Help for Restless Leg Syndrome

Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) affects both sexes and is a condition where your legs almost always are uncomfortable when you're lying or sitting down, at which point you are itching to get up and move around, or just change positions over and over again. RLS symptoms are usually heightened at night, disrupting sleep and thereby causing you to be overly tired the next day. It is a vicious cycle that fortunately can be helped by some lifestyle changes and medications.

Lifestyle

• According to the Mayo Clinic, there are many things you can do to help relieve the symptoms of Restless Leg Syndrome. First of all get into some good sleep habits. Go to bed and wake up at the same time. People with RLS tend to do better going to bed later and sleeping later than most people. In addition, have nice clean sheets and bed nicely made. Your room should be cool and pleasant to sleep in. In general, your bed and bedroom should be conducive to sleep.

  You can also relax your muscles by soaking in a warm bath and regularly massage your legs. You can even apply hot or cold packs to your legs, alternating between the two when symptoms start to bother you. In general, you should relieve stress, which may help relieve RLS symptoms. General exercise may help also. Avoid extreme workouts and try to do it earlier in the day. You should also avoid all caffeine, nicotine and alcohol, all which are thought to aggravate RLS symptoms.

Medications

• While you can take ibuprofen when you feel the symptoms of Restless Leg Syndrome begin, but according to the Mayo Clinic, there are also some prescription medicines your doctor can prescribe if ibuprofen was ineffective. These medicines are not specifically designed for RLS, but help alleviate its symptoms. Examples include Mirapex and Sinemet, which are designed to be used by persons with Parkinson's Disease. They help reduce the motions in your legs. Epilepsy medicines also help reduce the motions in your legs, like Neurontin, which your doctor may prescribe.

  Your doctor can also prescribe a narcotic such as Percocet and Vicodin. These help calm the muscles, however these medicines become addicting. In addition, another drug used with RLS patients are medicines like Lunesta and Restoril, which will not help reduce RLS symptoms, but will help you sleep through them.