The last two days I have had almost no sleep at all. Tuesday night my cold kept me up - sneezing, coughing, generally feeling miserable. Last night my right leg went into almost-regular spasms. The top of the thigh would jerk into a painful spasm so frequently I could not get settled enough to fall asleep. I feel seriously deprived of sleep.
Yesterday afternoon I met with a friend who wanted to hear more about my knee surgery experience because she sees the same thing in her future. I was happy to talk to her. I am almost always glad for an ear. In the course of our long conversation the Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) came up. She has it too, and has had success with a prescription drug - Requip. Requip is used for Parkinson's symptoms as well as RLS. It has a number of side effects, the most dangerous of which appears to be the potential for falling asleep suddenly (like when driving). My friend said she takes it only at night, which makes sense, so this may not be an issue if I were to use it. I am going to make an appointment with my regular doc to see about trying Requip. It would be wonderful if I had this issue somewhat resolved before I go into the hospital again.
Journal of experiences and experiments with arthritis
