A person would have restless legs because of a neurological disorder. It is widely known as restless leg syndrome. It will cause an excessive sensation in a person’s legs so they will not be able to rest them. Read this article and know about the causes of having restless legs and how to get rid of restless legs while trying to sleep.
Having a restless leg might seem normal to you. Majority of the people get restless legs, especially when they are trying to sleep. It happens when your nerves are unfit to rest for a while and you have this overwhelming urge to move your legs. A person will feel a crawling sensation in their legs, which is why they will constantly move their legs. It can interfere with their sleep and their work as well.
According to healthcare professionals, having a restless leg is a syndrome that directly affects your nerves. You will feel like something is burning from inside, this sensation will not let you do anything properly. You will be unfit to focus on your work and at night, you will be unable to sleep peacefully at night. Your legs will keep you up at night and even if you fall asleep somehow, your legs will jerk you awake.
Follow this article to know about the causes of having restless legs and how to get rid of restless legs while trying to sleep.
Table of Contents
What are some of the indications of having restless legs?
Following are some of the indications of having restless legs. These indications will help you know whether or not you have restless legs.
- Unable to rest
- You get relief with movement
- Twitching
- Worse at night
Unable to rest:
A person who is battling with restless legs will be unable to rest. Whether they are sitting or laying down, their legs will not be at ease. You will have this constant urge to keep on moving your legs. Infact if you are sitting in your office, you will have this constant urge to keep moving your legs and this will not let you focus on anything. Your entire attention will be on getting relief from the sensation in your legs.
You get relief with movement:
When a person is battling with restless legs then, they will be unable to rest until they move their legs. Movement in legs will provide relief to the person. They will feel like they finally got rid of those sensations. Even for a little bit, your legs will feel at ease. But you will be unfit to have a good night’s sleep because after sometime, you will feel the exact same sensation again.
Twitching:
You will have this twitching sensation in your legs. It will feel like your leg is burning and throbbing from the inside. You will not know what is causing all of this but you will keep on moving your legs just so you could find some sort of relief. This will go on for the remaining of the night and you will be unfit to get a good night’s sleep.
Worse at night:
Although you will feel restlessness in your legs the entire day, it will become worse at night, especially when you are going to sleep. Your sleep quality will be excessively affected because of this. Moving your legs all the time in hope to find some sort of relief will not let your body rest. You will become agitated and frustrated. All of this because of your restless legs.
What are the causes of having restless legs?
Following are some of the causes of having restless legs. These causes will make your legs feel like something is crawling on it or like your leg is burning from the inside.
- Iron deficiency
- Pregnancy
- Psychosis
- Diabetes
- Peripheral neuropathy
- Dialysis
- Heredity
- Fibromyalgia
- Depression
Iron deficiency:
We all know that iron is extremely important for our body. It helps our body to make more oxygen and it also keeps the blood flow normal and stable. Iron deficiency can cause low dopamine in your body, which is why your legs will be triggered making your legs restless. You will feel like your leg is burning and throbbing from the inside.
Pregnancy:
We all know that pregnancy can change a lot of things in our body. It will make our hormones change and if your estrogen levels are high then, you will feel restlessness in your legs. Restless legs can also be caused because of the lack of folic acids during pregnancy. According to a survey research, 34% of women experience restless legs during pregnancy.
Psychosis:
People who are battling with psychosis also complain about their inability to sleep or sit still. They will appear fidgety and restless. We all understand that people who are battling psychosis see things that are only in their head, they are not actually there. When this happens, they will get fidgety and restless. Not just their legs, their entire body will become restless.
Diabetes:
According to a survey research, people who are battling with diabetes are likely to have restless legs. Around 25% of people who are diabetic have shown the indications of having a restless leg. Diabetes will make your legs crawl up with a sensation like tingling and throbbing. Having restless legs is excessively common with patients of type 2 diabetes.
Peripheral neuropathy:
Peripheral neuropathy occurs when a nerve has been deranged in the peripheral nervous system. It will derange the signals between your peripheral nervous system and your spinal cord. Your spinal cord will be unfit to signal your other body parts to work properly. This also includes your leg, making it restless.
Dialysis:
We know that when we are being treated for dialysis, we have to sit for some time. Having restless legs can make it strenuous for us to sit for our dialysis treatment. The intense urge will make it tough for you to sit properly, you would want nothing but to get some sort of movement in your legs so you can get relief from the movement.
Heredity:
There is a possibility of around 90% that restless legs will be transferred from one generation to another. The chromosomes will be affected and this can affect your family members. First degree relatives will be affected because of this.
Fibromyalgia:
Fibromyalgia can have your body feel pain in different tender parts. Fibromyalgia is related to restless legs. The pain in your body will also travel to your legs, causing a throbbing and burning sensation, making your legs restless. People who are battling with fibromyalgia are most likely to have restless legs too.
Depression:
Depression is indirectly related to a person battling with restless legs. Depression will make a person appear stressed and anxious, and this will cause a person to be more fidgety and restless. There is a prospect that a person will be unfit to sit or lay down in a peaceful position, they will be restless. This happens because lately they have been dealing with a lot of different things, making it strenuous for them to pay attention which makes them restless.
How can having restless legs impact our lives?
Just like every other disease or sickness, having restless legs can also impact our life. Following are some of the procedures through which having restless legs has made our life strenuous.
