What Is Restless Legs Syndrome? Quick Facts About a Very Real Condition

The main symptom of restless legs syndrome (RLS) is an irresistible urge to move your legs because of uncomfortable and sometimes painful sensations deep within your legs. Some people describe the sensations as aching, creeping, crawling, or prickling. Symptoms usually begin about 15 minutes after you lie down to sleep or to relax, or when you have not moved for long periods, such as when traveling in a car or airplane. Symptoms that occur frequently can result in significant sleep loss, fatigue, and problems with daytime functioning.

After they are asleep, most people with RLS also have involuntary or jerking leg movements called periodic limb movements. These movements can interrupt your sleep, which adds to problems with fatigue. Periodic limb movements may also occur during the day, although most people move around after their legs begin to bother them. As a result, the periodic limb movements that people have when they are awake may not be noticed except under unusual circumstances.

Restless legs syndrome and periodic limb movements also often disturb the sleep of a bed partner. This can cause fatigue for both people and can strain the relationship.

Symptoms may start during infancy or any time during your life. At first, your symptoms may be mild and occur only once in awhile. Typically, symptoms get worse with age. After age 50, many people with this condition have daily symptoms and suffer from significant sleep loss. Severe insomnia, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and lack of social activity can become a problem and cause a decline in quality of life.

Restless legs syndrome may start or become worse during pregnancy, especially after week 20. Symptoms usually go away soon after the baby is born, unless the mother had this condition before she became pregnant.

Other conditions—such as leg cramps, certain nerve disorders, or arthritis—can produce symptoms that are similar to those of restless legs syndrome. But most of those other conditions do not occur primarily at night and when a person is at rest. Leg cramps that are not caused by restless legs syndrome often do occur at night, but they usually involve intense pain in certain muscles, unlike the leg cramps caused by restless legs syndrome.

The kind of "nervous leg" seen in some people during the day is not restless legs syndrome, in most cases. People who have "nervous legs" are not moving their legs because they feel the need to. In fact, they are often unaware that they are moving their legs.