Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Discussion Board

Polar Bear - News Flash - 5.30 am - Somewhere in the UK

Dawn is breaking
The birds are singing
I'm walking the floor with much hand wringing.

In the wee front bedroom I'll have a go
At getting to sleep - "Yes or No" ??
Who knows.. Not me...
Guess I'll have to wait and see
How the next hour or so will be.

It's morning as I write this rhyme
A little fun to fill the time.
So up the stairs I'll make my way
As night time has turned into day.

Tomorrow (today) is another day
The sun will shine
All will be fine.
My legs will 'dance' and you can sing.
See you later -- Ping Ping.

NOTE: This is just a little bit of fun. i should explain that I will leave this note on the floor at my husband's side of the bed for when he wakes up.
Ping Ping - is a nick name fondly given to him recently because he gets fed up when Face Book Messenger keeps going 'ping' !!!

Cute! Inspiring~

PB my friend in the UK,
wow did she have a day!

Tho the nite was gray
her attitude sure did pay!

It's rough when you can't sleep
For after no sow, how do you reap?

I hope the day treats her well
For all should be free
From this RLS hell!

leggo - indeed how do you reap when you haven't sown.

After 3 hours sleep, my day had started with a morning dental appointment to have a long standing root removed from my gum. One hour in the chair saw it eventually removed in 3 sections. Job done. Local anaesthetic is wonderful.

We are having wonderfully unseasonally warm weather here at present and I drove home thinking that my husband needed a gee-up to start on a few long standing chores that were 'his department'.... so no time like the present to (nag) remind him !! However, upon arrival back home he had a coffee tray waiting for me and was already painting the wall that surrounds our rear patio, it's about 60 ft long x 4 ft high. Seeing his enthusiasm, my discontent, lethargy and dare I say a little 'self pity' disappeared and I began potting up 5 hanging baskets with bedding plants.

Although I hadn't sown much in the way of sleep the previous night, I did manage to reap a little and the baskets will look well in a few weeks.

There was a spell of several days where my RLS symptoms were more ongoing than usual, not necessarily more intense, just not giving me much respite. Usually my meds control quite well.

By the morning of my first post on this thread, and after the dental appointment, I was feeling quite fragile and fed up, as though I'd had enough. No energy whatsoever. And yet. what a turnaround. It only took me to see my husband making inroads on what turned out to be a 12 hour job, for me to cheer up and join him outdoors on some lightweight chores. My RLS symptoms calmed somewhat as I was being quite mobile with a task I was enjoying, rather than just trying to walk off symptoms.

I guess I'm trying to say that sometimes our own low spirits (through lack of sleep or whatever) help exacerbate our RLS symptoms, just as other chronic conditions would suffer in the same way.

A little thoughtfulness, even if only a coffee, and a feeling of general willingness (wall being painted without me nagging) can sometimes change our demeanor, and thus change our outlook from negative to positive as if on the spin of a coin.

I wish it was always so.

Love them! Who is next????

I had a poem written in the reply box when I opened my computer tonight for the first time since Thursday. I was profoundly grateful I hadn't posted it. To give myself some credit, I remember intending not to post it, thinking I was just playing around in the "reply" box, and having to leave before it was completed cuz the zopiclone kicked in.

Betty, it's so true what you said about our mood affecting the symptoms. Not just mood, but the distraction of having the planting to do, something you could focus on and get absorbed in - which you wouldn't have been able to do without the good mood. I don't know if the same crazy signals are still firing in our neurons somewhere when we're engaged like that, but clearly they aren't reaching any part of the brain that matters.

Polar Bear wrote:I guess I'm trying to say that sometimes our own low spirits (through lack of sleep or whatever) help exacerbate our RLS symptoms, just as other chronic conditions would suffer in the same way.

A little thoughtfulness, even if only a coffee, and a feeling of general willingness (wall being painted without me nagging) can sometimes change our demeanor, and thus change our outlook from negative to positive as if on the spin of a coin.

I wish it was always so.

Such an excellent point. I always focus on how it's the other way around, ie how symptoms affect my mood and everything else negatively. But you're right, it's interactional in nature. Glad things shaped up for you and sorry about the root!

Thank you, The root is now fine, all nearly healed, just two more molar crowns to be done.
Very happy that we have NHS and all treatment is capped at around £380. Oh... plus I paid an extra £30 to have a side tooth filling changed from silver to white.

leggo - I do feel positivity is so important in everything. Just this morning I saw a comment ::: """10% of conflicts are due to a difference in opinion - 90% are due to the wrong tone of voice"""
The percentages might not be correct but I do agree with the comment.

Polar Bear wrote:Very happy that we have NHS and all treatment is capped at around £380. Oh... plus I paid an extra £30 to have a side tooth filling changed from silver to white.

Oh god, you're killing me. Dental treatment in the US is outlandish and so is health ins. Very happy for you! Struck an [exposed] nerve here...

Beth - I think distraction works on symptoms ok, except when it doesn't .......
Mental distraction has never been a success for me when dealing with symptoms, my only successful distraction ever, is movement. Thus, chores such as dusting, tidying the desk, a little ironing, all get done at random times.

Just a thought, I never sit doing 'nothing', I'd be sewing, doing crosswords/sudoko, etc. ..........I guess it's possible this mental activity could be an unintended distraction and delay the onset of symptoms. i.e. Mental activity might delay onset - but I know it doesn't do much for me when symptoms are established.

Just thinking aloud ......

I have an electric guitar that I can play* and listen to thru headphones and thus not disturb my wife. It takes my mind off the RLS nicely. Just tuning the thing can be distracting enough.

I have not done this during one of those occasional long sleepless nights. At 3am seems like I only want to stay in bed and try to sleep, even though this never works.

Polar Bear posted this comment:
-10% of conflicts are due to a difference in opinion - 90% are due to the wrong tone of voice-
Boy does that hit home!

* "play" is a bit subjective here. I'm not so good on guitar anymore.