Help - new to board
Mirapex
I went to the Dr. yesterday - good thing is - his mother in law suffers from it so he is aware of the problems. He was impressed with everything I knew and all the information that I brought in. He said he wanted to try one thing at a time so we know what works and what doesn't. He put me on Mirapex. Said I could take .25mg before bed and during the day when I need it. I took it when I got home because I was having a miserable day. About 15 minutes after taking it I felt "weird" hard to explain - kindof dizzy - kindof sick to my stomach - and almost a little like an anxiety attack. I ate something and it passed. I took another .25mg at 9:00 went to bed. Though I only slept about 3 hours my legs were still most of the night. It was almost wierd when I was moving my legs and then realizing I didn't have to - I guess it is like a bad habit. I hope this works and it just isn't in my head because I want something to work so bad. The bad news is I still couldn't sleep - not sure if it is the Mirapex or if I am so exhausted my body is just fighting the sleep. Every day I get more and more wiped out and I don't know what to do. I tried explaining this to my boyfriend this morning and he said what are you talking about you slept 9 hours last night. I don't think he gets that just because he is sleeping does not mean that I am and just because I am in bed means I am sleeping most of the time I am just laying there. I know this is terrible but I wish he could understand what it feels like - I think I might wake him up everytime I can't sleep and make him stay awake with me.
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ViewsAskew
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Another thing you could do is simply keep a log - I used to do that. I would put a tally mark each time I was awake. If I was up for awhile, I'd write how long I was awake. Usually, at that time, I'd go right back to sleep. My record was thirty something tallies - these were when I got out of bed, not just slightly awakened and rolled over.
That seemed pretty impressive to my doctor and those who were disbelievers.
Per the Mirapex, you CAN cut that dose in half - it might make the side effects more tolerable until you get used to it. Doctor Buchfurer recommends starting Mirapex at .125 mg doses. Then increasing ONLY if the symptoms do not stop. I am not a doc, just passing along what I've read. . .and what I experienced. .25 was too much for me at first. I had hallucinations, disrupted sleep (like you, I didn't sleep much at all my first couple nights). Then I read the Southern Cal. RLS Support Group site where Dr B said to use smaller doses. I cut back and all was fine. I did increase to .25 in about a week.
When I went back to my neuro and told him I'd done that, he seemed very surprised. He said I must be very senstive. Well, my guess is that I'm not all that sensitive but that neuros compare it to Parkinson's Disease - they are so dopamine deprived that they can start with larger doses. But, we are not so much deprived as getting it at the wrong time. Starting with large doses doesn't make sense.
So, again, just my opinion and experience - take it for what it's worth.
That seemed pretty impressive to my doctor and those who were disbelievers.
Per the Mirapex, you CAN cut that dose in half - it might make the side effects more tolerable until you get used to it. Doctor Buchfurer recommends starting Mirapex at .125 mg doses. Then increasing ONLY if the symptoms do not stop. I am not a doc, just passing along what I've read. . .and what I experienced. .25 was too much for me at first. I had hallucinations, disrupted sleep (like you, I didn't sleep much at all my first couple nights). Then I read the Southern Cal. RLS Support Group site where Dr B said to use smaller doses. I cut back and all was fine. I did increase to .25 in about a week.
When I went back to my neuro and told him I'd done that, he seemed very surprised. He said I must be very senstive. Well, my guess is that I'm not all that sensitive but that neuros compare it to Parkinson's Disease - they are so dopamine deprived that they can start with larger doses. But, we are not so much deprived as getting it at the wrong time. Starting with large doses doesn't make sense.
So, again, just my opinion and experience - take it for what it's worth.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Thanks, Ann....You are a terrific help and so glad you are part of this board. My Dr. did mention that I could cut the dose in half but he said he usually only starts his elderly patients out on that small of a small dose - but maybe that would work better - I am going to try it. Also thanks for the idea of keeping track of when I am awake - I have thought about doing it but now hearing it come from someone else it is a really good idea.
Mirapex side effects
My Dr. put me on Mirapex 2 weeks ago. I was having side effects sweating like crazy - cold sweats at night. Bad abdominal pains. It helped my legs but I was awake all night suffering from the rest - I stopped taking it last Thursday legs were good for a couple of days by now it is back with a vengance. I have a half and hour commute to and from work and yesterday I thought I would get into an accident because my legs were so bad. I called and he is going to try me on Requip - I am scared to take it because I am worried that the same things will happen. Has anyone changed from Mirapex to requip because of side effects?