September 25, 2021 4 min read

Can Weighted Blankets Help with Restless Leg Syndrome?

Do you suffer from Restless Leg Syndrome? Is this disturbing you and your loved one to have a full nights rest? On average there are roughly 12 million Americans suffering from Restless Leg Syndrome, yet there is still a lack of awareness about this sleep disorder. RLS can develop for a number of reasons. The syndrome can leave you frustrated night after night. It has been linked to biological and neurological factors such as heredity, iron deficiency, dopamine imbalance, pregnancy, sensory disorders, blood pressure, Autism Spectrum Disorder, neurological disorders, or coexisting diseases like Parkinson's, and Sensory Processing Disorder. For many, the answer for a restful sleep seems to be a weighted blanket.

Commonly, people over 45 years of age complain of RLS, but it can happen to anyone at any stage of life, even childhood. Studies have shown that females are twice as likely to develop RLS than males.

What Are Symptoms of RLS?

The uncomfortable sensations and symptoms can plague not only legs but can also be located in your arms or torso. No matter where you feel the symptoms of tingling, being able to fall asleep and have quality sleep for the whole night can seem impossible. Symptoms of RLS include an endless need to move, an inability to get comfortable and painful sensations, such as itching, and throbbing in the legs. A fact sheet issued by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke states that RLS causes exhaustion and sleepiness, which can greatly impact one's mood, concentration, work performance, as well as relationships. RLS affects both men and women, yet more women seem to be affected by it overall. Some causes include a lack of iron, alcohol, caffeine and nicotine usage, neuropathy, and third-trimester pregnancy. Due to the uncomfortable sensation of a RLS patient with nervous system symptoms, an anxiety disorder and stress can spark when you are trying to get a restful sleep.

Treatment of RLS symptoms includes medications, iron supplements, deep touch pressure, massage, as well as going through relaxation techniques to assist the sympathetic nervous system and alleviate stress before heading to bed. Mosaic Weighted Blankets ® function similar to a massage, providing a heavy blanket to administer pressure over your body or a particularly troublesome limb. Weighted blankets have also been thought to help with RLS Symptoms and Anxiety, Menopause, Serotonin levels, while providing a calming effect and better sleep.

How Do Weighted Blankets Help?

DPTS, or deep pressure stimulation , from a sensory blanket has been effective for many people with symptoms in soothing the aches and pains that make nighttime stressful for your mental health. A weighted blanket can be ordered explicitly to your height and body weight needs, a Mosaic Weighted Blanket® calms your mind and body, it is proven to raise serotonin levels so you can get the rest necessary to function properly throughout your busy days.

Meet Melanie

Take Melanie, a 35 year old nurse with Restless Leg Syndrome. She has suffered for years at night with a lack of sleep, with both a husband and a three and five year old daughter to take care of. For years she never even considered if she was tired or if she is getting enough rest. She thought that her sleep problems full of chronic fatigue and constant insomnia was just how things were when you have a family. When she went to her doctor, he recommended products that had weight to put on her moving and jumpy legs. Since then, Melanie has never looked back. She always sleeps with her weighted blanket. She also requested a day shift for work and was able to obtain better hours due to her seniority at work. Putting a priority on her physical and mental health has been extremely beneficial to Melanie and her family.

How Does Your Body Respond to The Weighted Blanket?

A weighted blanket can help the body respond to gentle pressure by producing serotonin, a mood-elevating hormone. Once your body responds to the weight, your brain produces serotonin, ultimately changing it to melatonin, a sleep-inducing hormone. Restorative sleep can alleviate your RLS symptoms while also improving anxiety and insomnia symptoms. Sleep can be enjoyed by you and your loved one with the use of a Mosaic Weighted Blanket® . Once you enter the weighted blanket world, many become "addicted" to their heavy blanket and claim that they cannot fall asleep without it. Our favorite part? It is a no-pill solution.

Some people with Restless Legs Syndrome feel like sleep is challenging to find at night, and feel like there is something wrong with them, but it's not their fault, and there is help available. The deep pressure stimulation provided by weighted blanket therapy can be the change factor for the sleep problems that come from your overactive limbs. RLS patients that have symptoms like insomnia will enjoy a weighted blanket, weighted vest, and other products that have an inner blanket with a duvet cover for washing purposes. Symptoms that can be helped by sleep deprived users of a weighted blanket, other popular companies are Gravity Blanket and YnM weighted blanket. If you are a hot sleeper, don't worry a cooling weighted blanket exists!

Long story short, if you have any of the symptoms listed in this article you should try a weighted blanket. Still aren't convinced this is the right option for you? Take our raving customer review from Antonia,

"No more restless legs! I have tried for years to find a way to prevent restless legs. Every night I would get 'happy feet' (as my husband called it) for 30-90 minutes. There was nothing happy about it and it was driving me crazy. I read about weighted blankets as a possible solution and ordered a king sized blanket just around Christmas. We both love it! No happy feet! The weighted blanket gives us a feeling of calmness, letting us both sleep better at night. Wish I had found this years ago. Thank you!"

After all, Mosaic Weighted Blankets love to help people get a more restful sleep and enjoy their downtime.

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Benefits of a Weighted Blanket