self diagnosis

[Guest guest]

I, too, am self-diagnosed. I live in a very rural area with few doctors,

and until I happened to do a search and came across the RLS Foundation

site, neither the doctors nor myself had any idea of what the problem

could be. I am a very healthy person, other than RLS, which is obviously

mild compared to what some of you are going through. The doctors in my

area had never heard of RLS, and like Lyme Disease, they questioned

whether it was a REAL illness or disorder. I do not have the time and

the money to travel hundreds of miles and hop from doctor to doctor

undergoing various tests. Most of the doctors offered to (and sometimes

did) prescribe medicine which I never had filled once I learned what the

potential side effects were. (Most were sedatives.) I just live with my

RLS. I cannot describe the joy I felt when I learned about RLS. My

illness had a name, and I was not mentaly ill! I am happy to be

self-diagnosed; at least I know what I am dealing with is not imaginary!