Rest Legs Syndrome (RLS)

Restless Legs (RLS) – this is something I wouldn’t wish on anyone. It’s SO incredibly annoying and SO disruptive to sleep. The real kicker (pun intended) is that no one really knows what definitively causes it.

It’s 10pm, and I’m tired. SO DANG TIRED. I worked all day, chauffeured kids to their jobs and activities, made supper, cleaned up, tended to everything else, and felt more than ready for sleep. I go to bed, get comfy, and drift off within moments. Within an hour, I’m WIDE awake, legs riddled with discomfort.

I wish I could explain how RLS… it’s not painful – just incredibly annoying, and there's this overwhelming need to move your legs around, it hopes the feeling will go away. I imagine that if legs could feel anxious, they'd feel like this!

So I move around a bit, try a different position. I bend, stretch, crack some joints in my legs – but nada. Not a single thing helps. I keep doing this until I’m sure all my contortions will wake up my partner. Then I get up, totally defeated, and walk aimlessly around the house.

I’ve tried all the things! Drinking more water, watching what I eat close to bedtime, tying socks around my feet, compression socks… Some of it might act as a temporary distraction, but nothing really seems to help. Sometimes I’m awake for hours straight, just trying to find relief. It’s only when I’m completely exhausted that I finally manage to fall asleep – and of course, by then it’s 6am. I get a single hour of sleep. ONE HOUR! This just won't do.  

I am very much at the point where I would try any weird and wonderful (albeit not harmful to me or anyone else) solution. Suggestions?