want help without medication, any suggestions?

[georger]

If you continue to have RLS, and want an over the counter med, I would check the Discussion boards and read about NADH. Also, someone else mentioned simple aspirin or ipubropen in the evening. Also I heard someone else mention Doan's pills!

I use NADH, which is a pill from the health food store and it works really well for me. But, you might try the other things first.


Sherry

[josiejo]

There are a few things you can try without resorting to medication. The first thing my doctor had me try was tonic water because is contains quinine. Some people notice improvement; some don't. You can also try massage. I have a homedic precussion massager and use it at night on my hips, bum and legs and it helps. Also a regular full-body massage helps - it relaxes the whole body and helps you to get to sleep. Exercise sometimes helps as well (and be sure to stretch and keep the muscles in your legs limber). I have also seen posts for compression stockings - they seem to help people as well. What I have found is it is trial and error to find what works for you.

Hope you find your answers

Joanne

[MBD]

I do the Calcium with Magnesium and Zinc, cut back on the coffee and include exercise.
Last August I found a juice that helps me. I'm not saying my RLS is totally gone, but the bouts are few and far between and MINIMAL.

[tracy1122]

[b]I first have to say that RLS is god-awful. I have bad back problems -- spinal stenosis, which causes me not to be able to walk long distances or stand long, as well as pain in my tailbone every time I sit too long or on hard surfaces. In addition, I also have trouble with leg cramps which affect my calves and feet to the point where I think my bones are going to break or my muscles will snap. I have had gastric bypass surgery and lost 130 lbs. and should be so much more active than I am, but the back problems are causing me tons of trouble.

I've seen probably four different doctors who all suggested that I start off with physical therapy, pain meds and muscle relaxers. I got addicted to the medications. I couldn't function without them and the doctor was getting concerned. I've taken myself off of everything. Within the last few months, I've finally figured out that a lot of the pain I was feeling in my legs was probably RLS and I also get the pain in my arms as well.

For the RLS, I've tried the showers, the hot baths, can't do the warm milk (lactose intollerant) and leg massages from my husband and sleeping pills. Nothing helps for long.

This week I started a new job in a law firm. The night before my first day, I had a terrible bout with RLS. I was up till 2:00 am. I even went out and bought some Nyquil because it makes me really sleepy and I was able to get some sleep last night, but I don't want to rely on a cold medicine for sleep, but I was desperate!

I had a chair massage today which is a free service that the law firm offers once a month. I've never had a professional massage before. The therapist suggested that I consult a chiropractor and that, along with massage, may give me relief from my back problems and RLS.

Any suggestions, thoughts or comments you might have would be greatly appreciated! Please help! [b][/b] [/b]

[ViewsAskew]

Hi Tracy, RLS can really suck, can't it? You are going through so much and it sounds like you really need some options! I hope the new job is going OK - that's a lot of stress and stress is a known aggravator of RLS.

In my opinion, the very best you can do is come here to this site and read, read, read! Doctors aren't as educated about RLS as they are other things, and they may not have the most current recommendations. We've found that the best way to get effective treatment is to help your doc through your own knowledge.

A good starting place is the New to RLS section, specifically the sticky posts. The first one lists many things you can do to help your RLS, many of them non-medical. It has links to many other sites with information you can take to your doctor. It also has information in other medications to avoid - many of us take things that worsen our RLS and if we stop them, the RLS gets better.

RLS can be brought on by spinal injury or surgery, so that may be how you ended up with it. If you can't manage the RLS with lifestyle changes, you may need to consider medication. There are many out there and the information in the sticky will provide links to help you assess if you need it and what might be best for you.

Ann

[tracy1122]

Ann,

Thank you VERY much for the information! I really don't know much of anything about RLS and I'm the type of person to research the heck out of something so I appreciate you pointing me in the right direction!

Take care....

Tracy

ps. I'm LOVING the job!

[DMC5259]

Wow, this is a great board - I'm really glad I found it!

I've had RLS as far back as I can remember and it was a relief to finally find out that it had a name. My daughter also has it - she never said anything because she didn't know how to describe it, but after seeing TV commercials she realized that's what it was. Possibly genetic?

Someone may have already posted about this (I haven't had time yet to read the whole board) so forgive me if this is redundant. The only non-prescription remedy I've found that actually helps is a product from Hyland's called "Leg Cramps" with quinine. It's a homeopathic formula and I've found it available at Walgreen's as well as bought it online. It comes in dissolvable sublingual tablets or regular tablets. These work for me almost every time.

I'm certainly going to make note of all the other suggestions I've found here and give them a try. I really don't want to resort to prescription medication if I can avoid it!

[MBD]

I would have never believed it, but this combination of berries really does help. Skeptic that I am, I didn't want to get into a hard sell, but was truly amazed.

It first helped my husband's leg cramps--so I thought I'd give it a try. I'm a believer!

