rls & trauma

[Guest guest]

I am new to this group and glad to find it here. I have had rls for at

least 20 years. It is only recently that I've found there are MANY other

people with it.

I had an experience with surgery in 1989 for removal of my appendix

where the rls was particularly problematic as I was coming out of the

anesthesia. But I have had other surgeries where it was not a problem.

It was a really big bother when I was pregnant and my chiropractor saved

my sanity with smoked of electrical stimulation.

Recently, I began taking Paxil for depression. My Dr. also gave me

Ambien to help me sleep. The first night the rls was very disturbing

until the drugs knocked me out. I thought it was the Paxil, which it may

be. However, as I began to think that I was having a reaction to the

Ambien I got online and researched that drug and found that restless leg

syndrome is listed as one of the " other possible side effects " .I have

stopped taking that but now every night without fail I have to go

through getting in and out of bed for walks three or four times before

sleep finally takes over. And the other night for the first time I

couldn't sit through a lecture at the library.

Before this the rls used to come and go in cycles.

So, my point is it may have more to do with the drugs they used during

surgery than the surgery itself. Maybe. I am hoping that the Ambien has

not set up a permanent deterioration for me.

I find that taking Advil or Tylenol helps. Ativan, which is an

anti-anxiety drug also helps as well as medication such as percaset.

Kathleen Tierney from Vail CO