Restless Legs During Pregnancy

One of the things I struggled with the most during pregnancy was restless legs. For me, it felt like I just could not sit still. I had to be moving my legs all the time, I had this intense desire to always be stretching. If I didn't, I would get what felt like muscle spasms (that is the best way I can think to describe it). When I first complained about it, I felt like most people thought I was really losing it. My husband didn't really take me seriously until I was crying every night as we watched tv, because I was so incredibly tired but I could not relax on the couch. I had to be walking around or moving. It seems so innocuous but day after day it really wore me down.

I tried every thing I could think of to relieve the sensation and relax. It would keep me up at night, I would routinely get 3 or 4 hours of sleep because I just could not keep from moving around. Eventually I found some things that worked and I'm sure I'll forget them- so here I go, sharing them with the hope that I'lll remember how I found some mediocre relief when I was going crazy with restless legs.


Compression Socks

image found here thanks to google

I am pretty sure that my restless legs got so bad due to poor circulation- I was carrying a 9lb baby around all day. Compression socks provided a little relief if I remembered to put them on before it got bad. Sometimes they worked better than others, I'd say on a scale of 1-10 (1 being didn't work at all to 10 being yes! relief! sweet relief!) that they were a 4 or 5. Not great, but I was glad to have them.

Calcium Supplements 

This was a suggestion from my doctor, who also looked at me like I was crazy when I was crying about how horrible the restless sensation was becoming. Apparently it wasn't a common complaint. She didn't quite know how to help, but since it was most likely circulation related she suggested calcium. I did feel like this worked in bringing the sensation down a notch. I took two a day, and when I forgot I swear the restlessness was worse. On the scale of 1-10, I'd say it was about a 7. (And, they are really good- what the heck, right? Gosh they taste good.)


Prenatal Yoga

yoga

I completely adored my weekly prenatal yoga class. It might have been my favorite thing about being pregnant, next to the kicks which I'm not going to lie, I loved. The camaraderie of the class, the time to focus on my body and really appreciate the whole process was just what I needed. I missed running so very much while I was pregnant, I was glad to still have yoga. I let my instructor know right away when I was dealing with the restless legs and she found some poses that helped with circulation. I always slept better on Monday nights after yoga. I tried to do the poses at home with some success, but never as much as when I went to the studio. I'd say this was an 8, if I could recreate it at home I'd go for a 9, but I didn't have much luck with that. It also didn't eliminate the problem, just made it more manageable.

Foam Roller

foam roller

In the beginning, this worked the very best. I could always find relief with the foam roller. As I progressed in the pregnancy and got bigger and moving was more cumbersome, this became harder and harder to do to the point where it was very relieving. It was still my go-to, my first stop on the path to trying to find relief. I would even do it at 3 am when I would wake up with restless legs. This would be a 9 on the scale. 

Yoga Ball

The BEST thing ever was my yoga ball. I'm so bummed that I didn't try it out until I was 32 weeks. I could finally sit and watch tv or read or just sit. I would have to bounce and do squats on it and keep moving, but I didn't have to stand and walk around. After sitting on it for the evening, I often found it easier to go to sleep (not 100%, but like 80%). All I really wanted the ability to come home from a long day and just relax, this allowed me that every day. I was so grateful for that stupid yoga ball. Thanks to our birthing class for giving me the idea. This was a 10 on the scale. I must remember this for next time. 

I tried many other things as well; walking a lot, doing too many wall squats to count, sitting with a resistance band around my ankles, staying super hydrated, avoiding sugars as much as possible. Those things worked relatively well, but nothing consistent. The things I mentioned above were way more effective for my case of the dreaded restless legs syndrome. 

(all images found by using google)