Living With Restless Leg Syndrome
Author: StrideCare Internal Team
Medications and supplements
Dealing with restless legs syndrome can be challenging. While there are medications available to help patients with RLS, including muscle relaxants, sleep aids, and narcotics, you’ll probably want to try other solutions first. For example, if RLS is affecting your quality of life, have your doctor test your iron levels—there’s a known association between low iron levels and RLS. Sometimes taking an iron supplement and eating iron-rich foods like lean meat, dark leafy greens, and fortified cereals are all you need to help ease your symptoms.
Home remedies for restless legs
Try these at-home treatments to help reduce your RLS symptoms:
- Exercise regularly, walk more, and stretch
- Soak your legs in a warm bath
- Get a leg and foot massage
- Make sure you’re hydrated
- Use a heating pad to warm leg muscles
- Create a sleep routine of winding down before bed
- Keep your bedroom cool and dark for optimal sleep
- Find a comfortable position; sleep on your left side to improve blood circulation
- When you wake up and can’t get back to sleep, gently stretch your legs or walk it out
Hopefully, a combination of these methods will work for you so you can get some quality sleep before the baby arrives.
What else can be done?
If you’ve exhausted these recommended treatment options and aren’t seeing improvement, you may have a vascular issue like chronic venous insufficiency—when blood from the legs has a hard time getting back to the heart because of a problem with the valves in the veins. In this case, our doctors can perform a radiofrequency ablation, sclerotherapy, or phlebectomy procedure.
Prior to starting any new treatment or questions regarding a medical condition, always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health provider. This information is not a substitute for professional medical advice.
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