Restless legs and Propranolol

[TroysMammy]

For the last year I've been taking pramexipole for restless legs. Some nights I'm thrashing around more than others, my sleep is obviously disturbed and I wake up exhausted.

Today I saw a GP to see if there were other options eg increasing dose, was it really restless legs or anything else. Whilst in the waiting room of a surgery I am unfamiliar with (I usually use their main surgery) seeing a GP I've never seen before and trying to avoid eye contact with a former colleague in the surgery I had a fluttering in my chest. Along with my restless legs I also mentioned this to him and he asked If I was an anxious person and did I suffer from anxiety. My answers were no to both questions because I'm not.

He then discussed taking propranolol which would help and I could take them up to three times a day. I said I would only need them at night.

On getting the tablets and reading the leaflet it makes no mention of restless legs and in fact one of the side effects are disturbed sleep and nightmares which is not what I want.

Has the GP come to the conclusion from a less than ten minute consultation that I'm a middle aged worry guts and just fobbed me off with inappropriate medication or does propranolol actually help restless legs?

Anxiety is a strange thing. I always associated it with that intense fear you get before an exam, interview, doing a speech etc... I always considered myself a non anxious person as the above never elicited a massive response. However, I've now learnt that anxiety can be there without really realising and affect us in very subtle ways and that it can be a physical manifestation without forcibly the mental trigger, or manifest itself quite some time after it making it difficult to link the two.

I suffer menopausal induced anxiety but in a mainly physical form, so that I can feel OK in my head but yet my body is reacting in a flight or fight response. Getting restless leg is one of the way it manifest itself - although far from the main way in my case.

Propranolol is supposed to help with the physical aspect of anxiety, usually by reducing palpitations but I belie e doing the same to the rest of the body. I know some people who take it and it really helps. I can't because I already suffer from very low heartrate and blood pressure and the side ecfects are mainly those associated with low heartrate/BP.

It might be worth giving a try and see if it helps. It might be better to take a lower dose three times a day than just once but maybe you can try to start with evenings only and see how you react to it?

swingofthings Thank you for your reply. You explained exactly how I felt and the subtle reasons for it are just part of being human and there are many layers of anxiety. I think I've been on Mumsnet too long .

I rarely see my own GP, perhaps once a year and I always feel I'm there under false pretences. I'm a GP Receptionist and I don't want to be the patient who is seeing a GP a couple of times a week, every Friday or feel I just have to touch base with a GP. I just poo poo things and force myself to go when I have to and just make a mess of the consultation because I think I don't have any valid reason for being there.

I drop off to sleep no problem but a few times a month I'm literally swearing because I don't drop off quickly enough because of my legs. Perhaps propranolol might help on those occasions.

Spoke to a Pharmacist today who was confused why the GP prescribed propranolol given what I said above. She said propranolol would not help restless legs as it can cause disturbed sleep and nightmares. Something I definitely do not want. I'm going to speak to another GP in the next few days.

I'm on propranolol for high blood pressure and tremor - I didn't know it could help with restless legs. I've just had the dose increased and it is making me so tired... so it might actually help with sleep.

Have you tried magnesium supplements for restless legs?

I suffer from severe RLS, for 30+ years. Pramipexole also known as Mirapex is no longer considered first line for treatment of RLS. If it used to work but no longer helps you may need to go off it. Upping the dose can lead to augmentation. Google RLS Augmentation. Pregabalin or Gabapentin is pretty good for relief. As is cocodamol...it's the codeine that works. If it only happens a few nights each month why do you need to take pramipexole all the time. Also permissible takes 90 minutes to work and does best taken before the symptoms kick in.
It is a horrible disease
.

Of course perhaps the pramipexole is working most of the time and you are getting breakthrough i.e. It sometimes isn't working. This could be augmentation. If it is augmentation you should def not increase the prampexole. You will need off it...weaning.

I use magnesium supplements the dissolved in water kind I find work the best

I take propranolol for migraines. I’ve started getting restless legs since starting it, plus amazingly vivid dreams (not nightmares luckily so quite enjoyable) and I now wake in the night for an hour or so most nights.

I nevervsuffered from restless legs despite running and cycling every week until I hit the perimenopause three years ago. I have it maybe once every other week and it is definitely linked with those days I feel restless overall and have an overall sense of buzzing, feeling like I'vee had a rush of adrenalin that won't calm down. This is usually after I had a very busy or upsetting day.

I have found that meditation before falling asleep helps a lot, although it took about 2 months of doing it before it made a real difference. I also find that lying on my stomach star fish like for 5 minutes calmes my legs.

I take magnesium tablets few hours before bedtime, I find if I had more than 1 coffee in the morning, my legs are doing the conga at night time.

I take Propranolol for anxiety - 80mg twice a day. I am on other meds for anxiety/depression, one being Pregabalin and that is a med used for restless legs. I was in 600mg a day, but was hallucinating, so I'm down to 200mg and, whilst reducing, one symptom I had was restless legs. It's worth looking at Pregabalin if you have anxiety and restless legs.

Thing is I don't have anxiety, high blood pressure or other conditions propranolol is used for.

If he thought I suffered with anxiety although I said I didn't he should have done a HADS checklist with me. Possibly a blood test for thyroid, anaemia and B12 re the palpitations I could have been having.

In my mind you go to the Doctors when you are ill. Restless legs isn't in my book an illness but a condition which is a pita. I said I felt a fraud coming to the Doctors with something like that.

I only mentioned the palpitations because working in a Doctor's surgery you hear about patients who discuss minor things with the GP and as they are about to leave say "well I've been having these chest pains for a couple of days" which is potentially serious so I just mentioned it first.