Restless Legs Syndrome in My 6 Month Old Baby

I hesitate to respond to this because I don't know if it will help you. I have RLS and have since I can first remember. My father and his mother also had it since childhood. I had wrestles legs just last night and coincidently because of a recent miscarriage had to have my blood and iron tested. I was not deficient. I think it is something that can run in families and may not be related to deficiencies at all. Mine does not keep me awake, but when I get it, i just have to go do bed because it is a sign to me that I am tired. I wish I had some actual advice, I've just always lived with it and have never sought medical attention for it. Since it is something thats always been around, but only recently has been considered a legitimate condition, I just don't think they know much about what causes it or how to treat it.

My son had this problem. He was a little older though. It was progressively worse with time and I had an infant that was nursing through the night, so I was exhausted and couldn't take it anymore. He would scream all through the night. He was about two. The Dr. didn't have anything to help us. The did tests and nothing came back. So we started advil which was against my conscience. You can't live on advil, it will cause other problems. Anyways, long story short, a girl from Church shared a DVD with me and I told her no a few times and finally took it just to tell her that I watched it. Much to my surprise, it was exactly what we were looking for. We started the program and my son no longer has severe leg problems. Occasionally he will have some pain, but rarely and it is only after a really big day.

Let me know if you want to watch the same DVD.

God Bless!

J.

My son too was iron deficient around 6mos - he started oatmeal and I'd give chicken (dark meat) - looks like those two things alone brough his levels up. Keep on breastfeeding if you can/want to - it still provide a lot that your little one needs.
Best wishes,
M.

omg I think my son might have this issue too... I am iron deficient myself and breastfeeding. My son doesn't eaten alot so I just kinda figured he was getting what he needed through self-regulation. One night I was sleeping in his room on the floor and I kept hearing him kick and fuss and he has NEVER slept through the night.
I was told he was just an active child.... but I always thought that was a bunch of bunk... thanks for posting this. Sorry I couldn't be of much help, but I just made an appointment with his alternative practitioner in Glendora... if you want to get her information let me know.

I do think that this is common, I'm breastfeeding as well, however my pediatrician told me when my baby was about 2months old to start giving him multi-vitamins with iron. You should also be eating iron rich foods I think that would help. I try to eat foods that have the most nutrients in them, so I've actually changed the way I eat for my baby. I think that it is also good to try and eat fish at least 3 times a week for the baby's brain developement. There are lots of books you can read on how to make sure your breast milk is really the best for your child, Goodluck! By the way my baby is 5 months old and very healthy with 2 bottom teeth already!

Hi A.,

I so know how you feel about no sleep! As soon as I hear that a baby/child has eczema and/or ear infections or any other problem (this one is weird I must tell you), my red flags go up. You have got to think about your baby (you don't say how old she is now) possibly being damaged by vaccines.

Please make sure YOU have done the research on vaccinations for YOUR child. The AAP recommended schedule of shots for children is too many, too soon. Here are sites and books that I always recommend for people to start their research:

Healing the New Childhood Epidemics: Autism, ADHD, Asthma, and Allergies: The Groundbreaking Program for the 4-A Disorders, by Dr. Kenneth Bock

www.909shot.com
www.tacanow.org

The Vaccine Book, by Dr. Robert Sears

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Childhood Vaccinations, by Dr. Stephanie Cave

Evidence of Harm, by David Kirby

When my kids were babies... they had a prescription liquid vitamin WITH iron, called "PolyVitamins."
I too, breastfed exclusively with both my kids.
Oh, and I always still took my Prenatal vitamins, while breastfeeding. This was per my OB/GYN.

Try asking your Doctor, about the "PolyVitamins."

Iron deficiency can also sometimes cause anemia.
Usually at about 1 year old, they do a hemoglobin test, for Anemia. At least that is the routine test at our Pediatrician.

All the best,
Susan

i HATE when someone tells breastfeeding mother that her milk is no good, instead of looking for the reason and the solution elsewhere! there are many causes for anemia. a lot depends on HOW the body is absorbing the iron. i've run into a good doctor once - he told me that no matter how many iron pills i pop, my test will still come out low. i was able to get it under control with homeopathic treatment. by the way, even though i am not the fan of homeopathic combos there is a product on the market called Restful Leg - same manufacture who produces teethig homeopathic combos and such - there is no side effects, completely safe. may not be very effective, since homeopathic remedies are selected for the person, not for the problem, but does not hurt to try!

