Pharmacist Abraham, discusses Restless Leg Syndrome. Treatment. How To Stop Restless Legs Immediately. Symptoms, Causes, What Is It and Lots More.
Hey guys you’re probably here because you want to know all about restless leg syndrome well you found the right video because in this week’s video we’re going to look at restless leg syndrome we’re going to look at the causes the signs and symptoms lifestyle advice and tips on treatment and when to seek medical attention
For restless leg syndrome so what we’re waiting for let’s begin okay so let’s begin with the basics what is restless leg syndrome in case you don’t know it’s quite a common condition that affects our nervous system it’s also quite common in the population affecting about two percent of the population and it typically
Causes an overwhelming urge to move your legs and a really uncomfortable sensation in your legs but this uncomfortable sensation can also be affected in the arms in the chest and even in the face now the thing about to describe the feeling and the symptoms that it affects everyone slightly differently so
See if these things match yourself so probably the most common sensation people discuss is a tingling but the other things that people mention when you speak to them about restlessness syndrome is a creepy crawly type feeling or even like a fizzy water type of feeling in the legs and sometimes people describe it as a
Cramping type of feeling within the legs so these unpleasant sensations can really range from patient to patient some people might find them mild some people might find them unbearable however usually towards the later part of the day so towards the night time towards the evening the sensations do get worse
Now like i said it really does depend on the individual some people get these symptoms all the time some people get them occasionally so it’s a it’s a really tricky one restless leg syndrome because like i said everyone experiences it slightly differently now some people with restless leg syndrome may find it difficult
To sit for long periods of time for example on a train journey now more than 80 percent of people with restless leg syndrome also have periodic limb movements in sleep we call this plms for short now if you do have plms your legs will jerk or twitch sleep now these movements are short and repetitive usually
Happening every 20 to 40 seconds and it can be so severe that they actually wake you up at night time you can also get these movements during the day and whilst you’re resting as well now before we look at treatments and lifestyle advice for restless leg syndrome let’s quickly look at the causes as well because this is
Really important that we have a full understanding and it’s really going to help us when we get to that section as well so the two main causes of restless leg syndrome what we call primary and secondary causes now primary restless leg syndrome is where there is no identifiable cause it usually happens in younger
Individuals it starts at a younger age really and usually most of these patients have a family member someone who also has restless leg syndrome two-thirds of the cases usually have a family member with restless leg syndrome and secondary restless leg syndrome is where there is an identifiable cause which is causing
The restless leg syndrome so there’s an underlying condition which is causing it which is why the treatment is aimed at treating the underlying condition which is then going to help with the restless leg syndrome now with secondary restless leg syndrome there are many different causes that could be potentially
Causing the restless leg syndrome this is why it’s super important if you’ve googled about restless leg syndrome and it matches you or if you’re having any of these symptoms that we spoke about today you need to speak to your healthcare professional first so they can examine you so they can investigate they
Can do all the tests to find out exactly what is going on that is the most important thing so if you spoke to your doctor if you spoke to a healthcare professional and you’ve been diagnosed okay there’s no underlying cause there any other problems then that’s fine we can now move on to the tips but if you haven’t spoke to
Them please speak to them first and then by all means if everything’s okay please then continue with these lifestyle tips that we’re gonna go through with now okay so let’s begin with tip number one do one of the easiest things that you can do is avoiding stimulants especially in the evening this includes things
Like tea coffee energy drinks anything that contains caffeine really that’s going to stimulate your nervous system it’s going to stimulate the brain it’s going to stimulate them neurons which is going to increase the activity and increase the movement especially at night time when you’re sleeping which is then
Going to make your restless leg syndrome worse so you need to avoid these especially in the evening but if you can try and avoid them entirely or just try and reduce your consumption of them as well i will leave a link in the description below which is a caffeine calculator and you can pop how many drinks of tea you have
How many drinks of coffee you have and it will tell you the recommended amount so you can always check as well if you are within that range as well let’s move on to the next tip okay so moving on to tip number two this is another easy one and it’s all about exercise look if you have restless leg syndrome we know
Research has shown that exercise helps it so you need to try and exercise regularly three times a week if you can normal intensity exercise that’s probably gonna make things a little worse just normal intensity exercise if you want some of these exercises i’m gonna leave all of them in the description below for you
As well so you can read up about them and see which one suits you one of the more important things though to mention about exercise is one make sure you’re not doing it just before bedtime because that can actually have an opposite effect for restless leg syndrome and also make sure you stretch stretching is super
Duper important again if you’re not stretching before and after you exercise it might actually have the opposite effect that we want so one week make sure it’s just normal moderate intensity exercise and also make sure that you’re stretching this is super duper important and it has been shown to be super effective for
Restless leg syndrome moving on to tip number three it’s all about sleep and getting the right amount of sleep you need to be sleeping at a regular time sleep per night this is super important because if you’re not getting enough sleep it’s going to make your restless leg syndrome worse if you’re someone who
Struggles to get to sleep if you’re someone who wants more information on good quality sleep i have made videos on these topics before looking at different options that are going to help you go to sleep and get better quality sleep so you’re rested and fully full of energy when you wake up sleep is super important