- Low quality of sleep
- Meddle with your work
- Insomnia
- Daytime sleepiness
- Depression
Low quality of sleep:
A person who is battling with restless legs will have a strenuous sleeping schedule. They will be unable to sleep properly. Perhaps they will spend their entire night turning and tossing around, just so they can find some sort of relief from the tingling and twitching sensation inside their legs. Having restless legs will directly affect a person’s quality of sleep.
Meddle with your work:
When you have restless legs then, you will be unfit to pay attention to your work. Having restless legs will also affect your work life indirectly. Moving your legs up and down while you are in a meeting or at your workplace will give a bad impression of you as an employee. The sudden urge in your legs will not let you do anything properly and your mind will be stuck on finding a relief for your leg.
Insomnia:
Having restless legs will also drive a person towards insomnia. You will be staying up all night as a result of a bad quality sleep. The restlessness in your leg will not let you have a good night’s sleep. Thus, pushing a person towards insomnia. Falling asleep will be strenuous and the throbbing sensation will make things more burdensome for you.
Daytime sleepiness:
When you are unable to get a quality sleep at night then, it is natural for you to feel sleepy in the daytime. This will directly affect your work and your other daily tasks. You will be unfit to focus on anything and everything will go over your head. Your head will feel heavy and completing a single can be strenuous for you.
Depression:
A person who is battling with restless legs, their mental health will be affected indirectly. They will feel depressed because of fatigue and insomnia. Their quality of life will start to go down. Your professional life and your personal life will be highly affected because of restless legs. You would want nothing but to make this stop every time you feel a throbbing sensation in your legs.
How to get rid of restless legs while trying to sleep?
We all understand that having restless legs can derange our sleeping patterns and lower the quality of our life. When this takes place, you do not have to fret so much about this and try some things to get rid of restless legs. Following are some concepts you can try to get rid of restless legs while trying to sleep.
- Be regular with your bedtime
- Stretch before you sleep
- Say no to caffeine
- Take a warm bath
- Heating pad
- Exercise daily
- Tire your brain
- Massage your legs
- Use iron supplements
- Consult a healthcare professional
Be regular with your bedtime:
Make a sleeping schedule for yourself and stick to that schedule. When you are regular with your schedule then, your brain and nervous system will automatically make your body tired. Your brain will release melatonin that will increase your body’s urge to hit the bed. This way you will have no time to focus on the restlessness of your legs.
Stretch before you sleep:
Stretching before you hit the bed will ease your muscles. It will provide relief to your legs and you will be fit to go to bed. The muscles in your legs will start to ease and it can provide support to your legs before you go to bed after sitting for a while.
Say no to caffeine:
It is paramount that you cut any product that has caffeine in it before your bedtime. Consuming caffeine will only make things strenuous for you. It will derange your sleeping schedule and slow down the production of melatonin in your brain, which is responsible for sleep. Consuming caffeine will only push you more towards insomnia.
Take a warm bath:
Taking a warm bath will ease your sore muscles and it will relieve your restless legs. It will be favorable for you to have a warm bath before you hit the bed. Your legs will relax sometime and it will also aid you by making you have a good night’s sleep.
Heating pad:
When in the middle of the night you are unable to sleep because of your restless legs, you can try putting a heating pad or hot water bottle on your legs. When there is a change in your temperature, your legs will slowly feel relief from the restless sensations. The throbbing will eventually go away and you can go back to sleep.
Exercise daily:
A person who exercises daily will have more strong muscles than someone who rarely runs. By doing an exercise daily, you will stay active and your leg muscles will not be sore. This way you will lessen the chance of making your legs feel restless.
Tire your brain:
Another paramount thing that you can do is tire your brain before you hit the bed. Indulge in some activity that will take your mind off your legs. You can read, paint, or do some of your office work before you go to bed. This way your brain will be too tired to focus on anything other than sleep. You can also do some light exercise before you hit the bed, this way your body and your brain.
Massage your legs:
When you are unfit to sleep at night because of restless legs then, you can try massaging your legs with essential oils. This will give you relief from the throbbing in your legs and it will also stretch your leg muscles making them loosen up. This way you will be fit to have a good night’s sleep.
Use iron supplements:
We all understand that restless legs are generated because of a nerve that is deranged. This all takes place when there is a lack of iron. To avoid that, you can use iron supplements and eat food items that are rich in iron. This way, your body will be fit to produce more oxygen, decreasing any derangements in your nerves. This way, your legs will not be restless anymore and you will be fit to have a good night’s sleep.
Consult a healthcare professional:
Restless legs can start to interfere with different aspects of your life, making it strenuous for you to get things done. When this takes place, the best thing for you to do is to consult a healthcare professional. They will run some tests on you, provide you medications, and give you a detailed explanation about the sensations in your legs.
Conclusion:
Having restless legs is excessively usual. More than 70% of the world’s population is battling with this issue. Restless legs will easily meddle with your life and make things strenuous for you. Your quality of life will start to go down and your sleeping schedule will become haywire. All of this will happen because of your restless legs. When a person is battling with this issue, they will not be fit to sleep at night and even if they are able to sleep at some point, they might wake up in the night because of the throbbing sensation.
A person who is battling with restless legs will feel throbbing, burning, crawling, and tingling sensations in their legs. The only relief they can get is to make some sort of movement in their legs so the sensations will go down a bit. You can also try iron supplements to deal with restless legs, you can use exercise and massages to ease your leg muscles, and you use a heating pad to get aid from the sensations in your leg. These things will aid you in getting a good night’s sleep.
