[Rose76]

My PCP gives me a prescription for hydrocodone every month. It is for thirty 10 mg tablets each month. (Acetaminophen is also in the tablets, but that just goes along for the ride.) Well - this past month I went through my supply in three weeks. So I had to face some days without the medication. After a couple of days with no hydrocodone, I started experiencing what I would describe as restless leg syndrome. It would come on around bedtime, while I was reading in bed, waiting to get sleepy. I would notice myself shifting around changing my position. I couldn't settle into a comfortable position.

This is a miserable experience. The only relief was to distract myself. Eating something would help briefly. The problem went away when I got a new month's supply. From what I have read and what I know from experience, that troubling restless sensation would come under the heading of akathisia. I never before had any idea that abruptly stopping a rather small amount of daily opioid could set of any withdrawal problem. And I didn't know that opioid withdrawal could cause akathisia.

I wonder if anyone else has had akathesia when stopping an opioid med, or any other med. This happened to me in the past when I was taking Librium. If I abruptly stopped taking it, I would get akathisia about ten days later. It was horrible. The version I just went through was milder.

Akathisia can be awful enough to make a person consider doing anything to escape it. What helped me was that, when I had it, I totally believed it was a temporary condition. I'm lately reading about a phenomenon called "kindling," whereby withdrawal syndromes can get worse the more often you experience withdrawal.

I'ld be interested in hearing anyone's experience with akathisia, especially due to withdrawal from benzos or opioids.

I've also gotten RLS/akathisia twice from taking too much OTC cold medication. I've also gotten it from taking an increased dose of my antidepressant, without working up to it gradually. I'm wondering if some people are just prone to this problem and why that would be.

Also - has anyone ever received an effective treatment to quickly stop akathisia?

[Angelique67]

Hi, I've has RLS off and on since the early 2000s. Exacerbated by quitting meds, and also just on it's own. I have found that elevating my legs at bedtime helps, and also eating a small meal of protein (an egg in my case) at bedtime. Sweets made the RLS worse. It is truly a horrible condition, and I hope you'll find something that helps.

[Rose76]

Thanks. It completely went away.

[Angelique67]

Originally Posted by Rose76

Thanks. It completely went away.

Yay!!!

[karma3p80]

Yes, your body is used to having the one dose each day and when it doesn't have it, restless leg syndrome does happen. I experienced this although I was taking more than you. The only thing that helped me was taking a bath, getting the water as hot as I could, sitting in there for 5-10 minutes, then immediately getting back in bed.

[Rose76]

Thanks, karma. I thought I was taking too little for that to happen. Apparently not. When I got a refill on the Vicodin, the RLS completely went away.

I found the same thing with the hot bath helping. Some nights I had to stay in the tub to fall asleep. Getting the water as hot as I could stand seemed to create a competing sensation. It would override the RLS feeling in my lower body.

Thanks for your corroborating input.