day/night reversal

AuroraDelongpre · Post by **AuroraDelongpre** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 3:43 pm

I'm new so apologize if this is a repeated question about RLS. I was allergic to requip and haven't had any other success at remedies. I became so exhausted from lack of sleep that I found myself napping daily on a regular basis. So I decided to start keeping busy all night and then sleep during the day and so far it has worked. It seems that my legs quiet down with daybreak. I can sleep for several hours peacefully and feel a million times better physically and emotionally. My fear is that this won't last and I won't be able to sleep night or day........major anxiety here..........has anyone got any feedback on this saga? Thanks in advance

Aurora

Post by **ViewsAskew** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 3:51 pm

Hi Aurora,

Welcome to the group.

Interesting question. We know that RLS is related to our circadian rhythm. And, we know that most of sleep well at the same time you are having luck sleeping. We know that the faulty production of dopamine is involved.

What we don't know is if your body will eventually just reset its clock.

I have done what you are doing for short periods - never straight for months at a time. I read - several years ago - that is was a strategy for coping. In a way, my grandmother did it her whole life (she didn't get appropriate treatement until her seventies, and by then it was 24/7 and didn't ever get better). But, she always got up by 10 in the morning or so, never really completely sleeping 8 hours.

I mentioned it to one of the RLS researchers last year - that I always had this as an option if the meds didn't work (I was joking). He said that it wouldn't work - that my body would reset itself.

So, now, I don't know! I read it would, then was told it wouldn't. Maybe the catch is that you can't ever really adjust - you have to get up earlier than a full 8 hours and you have to go to bed earlier at times. I'm just conjecturing. . .

AuroraDelongpre · Post by **AuroraDelongpre** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 5:35 pm

It's just like being on the graveyard shift except I stay with it 7 days a week with no weekend off. With stores being open all night, online shopping, and a vcr to tape daytime tv I have a pretty normal go of it. It's better than driving myself crazy fighting a losing battle against sleep deprivation. RLS sucked the quality right out of my life. I never knew a night could be so long.

Post by **ViewsAskew** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 7:00 pm

Amen to how long the night can be!

How long have you been doing it?

AuroraDelongpre · Post by **AuroraDelongpre** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 8:11 pm

doing it about 6 months now

Neco · Post by **Neco** » Tue Jul 03, 2007 8:22 pm

I think I saw Dr. B mention this in his e-mail logs somewhere, and I believe he said your body would eventually get used to this and flip around, so you would again have to sleep at night instead of the daytime.

At any rate, it makes sense, and when I was younger and had just dropped out of school I used to pull all nighters as well, but then found I was sleeping at night again after a while for no reason, and vice versa.

pricetag · Post by **pricetag** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 3:35 am

Hi, I thought the same thing! I finally can drift off toward morning. The only problem is I have to go to work. I have thought seriously about quitting my job and finding something at night and just try to arrange my life to how RLS would like it to be, you know, giving in so to speak to have some rest!

I agree, there's a lot you can do at night. Too bad the vacuum cleaner would wake everybody up!

Sojourner · Post by **Sojourner** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 9:47 am

Saw my sleep doc recently and posed the question to him. He stated that the rls would not follow the sleep pattern. I also have heard differing opinions and wonder if there is a truth or if it is another of the "we are all different" kinds of things. I currently used the "grave yard shift" approach as, right now, I don't seem to have much choice. If I thought this could be somewhat permanent relief I probably would change my life to conform. If anyone knows of a definitive piece of research on the topic I, and I'm sure many others would be very interested in reading it.

AuroraDelongpre · Post by **AuroraDelongpre** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 2:18 pm

It has been nearly two months since I originally started this thread and as an update I can say that I am still successful at not having any RLS problems if I sleep between 5 am and 6 pm. Thanks to the others who have posted and I hope you too will keep updating so we can help each other get on top of this horrible RLS.

Post by **ViewsAskew** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 4:27 pm

Thank you for keeping us updated. I wish, oh how I wish, I could just let go of the want to keep "normal" hours. It would be true joy to sleep when my BODY wants to sleep and to have a good sleep in that time frame.

Sojourner · Post by **Sojourner** » Thu Aug 23, 2007 4:27 am

My nemesis at present, and I guess forever, is PLMD. I wonder if the "grave yard shift" approach will be simialr for that in the long term as it is for rls (assuming that rls & plmd are truly distinct manifestations.

I also think I need to review some theory about rls/plm and the dopamine explanations. If we (us, me) suffer from an inability to produce dopamine and that is what causes the rls/plmd then why are we (us,me) able to sleep on the grave yard shift (gys)? Does our body begin producing dopamine all of a sudden. I know the circadian rhythm is involved in all of this but I guess just when I thought I understood I'm beginning to think I don't. Have to get Dr. B's book out again and maybe read some older posts. I'm so confused! :lol:

Sojourner · Post by **Sojourner** » Thu Aug 23, 2007 4:37 am

AD, Meant to ask in the last post. Are you getting the the "gys" relief and good sleep without the use of any medications. Certainly that would be another plus to making the lifestyle change. Also, if your body does reset what does that mean? Will you then be able to sleep during normal night hours and not during the early morning/daytime hours. If you "reset" does that mean you permanently will lose your ability to sleep during the early morning/daytime hours without the rls/plmd? Mmmmmm.

Anyway, I think this thread is definitely tantilizing and teasing in terms of hope or a possible alternative for those who are able to use the daytime hours for sleep. I hope others will periodically keep this post alive with updates or additional information.

Currently waiting for 5 a.m.

Post by **ViewsAskew** » Thu Aug 23, 2007 7:05 am

Mark, to answer the dopamine question, YES, we do produce it. The docs explained to me that is isn't that we don't produce it, we produce it at the wrong time. It's a regulation issue. I wrote about it a couple of years ago after I went to the conference and they explained it.

The basic is that our dopamine thermostat gets stuck - it says we have lots of it, so it doesn't make any more. At about 2-4 AM, it unsticks and the body realizes we have none, so it floods our bodies with it. Then we sleep blissfully. The guage sticks again after it floods, and this repeats every day. So, a bit of dopamine at 8-10 PM can give us the dopamine we need to get to sleep. Some of us need more than others.

AuroraDelongpre · Post by **AuroraDelongpre** » Thu Aug 23, 2007 8:58 am

In reply to the meds question, no I do not use any sleep aids. I do take vitamins, extra calcium, and a blood pressure med. I remember reading somewhere that the atmospheric pressure changes with the dawn adding to the effect of being drowsey and relaxed and a study showed a definate increase in auto accidents involving reports of people falling asleep that occured within an hour of that time period. This made me realize there are so many things that affect us that I'm not even aware of. I read it a long time ago and can't find it now. I'm willing to look at, consider, and hopefully learn anything I can that may be a piece to this puzzle. Please keep posting everyone..................

Post by **Polar Bear** » Thu Aug 23, 2007 10:43 am

regarding dopamine thermostat getting stuck and then flooding to provide sleep, what is happening when rls is pretty much 24/7.
Ta.

Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Discussion Board

day/night reversal

day/night reversal

it works for me too