Restless leg syndrome disrupts sleep and can make a person miserable. Unfortunately, the condition is still not well understood and has proved difficult to treat effectively with conventional medical care. Research is lacking on chiropractic care for restless leg syndrome, but there are sound reasons why chiropractic therapy may help.

About Restless Leg Syndrome

This condition is neurological, involving a problem with the nervous system -- particularly in the nerves running from the lower back into the legs. The main symptom is an irresistible urge to move the lower legs because they feel uncomfortable. You may experience leg cramps or aches, or sensations of muscle pulling, tightness, tingling, itching, and even of bugs crawling. 

The symptoms usually happen when a person is resting, which can lead to substantial difficulty sleeping. 

The Chiropractic View of Restless Leg Syndrome

Although you may think of nervous system issues primarily being in the medical realm of a neurologist, chiropractors also focus on this system as part of the entire musculoskeletal system.

When some people experience back pain, they turn to chiropractors for therapy in the form of spinal adjustments. Adjustments realign the spine to its proper position. That can relieve compression and stress on the nerves along the vertebrae. 

Back, neck and shoulder pain may not be the only symptoms of a misaligned musculoskeletal system. In the chiropractic view, nerves may misfire when irritated, causing the problems that appear in restless leg syndrome. 

Chiropractic Treatment for This Condition

A chiropractor begins by taking your medical history and learning about the reason you are seeking treatment. This doctor then evaluates your condition with a hands-on examination. As with other disorders categorized as syndromes, no diagnostic tests identify restless leg syndrome. Practitioners instead diagnose it through a consideration of the symptoms as a group, and sometimes by ruling out other conditions with diagnostic testing.

The chiropractor will likely perform a spinal adjustment to resolve subluxations, which are abnormal position alterations in the vertebrae. Subluxations can happen through injury, improper posture and stress on the spine during a variety of activities. They not only can cause pain throughout the spinal column, but may cause other symptoms and interfere with the body's ability to heal itself from various disorders. 

You may need more than one adjustment before you experience substantial relief. Some patients like to schedule regular chiropractic appointments to prevent symptoms from returning, while others see their chiropractor whenever they experience the first sign of problems.

Contact a chiropractor (such as one from Rockwood Chiropractic) for help with your disorder. Look forward to improved sleep and feeling significantly more comfortable when resting.