occurs when your mind is very active. He has never had a "fit" while racing and I wonder if it is because he is so focused.
When my RLS was at its worst, it didn't seem to matter what my mind was doing. If I can be more physically active in the daytime, then my RLS is generally better at night.
2. How long does it take for you to see requip start to take effect. At what point should we give up and switch meds.
Don't give up until he's been on the 1mg at least a month. And even then, my neurologist has indicated that upping it from there is perfectly fine. I've got one of the top neurologists in the US and he's convinced that Requip is the drug of choice for RLS. Of course he's a neurologist and not a sleep disorder specialist. I play with my dosage because it does have side effects. It can upset your stomach. My stomach usually tells me what dose I need. I find that when my legs get worse, the drug doesn't upset my stomach. When it starts upsetting it again, I back off on the dose until my legs start giving me trouble.
3. Do you find that the better quality of sleep you have at night, your more alert state during the day prevents day time episodes. (This is my theory - if you are not sleeping at night and are tired and relaxed during the day- you have more day time epidoses.)
Sleep has a lot to do with everything. Sleep deprivation causes a lot of problems. I'm still not conviced that my "daytime episodes" weren't mere sleep deprivation. Once the requip got to the right dose and I was sleeping better, my daytime episodes stopped.
4. What tricks are there for preventing day time episodes? It seems that talking or humming helps prevent epidodes during the day.
I move all day long. That has seemed to be the most effective trick for me. I'm a degreed accountant. Well, sitting at a desk all day doesn't go over very well for me. I probably would have been better off being a dog walker or hairdresser. Certainly a consideration when your son is deciding what career to get into.
5. How much does avoiding caffine and salt benefit symptoms.
I quit all caffine (except for the occasional decaf or chocolate). It's a huge offender with RLS. I feel soooooo much better without the caffiene. I sleep better and I rise better.
Hope this answers some of your questions. I'm no doctor. These are just my experiences.
Good Luck to you and your son.
Jamie
I saw that your post hadn't gotten much attention and wanted to offer you what I've experienced and try to answer your questions as they apply to me.
I'm also on requip. I take 1mg/day and that has had a good affect on my RLS. I didn't feel anything until about .5mg. I still need a benzodiazapine (I take tranxene) at night to keep my sleeping patterns regular, and to ward off the pain. I no longer have the daytime symptoms that you've described your son has. The requip took care of that rather quickly. I've been on it since february 9.
Now your questions:
1. Is it true that RLS rarely occurs when your mind is very active. He has never had a "fit" while racing and I wonder if it is because he is so focused.
When my RLS was at its worst, it didn't seem to matter what my mind was doing. If I can be more physically active in the daytime, then my RLS is generally better at night.
2. How long does it take for you to see requip start to take effect. At what point should we give up and switch meds.
Don't give up until he's been on the 1mg at least a month. And even then, my neurologist has indicated that upping it from there is perfectly fine. I've got one of the top neurologists in the US and he's convinced that Requip is the drug of choice for RLS. Of course he's a neurologist and not a sleep disorder specialist. I play with my dosage because it does have side effects. It can upset your stomach. My stomach usually tells me what dose I need. I find that when my legs get worse, the drug doesn't upset my stomach. When it starts upsetting it again, I back off on the dose until my legs start giving me trouble.
3. Do you find that the better quality of sleep you have at night, your more alert state during the day prevents day time episodes. (This is my theory - if you are not sleeping at night and are tired and relaxed during the day- you have more day time epidoses.)
Sleep has a lot to do with everything. Sleep deprivation causes a lot of problems. I'm still not conviced that my "daytime episodes" weren't mere sleep deprivation. Once the requip got to the right dose and I was sleeping better, my daytime episodes stopped.
4. What tricks are there for preventing day time episodes? It seems that talking or humming helps prevent epidodes during the day.
I move all day long. That has seemed to be the most effective trick for me. I'm a degreed accountant. Well, sitting at a desk all day doesn't go over very well for me. I probably would have been better off being a dog walker or hairdresser. Certainly a consideration when your son is deciding what career to get into.
5. How much does avoiding caffine and salt benefit symptoms.
I quit all caffine (except for the occasional decaf or chocolate). It's a huge offender with RLS. I feel soooooo much better without the caffiene. I sleep better and I rise better.
Hope this answers some of your questions. I'm no doctor. These are just my experiences.
Good Luck to you and your son.
Jamie
re: Requip
I have been taking Requip (.05 mg) for over 7 years. I try to take it before my last meal or before bed. Sometimes I only have to take one but most of the time it's one in the evening and one at bedtime. I, also, take Clonazepam (1 mg.) to help me sleep.
I don't like having to take prescriptions so I have just started trying a more natural way to treat it. I take 1 oz 3 times a day of Mangosteen Juice. I started a month ago. The juice is a botanical from SE Asia with over 130 proven medical benefits. The research doctor, J. Frederick Templeman, said many people have been having good results with RLS. It does take at least three months to see the results but it also has many other health benefits so I plan on taking it anyhow. I, also, am taking a Whole Food Energizer Multi-Vitamin. My hope is that I can go off my medication in a couple more months.
If you want more information about the juice visit: www.gatesforhealth.com
I don't like having to take prescriptions so I have just started trying a more natural way to treat it. I take 1 oz 3 times a day of Mangosteen Juice. I started a month ago. The juice is a botanical from SE Asia with over 130 proven medical benefits. The research doctor, J. Frederick Templeman, said many people have been having good results with RLS. It does take at least three months to see the results but it also has many other health benefits so I plan on taking it anyhow. I, also, am taking a Whole Food Energizer Multi-Vitamin. My hope is that I can go off my medication in a couple more months.
If you want more information about the juice visit: www.gatesforhealth.com
Debby