New Sensation

KBear · Post by **KBear** » Thu Jun 05, 2008 3:53 pm

I've been doing battle with what most of us commonly know as the "creepy crawlies" for a few weeks now, this is not my "normal"version of RLS which is usually just the urge to move, pulling sensation, and hot feet.

The odd thing about this new sensation is that it's not confined to my legs in fact it's not even primarily on my legs. I randomly get tickling or "bug on my skin" (not under my skin) feelings just about anywhere on my body; back, neck, shoulder, arm, head, ear, nose, every few seconds. It's like the nerve endings have become ultra sensitive to anything touching my skin; clothing, hair, even wind. I love my ceiling fan but I think its contributing to the problem.

Does anyone else experince the creepy crawly sensations like this? I'm just so "itchy" but there is no rash and most of the time there is nothing there to explain the itch at least nothing that would cause an itch under normal circumstances (hair, clothing, sheets, etc.)

I'm relying on the Ambien to sleep at night more often then I was a few months ago and I'm out of refills so when this script runs out it means another chat with the doctor. Not sure what I should do next. I'm using the Ambien pretty much every other night sometimes I'll go two nights in a row without it. It still helps most of the time and I like that I'm not groggy in the morning.

Post by **ViewsAskew** » Thu Jun 05, 2008 7:36 pm

YES YES YES

Oooooo I hate that. Lynne gets it too, as I've seen her write about it.

I have no clue if it's part of RLS or not. I just know that when it first started (I was a teen), I thought I must have fleas or something. Thankfully, no bugs, but the sensation is just like that to me.

The itching has always been part of my RLS. I put lotion on multiple times a day. I've run into other people who are also very itchy who have RLS, so maybe it's connected in some way.

Now, as to what to do about it....no idea.

Aiken · Post by **Aiken** » Thu Jun 05, 2008 7:59 pm

I *think* it might be irritated nerves. In high school, I used to get a spot on my left leg that would feel like it buzzed every few seconds. Drove me up the wall. Over time, it became an area rather than a spot, and started to develop a sensation of cold instead of just buzzing, and these days a 10" patch goes cold, then numb when I lie on my back. My doctor says mine is a pinched nerve in my pelvis. Yours might just be some body-wide degradation of nerve sheaths or something. How's your B12?

KBear · Post by **KBear** » Thu Jun 05, 2008 8:06 pm

OK a huge light bulb went off when I read your post. My legs aren't itching so much because I do lotion them every night, time to slather lotion on my whole body! I'll see if that helps. The air conditioning went on today (the humidity has turned beastly) so I can probably leave the ceiling fan off too.

I thought of Lynne too I know she suffers with the itching.

BTW- it does feel like fleas! At first I thought it was psychosomatic . . . I was a little late this year with the flea and tick meds for my dog and she had a couple ticks early in the season. (we have a large field behind the house where she runs and the ticks like the tall grass) It wasn't a big problem and it was quickly solved but ticks give me the heebie jeebies (otherwise known as pychosomatic creepy crawlies). :wink:

Post by **ViewsAskew** » Thu Jun 05, 2008 11:23 pm

Too funny about the psychosomatic thing. When I was in high school, we had an outdoor kitty come in and infest our carpeting with fleas. My sister was a toddler at the time and I remember seeing them in her hair one day when we were playing on the carpet. We immediately did whatever you do to get rid of them and the problem was solved. I still shudder at the thought, however! I can remember having one jump on my arm when I was playing with her that say and the sensation was awful. So, when this first started happening, I was SURE I had fleas - it felt just like it.

Aiken, this moves around. It can center in a spot for awhile, but then it zips along your skin, just like a bug crawling. Yeesh, I'm literally shuddering as I type this. I have slapped my skull on more than one occasion to make it stop (or kill the flea, lol). It moves around and can be anywhere.

For me, it does come and go. I can go months without it....then have it one day and then it goes, or have it weeks before it goes. I take a mega B (along with about 15 other vitamins, minerals and supplements), so unless something else is wrong, I shouldn't be deficient.

Aiken · Post by **Aiken** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 1:40 am

Ah, that sounds different. And nasty.

SquirmingSusan · Post by **SquirmingSusan** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 3:49 am

I'm a very itchy person as well. I have a lot of skin sensitivities, and need to rub lotion on every square inch of skin after I shower. Then I usually need to supplement every day with another layer of lotion. Sarna is good for my itchy skin, but it has menthol and camphor so it's pretty strong smelling stuff.

Psychosomatic creepy crawlies? I've been there, too. A few nights ago I walked into another room, turned on the light, and there right under the light that I just turned on, was the hugest, hairiest, ugliest centipede I've ever seen. That inspired me to Google "giant centipede" which creeped me out even more. I haven't quite recovered from that yet. Eeeewwww.

Post by **ViewsAskew** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 4:24 am

Susan, what were you thinking????? To Google it?????? I can see why you haven't yet recovered.

Like you, I do at least two lotion layers a day - immediately after a shower on still damp skin and immediately before bed. Sometimes I put some on during the day, too.

Aiken · Post by **Aiken** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 10:33 am

My wife spent an entire year itching (maybe more... I'd ask, but she's asleep, of course

) with no apparent cause. The only real signs on the skin were where she left scratches, and sometimes even scabs. As with you girls, it helped a lot to moisten the skin. She used Sarna, too. She hated the smell, but it worked. There's something milder she used, too, might be Eucerin.

Her doctors never worked out what it was, only that dry skin seemed to be connected. It was especially bad after a warm bath, and we had to stop using the hot tub entirely. It's thought hormone levels may have been an issue, due to That Oh So Marvelous Time of Life We Husbands Get To Watch, Preferably From A Safe Distance.

It eventually went away, but then, some time after, she started getting breakouts of hives, especially if a band-aid or medication patch irritated her skin. They could expand to cover quite large areas. It's some kind of screwed-up histamine reaction, as I understand it, kind of like an allergy. She takes stuff like Benadryl to deal with that, plus copious amounts of lotion. We're not sure if the two are related.

One bit of very good advice: Cut your nails really short. Even if you're good about not scratching during the day, you probably scratch during your sleep. When my wife cut her nails, the number of scratches and scabs on the skin went way, wayyyy down.

KBear · Post by **KBear** » Fri Jun 06, 2008 1:44 pm

Re: B12, I did recently run out of my B Complex supplement but am back on it again, it could be that. Last night was better with the air conditioning on and I skipped my nightly bath. I think the thunder storms that have been rumbling through on a regular basis may play a roll in all of this too.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Susan- I had a similar centipede experience only I didn't flip on a light switch. I saw a "mark" on the wall in a semi-dark room and instead of turning on a light I walked right up to it to get a closer look thinking it was a scuff mark. I was inches away from it when I realized just what it was. :shock:

ewwwww!