What is Restless Leg Syndrome or RLS?
If you happen to suffer from restless leg syndrome, I’m sure that you are familiar with having the urge to move around just to relieve the odd and uncomfortable sensations felt in your legs. Although no one knows exactly what the cause of RLS is, the condition is often associated with obesity, pregnancy, diabetes, smoking or an iron deficiency.
What’s more is that there are diseases that can imitate restless legs, such as:
- joint conditions,
- muscle diseases,
- problems along the nerves, and even
- difficulties with the circulation of blood in your body.
RLS treatment is prescribed for restless leg syndrome, which a sleep disorder that is becoming more common. It is characterized by a distinctive leg discomfort as you sleep. This discomfort seems to be relieved only by frequent leg movements; hence, the name of the disorder.
The cause of restless leg syndrome is not known, but it usually happens in older people and may be possibly caused by too much stress. Some pregnant women also experience the disorder. The symptoms of restless leg syndrome usually occur a short time after falling asleep, but it is also common to feel the sensations at other times of the day.
Restless leg syndrome symptoms are characterized by the throbbing of the legs. Sometimes, it also includes unpleasant creeping and pulling sensations or even the uncontrollable urge that pushes a person to move his legs involuntarily. This absence of control for ones legs are the main characteristic of the neurological disorder known as restless leg syndrome (RLS).
The most severe manifestations of the disorder appear when you are at rest. This is usually the reason why it happens most during the night, just when you are about to fall asleep. As the muscles relax, your leg begins to twitch and the only way of relieving it is to move ones leg in order to ease discomfort.