And...yes I started recommending it to my friends for all sorts of ailments. especially those I knew with RLS. It takes about 2 weeks to notice, but things actually happen.

After trying so many things, this a truly wonderful.

[ViewsAskew]

lshcat, as a moderator I am removing your post from here; we are concerned that we should not be suggesting particular products to minors. I'm sure you'll understand.

[becat]

I second that and would only add that when someone is a minor the best advice is to talk to your parents and see your family doctor. There are many ways to deal with RLS that might not require medications.
As a parent, I wouldn't like anyone giving my kids medical advice even if it's natural.....that's my job.
Lynne/Becat
moderator

[tkgroup]

I've had RLS for about 2 years now. First I would take a warm to hot bath when my legs started up. In the beginning this helped. Gradually this stopped working. One night I ws in the bath 3 times. My doctor then prescriped Clonapin. This worked great for about 6 months, then my symptoms started again. Then he prescribed Vicodin along with iron tablets, he did some blood work and found out I was iron deficient. This treatment worked great for about 4-5 months. I thought my problem was solved. Gradually my symptoms came back so I tried ice packs. They too worked for about 2 months, then useless. Now I'm trying acupuncture. The doctor claims she's treated RLS patients sucessfully. I'll let you know how this works. It seems that various treatments work for a while, then loose their effect.

[kyanatasha]

Hello-
I had RLS on and off for several years, sometimes worse than others...but never thought it was anything "real". One day I mentioned in passing, to my doctor. He immediately replied "MAGNESIUM deficiency". I bought a liquid Calcium/Magnesium supplement and NEVER have any more symptoms of RLS- unless I stop taking it for a while and have been eating more unhealthy foods.
It's not a miracle, however, as magnesium is what makes our muscles RELAX. Calcium helps muscles contract. And while we may think we tend to get not enough calcium, it's more likely that we just don't absorb it well. Acidity can also influence this balance.
Hey! It's worth a shot!
Imagine how much money pharmaceutical companies can make by simply calling this a "syndrome"- and by not addressing the CAUSE(S)!
Give it a shot- but remember the quality of supplements REALLY varies, so don't just buy some cheap magnesium supplement from the regular grocery store. Ask a nutritionist or doctor (preferably one who undestands nutrition!).
Good luck!

[becat]

Hi Kyanatasha,
Well Where do I start. I mean i have tons to talk to you about and hopefully I won't offend you too much in the process, as We believe everyone has a right to voice their thoughts here.
First off, you copy and pasted the same message in four locations on the board, I will follow and do the same so that, just in case someone only comes here to read one thread. Second, you used the word CURE, sorry that smacks of nonsense to many around here since, CURE is not in our future just yet.
Third, I wonder where you read your information or what articles you've read that led you to believe that RLS is something that the Pharmaceutical companies made up as some syndrome, when in truth, Restless Legs Syndrome is a mostly genetically past chemical imbalance in the brain. RLS has been around and acknowledge far longer than any pharm company has even been in business. The Merek family would be the oldest and it was a drug store they bought, but did not mass product anything for many many years after the purchase of an apothecary store.
Fourth and you need to know....If you take calcium and magnesium at the same time, the calcium cancels out any effect of the magnesium. Calcium is natures calmer, it's what your muscles need to relax. Magnesium does have a few jobs in the body, the biggest being that this allows us to poop better, which I believe is a contraction of the colon. So for review, cal/mag, should not be taken at the same time of the day. Go ahead check it out, it's a new finding in the last year or so.
Your doctor might not know this as, many docs learn just about 2 hours of nutrition in med school. That would be more than 2 hours they have learned about RLS in most cases.
Oh, one other thing, vitamins don't need to be expensive at all to work well. Good, organic, vegetable base vitamins are just as good as the high end designer vitamins.
I don't mean to be rude, but your post is not factual and it smacks of a sales pitch.
_________________

[ViewsAskew]

Hello-
I
Imagine how much money pharmaceutical companies can make by simply calling this a "syndrome"- and by not addressing the CAUSE(S)!

Good luck!

I'll just add my two cents to Becat's. I'm really glad this worked for you. And, magnesium and or calcium do work for a limited number of people. Magnesium works for muscle cramps. Current thinking is that many of the people who take magnesium and find it works really has muscle cramps and not RLS.

Mostly, thought, I'm appalled that you would infer that this syndrome is not real. It is very real. The pharma's did not name it. It's been written about for hundreds of years. Long before there were any pharmacuetical companies. You infer that they did not address the cause. You are right. That is because they still don't know what the cause is. One thing is known. The cause is not a problem with magnesium or calcium. Part of the problem is in the substantia nigra and has to do both with iron and dopamine.

Hope your RLS stays gone for a long, long time.

[JudyH]

Get a leg massage machine. It's the only thing that works. Or even better, get someone who will faithfully massage your legs every night for 20 minutes. Either one.