Good Luck
V.

May I suggest a very good homeopath. Exema and "restless"leg syndrom, iron deficient- its all wrapped into something....she is agitated because something else is gong on...and her skin is telling you....restless sleep is sepia, escema is sulphur.....go to a DR, not a standard MD, but one that looks at diet, deficiencies and miasms- she deserves it- maybe she is allergic to dairy or wheat, and your eating it, and giving it to her? keep searching for the least invasive and most effective answers

if your child has low iron you should have them tested for celiac disease. If they have celiac they aren't absrbing nutrients correctly which can cause low iron thyroid issues etc... A simple gluten free diet can fix all that. Go to celiac.com for more information.

Hi,
My little guy will be 6 tomorrow and his symptoms started at 4 months - much like your experience. I never went for the blood test, but know he has it. Hopefully, they prescribed her a vitamin to address the iron issue. In my research I found that there tends to be a malfunction in the absorbtion and/or breakdown of calcium - so extra calcium seems to magnify his issues, so we don't get extra calcium anything (juice, milk, etc.). When he was old enough he did dexcribe his "tingly" legs. Poor guy. Well, I just gave the soothing lavender baths with deep tissue massage of legs. For him, this included carefully flexing his foot to stretch out the calf muscles. Typically, this is an older person disorder, or at least diagnosed later. He has had to learn that bedtime is bedtime, and he has had to figure out how to best soothe himself. When he was a baby, it seemed our efforts to soothe just overstimulated him - which was heartbreatbreaking. He is typically developing now - still not a great sleeper, and certainly not fun to sleep with (only on special occassions), but other wise he is a smart first grader. Feel free to ask me any questions - too many thought to overwhelm you with here.
Blessings to you

Hi A.,
I was told by my pediatrician that the baby does not get iron through breast milk, that they are born with a supply that usually lasts them for their first 5-6 months. That is why all of the baby cereals are fortified with iron! So don't think you are doing anything wrong with your diet or supplements and keep on nursing as long as you can. My son was also low on iron and he had to start taking the drops, they were disgusting and he hated it! Now that your child is 6 months old, I would try to get a lot of iron fortified cereal down. If your child's blood type is O, I would start feeding him meat baby food also, check with your pediatrician.
Good Luck and God Bless!

Hi A.

I can only imagine what you and your family go through having 3 children and a Mom not getting enough sleep. I do not know much about RLS myself however I do know of a great company which has iron available to your baby that doesn't taste bad. I am an Independent Distributor for Shaklee Corporation and one of my girls has used the product I will send you a link too. I nursed my girls too and was concerned about them getting enough nutrients. I feel confident that my second child received all she needed because I had switched my supplements to Shaklee while nursing her. The product that I take is the Vitalizer with Iron. I will also send the link for that. If you have any questions please feel free to ask. There is a lot of great info on the main page titled Health Science Downloads that you can read at your leisure. Sure hope you and your baby can get some sleep.

http://healthylivingmama.myshaklee.com/us/en/products.php...

http://healthylivingmama.myshaklee.com/us/en/products.php...

Take Care
J.

Hi, I can't find the post of the person who said they tried a DVD that worked a treat. What is the name of that DVD if you are out there? My 12 month old girl sometimes finds it difficult to sleep with restless legs, and my 4 year old has had it too for a couple of years. I myself have always had it from time to time, and during my three pregnancies I had it every single day! I have problems with iron deficiency so I think I will try and get more iron into Phoebe as well in case that is the cause for her. I didn't realise there were other babies out there who had restless legs too - people think you're so strange when you try and describe what's it like, most of them have never even heard of it.

Just wondering if you were able to get iron supplements for your daughter and if anything helped. Looks like this post is old but I am hopeful that you may still respond. I am having the same thing with my son. He is 11mo but has never slept well but its getting worse. I have thought it was just growing pains because he is big for his age. But it is getting to where he only sleeps for an hour at a time at night and less in the day. Thanks