Agony in legs when I lie down...

[me147]

Just wondering if this is consistent with anyone else's ME symptoms.

My old very soft mattress became very uncomfortable a couple of months ago, so it needed to be replaced.

I've been unable to find a replacement. My problem has been that any other mattresses I've tried has caused agony in my legs. When I lie on my side, it feels like the leg on the bottom is being crushed between the upper leg and the mattress.

The pain begins with freezing numbness in my feet, and then escalates to a burning, throbbing pain up my feet to the back of my lower leg. Within an hour my legs will be in agony, and I'll feel physically exhausted. I've been around God knows how many shops, and every mattress I've tried (probably 100 in total) makes me feel this way.

This doesn't happen on my very soft sofa, which is where I currently attempt to sleep at night, without a great deal of luck as it happens.

Thanks

 

[taniaaust1]

Yes that's an ME symptom. I used to have that all the time with one leg feeling like it was crushing the other and causing me pain by the pressure on it. It may be nothing to do with your mattress. Try sleeping with a pillow in between your legs, that can help me a lot. It may also help the circulation in your feet too to not have them pressed on one another.

(another thing which can cause burning, throbbing pain in feet is B deficiencies.. without looking it up I forget which ones now)

 

[Bead Dog]

Have you been checked by a neurologist? Really sounds like peripheral neuropathy symptom. The pain from pn is worse at night.

 

[Valentijn]

I use a flat pillow to rest my top leg on, and sleep with it forward of the other leg.

 

[hellytheelephant]

Can you lie on your side and put a pillow between your thighs? Or lie flat with a large pillow/foam block under your knees?
I was shown optimum positions in how to rest when I was at Burrswood, so if pain's bad ( I get sciatica amongst other things), then I rest with pillows supporting my whole body, so there is no pressure on any of the joints. Lying flat is not a good position for anyone with lower back/sciatic/pudendal/leg pain.

 

[me147]

Hello folks, thanks for the responses.

I've tried the pillow between the legs thing, no joy. Lying on my back is no better either. Have tried stacking the bed with pillows from head to toe as well.

I've got a two inch memory foam mattress topper and when I put that on top of the mattress I still get the pain, except not as quickly. My legs don't go numb when lying on the sofa nor did they on my old mattress.

While obviously I'm not well, and I suspect some nervous involvement, I'm certain that a sufficiently soft mattress would solve my issues. The issue of course being, how the hell can I possibly know whether or not a mattress will trigger this pain by trying it for a bit in a shop? Ditto with investing in mattress toppers to soften up a bed.

Going to see an osteopath next week.

Went to the doctor last week, and did a load of blood tests. I was low in B12, but I half expected to be as I hadn't taken my vitamin B complex for a few weeks. Even when I was taking it every day as I was three/four years ago I'd get numbness when lying on other mattress.

Weirdly enough aside from this pain my M.E. is remarkably consistent.

 

[CFS_for_19_years]

A physical therapist or osteopath should be able to see which leg or hip muscles are causing this. I don't have that much experience with osteopaths, but the one I did see long ago gave me some very good stretches.

I have a similar problem when I lie on my left side, but not my right. I've chalked it up to a tight iliotibial band and a tight calf muscle from an old injury. A physical therapist gave me a wonderful stretch. I try to do the stretch right after I bathe or have exercised so that all the tendons and muscles will stretch more easily. It's a supine stretch that can be done with a strap, but I prefer to use my hand to grab onto my big toe so that I also get a good calf stretch. It's important to keep the shoulder flat (the one that isn't grabbing your toe) and extend your hand to the side.

I hold this for as long as I can, maybe a minute, rest, then hold again for another minute. Then switch sides.

Here's a link to some of the stretches:
https://www.google.com/search?biw=1200&bih=572&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=stretch iliotibial band supine&oq=stretch iliotibial band supine&gs_l=img.12...432322.436067.0.438305.7.7.0.0.0.0.121.544.6j1.7.0....0...1c.1.64.img..0.2.165...0i30k1j0i8i30k1j0i24k1.vJVxDbUzM9A

When I lie on my back to sleep I put a wedge under my knees to take the strain off my low back. If I don't do that, I have a backache the following day. A chiropractor gave me that tip.

 

[erin]

I have the same problem, I tried the pillow between legs but I usually wake up that I kicked the pillow away and legs one on top another and bottom leg is numb. My right leg is worse. I spray and massage my legs with magnesium oil before going to bed. This helps a bit. But not completely eradicates the numbness.

 

[Valentijn]

I've tried the pillow between the legs thing, no joy.

My suggestion wasn't to put it between the legs. When laying on your side, the pillow goes in front of your bottom leg, so it can support the top leg without putting weight on the bottom leg. I rotate my top hip very slightly forward so the top leg falls naturally in front of the bottom leg, instead of on it. I use another pillow to support my top arm.

 

[erin]

@Valentijn thank you for the tip I shall try it tonight.

I don't have insomnia like many ME sufferers. I actually sleep very quickly, too much, too deep almost a comatose state. I wake up all sort of strange positions various times at night and go back to sleep almost immediately. For example, if I need to go to the toilet I struggle to walk, very dizzy can't wake myself up properly to go to toilet. That's how heavy my sleep is. And I don't wake up refreshed at all. Actually just the opposite, I feel like I didn't sleep. I usually am sore too. Especially my neck hurts, who knows what I am up to in my dream. I also clench my jaw so badly, I wear a protective gel teeth cover.

I have a lot of nightmares they wake me up terribly. Really bad, I resist to go back to sleep after these episodes but I can't help to fall back in sleep..

What I'm trying to say I find it difficult to stay in certain position in bed. Nights are difficult.