Ramelteon

[kgmoore2187]

Hello- I've had severe RLS for years but with iron therapy and gabapentin, it is mostly under control as long as I don't have any caffeine and stay active. I've been working with my new primary care provider to find a medication to treat my anxiety/depression. I tried Wellbutrin which was a disaster— it gave me WILD insomnia. I didn't sleep for 6 days straight. Then we tried trazodone, which also gave me insomnia (not as bad as the Wellbutrin, but bad enough that it would take 2-3 hours to fall asleep). My doctor is extremely resistant to prescribing Ativan or clonazepam, even though I have taken both sparingly for anxiety in the past (my anxiety tends to be worse at night).

What my doctor says is his last idea is Ramelteon, which appears to mostly be prescribed for insomnia, but also sometimes anxiety. I am concerned about this because it is a synthetic form of melatonin and acts similarly, and I know melatonin is a no go for RLS. Has anyone tried Ramelteon and had good experiences or vice versa?

[Polar Bear]

I have not tried Ramelteon. Melatonin does have a reputation as being no-go for sufferers of rls however I understand that it does work for some with no ill effects.
Many years ago I asked my doctor for help regarding insomnia after trying several of the usual prescribed sleep medications that did not help. He was quite insistent that I did a 13 week course of melatonin (before he would refer me to a sleep clinic). I wasn't happy about this but did so and cannot say that it affected me one way or the other, it certainly didn't help with my sleep.
If Ramelteon is your doctor's last option it may be worth trying it. At the very least if it does not help then you will know.

Insomnia is now considered to be a part of the rls disease.
Also regarding medications, we must always rmember that what works for one does not always work for another.

Just to add that when I did eventually have an overnight sleep assessment I was found to have moderate sleep apnea. Wearing the resultant cpap mask and treating my sleep apnea helped greatly helped.

[Rustsmith]

Finally, someone else who had that reaction to Wellbutrin. I took two pills and couldn't even sit down for the next six days. My doctor finally ended up doubling the dose of all the RLS meds for a while (I take three) I was taking so as to allow me to return to normal.

I tried all of the hypnotics (including Ramelteon when it first came out) and none of them seemed to do anything for me except for Lunesta, which helped but didn't completely solve my problems. Gabapentin is the only thing that helps me get to sleep other than THC (which is legal where I live).