Ms related insomnia??

[Tammy826]

Hi Dr. Park, I'm going to see a neurologist soon as my family doctor strongly suspects that I have MS. My problem is that I'm having terrible bouts with insomnia. I take Requip & Zanaflex nightly but they don't seem to help. The meds do help with restless legs & muscle spasms but I was told that they would help me sleep also. I wore a moniter all night while I slept but my results were ok. I have tried ambien & over the counter sleep aids & nothing seems to work. I turn off the tv, have the room cool & dark & still the sleep won't come. This seems to happen 3-4 nights out of a week. Sometimes when I can actually go to sleep I'm awakened by a terrible headaches. Is there any link between MS & insomnia? Also, any suggestions would be great! Thank you!

[Steven Y Park, MD]

Sorry to hear about your sleep problems. MS can cause a number of different reasons for poor sleep. You're doing all the right things for insomnia. Certain medications that relaxes your muscles can make insomnia worse, since they relax your breathing muscles. Mention your headaches to the neurologist and see what he has to say.

I don't know if you participated in my informal survey of people in the MS forum a while back, but these are the three questions I asked: do you prefer to sleep on your back, side or stomach? Do either of your parents snore heavily? Do you have to clear your throat all the time or have chronic post-nasal drip?

[Tammy826]

Thank you for your quick response to my question & the information about the prior thread! To answer your questions , I sleep on my side, my father snored heavily, & I also snore. As some of the other members mentioned my spasms ( & of course the restless legs) appear to be worse when I start to relax. Again thank you & God bless you!