Not just for that restless leg syndrome but for a variety of other things as well and it can also reduce your risk of having anxiety depression obesity sleep is something that’s so underrated and unfortunately a lot of people aren’t giving sleep enough time anymore they’re not getting that adequate amount of eight hours
Of good quality sleep per night so if you want more information on it please do check out my other videos on it but if someone already gets eight hours of sleep then fantastic let’s move on to the next tip okay so let’s move on to tip number four let’s say that you’re having an episode of breast leg syndrome
It’s very painful the area what should you do what are the best things to do well the first gentle massage okay or if you can’t do that ask your significant other or your partner or your friend or someone to just give it a light quick massage another thing that you can then move on to doing is either a hot or a cold
Compress we’ll start off with a cold compress very simple you don’t need to buy anything just go to your freezer get a pack of frozen vegetables wrap it in a tea towel and place it on the area where the paintings don’t what any of the sensations are for a warm compress you can get a wheat bag heat it up
And place it on the area so whichever one you feel works better for you now another question that you’re probably gonna ask as well for how long should i do it how often should i do it both of them can be left on the area for about 10 minutes and then i would advise you to do it a few times a day if it’s needed there’s
No harm in doing it more than a few times a day but just make sure you’re wrapping that cold compress in a tea towel you don’t want to be pointed directly on the skin as it can cause damage to the skin another useful tip is doing activities that help distract your mind such as reading or watching television or
Relaxation exercises such as yoga walking stretching and in the evening having a nice hot shower or bath to help relax those muscles moving who smokes at the moment you really need to quit if you have restless leg syndrome smoking has been shown to make things worse smoking is gonna affect the sleep it’s gonna make
The restless leg syndrome worse and it’s gonna make all those painful sensations worse so you really need to try and quit i know it’s easier said than done but in the past i have a video on how to quit smoking it’s got some really really useful advice on it if you want more information i am going to leave a link to
It up here and in the description that smoking makes restless leg syndrome worse and we know that smoking has many many different problems that are associated with it such as heart disease such as cancers it can even make you older you know it can make you look older so by quitting you will hopefully stay nice and
Young as well so there’s so many benefits in quitting smoking anyone can do in their lives to do smoke so if you want more information please feel free to watch that video as well and moving on to tip number six this tip is all about medication look there are certain medicines that can actually make doesn’t
Mean if you are prescribed medication stop taking your medication and it’s going to make things better i am not saying that one bit do speak to your pharmacist or your doctor or your nurse about them and discussed that could any of these medicines potentially be making my restless leg syndrome worse there are quite a few
Medicines that can be doing this so please just take the time to speak to your healthcare professional to find out so they can actually check it for you you know they might actually do not be aware that you have restless leg syndrome and they’re not aware that obviously these medicines would be making it worse
So let them know that you have restless leg syndrome and ask them to just quickly check your medicines list to make sure that and if any of them are making the symptoms worse and if they are then they can discuss and look into treatment options of potentially switching it or trying an alternative medicine or anything like
That but please please please do not stop your medicines before speaking to any healthcare professional and most likely they won’t be making things worse but still just double check it with them so that’s our lifestyle tips done please remember if any of these tips don’t help you or if you’re concerned at all about
The frequency and severity of the episodes of restless leg syndrome that you’re having please speak to your healthcare professional please don’t leave it speak to them and let them review you to see what’s going on and please do not for one second think that restless leg syndrome is not taken seriously by your
Healthcare professional look i speak to patients all the time of restless life syndrome we really do prioritize them because restless leg syndrome can cause so many other symptoms and problems that can be associated with it for example it can make you feel drowsy it can affect your sleep it can even cause depression and
Anxiety look so you need to speak to a healthcare professional if these symptoms are causing you a lot of problems if they’re affecting your sleep if they’re making you drowsy if it’s affecting your mood if you just feel like you need to speak to someone just pick up the phone ring your doctor surgery and make an
Appointment to speak to someone nobody is not going to take you seriously everyone will take you seriously and they want to look out for your health because that is the most important thing there are also quite a few charities now set up for restless leg syndrome if you want more information on them i will leave a link
To them in the description below on a few that i find they’re really really helpful especially for giving that support to patients with restless leg syndrome they have a good forum as well and it can put you in touch in groups with other patients who have restless leg syndrome so you can learn from each other
As well i think it’s super helpful to have that there as well so if you are interested in finding out more please just check out that description so that’s the end of this week’s video you now know all about restless leg syndrome you know about the causes the signs and symptoms you know about what other people experience
You know about the tips and treatments you’re now a bit of a restless leg syndrome pro so tell your friends tell your family tell your loved ones tell everyone and if you have any of your own tips as well please do leave a comment down there as well because i’d love to read it and i’m sure everyone else watching
This video would love to read it too remember that you’re awesome and i will see you that like follow or subscribe button now to stay up to date with new weekly videos
Transcribed from video
Restless Leg Syndrome Treatment Stop Symptoms Causes By AbrahamThePharmacist