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HankMulbury

Bulletin Board User
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  1. Hello I recently got a terrible migraine, and my doctor thinks it was probably caused by my perpetual lack of sleep. I have obsessions surrounding Restless Legs Syndrome that has preoccupied me for over a year, and I'm still not really sure whether I truly have it or not or whether I have caused it somehow. But over the past two weeks I've been obsessing about tension headaches that sometimes actually result in another migraine and it mostly happens when I'm trying to study. It's like my brain does it on purpose too, because I will have these really frustrating and untrue thoughts such as "you won't be able to study", "you always get headaches", "you're feeling the tension now and you can't concentrate". It's true that I used to get the odd headache, but not like this. Why is my brain so barmy? It doesn't matter how ridiculous I say it is, because it really does seem to produce symptoms. And how the heck do you manifest in symptoms just by thinking about them? I mean I know that sometimes if you think a certain way, that you feel a certain way. And I know if you ruminate on them that they can become worse. But I can go hours trying to ignore it and nothing happens. And my vision will go blurry and the light will seem really harsh, I've found that I have to lower the lights in order to study. And sometimes I will take an aspirin in advance, because I know it's going to harass me. I feel like the symptoms aren't as strong when I do this, but surely I'm making this all up in my head? I can't actually be causing a tension headache or migraine??? How do I tell my brain to stop making up rubbish? I've been trying to sleep more. I'm now going for sleep at 9pm, and while I do feel tired, it's more of a weary tired, than a "sleepy" tired. And the RLS kicks in without fail during the night. I got some useful suggestions on this forum before, and I think they really helped. Care to offer your opinion on this? What am I doing wrong? What should I do? Am I just barking mad? Thanks in advance...
  2. I'd just like to thank everyone on this thread for their help. You were all very hospitable to me as a new user, and that can be pretty rare on forums these days, (evidently not here on OCDforums). Next month I will be going to a therapist, and in the coming days I will be going to a homeopath to discuss options in that area. I've been using some of the suggestions in this thread, and others I will be keeping under advisement. Thanks again
  3. Yeah thanks, I've been trying some mindfulness at the suggestion of taurean, and it seems like it could be useful as I get more familiar with it.
  4. Thanks Tricia, Yeah I'm sure it's been helpful to a lot of people. I will give this homeopath a try, I think.
  5. Unfortunately, no, it was just a series of thoughts that spiralled out of control. I'm wondering whether it's best to treat my OCD or just assume I have RLS now and treat that (or somehow both).
  6. Up at 5am, can't sleep. Thanks for the advice. I can only hope to master my OCD on a level like that. I've let this get too far, and I think at some point you have to decide enough is enough. I'll try it out tonight. Do I visualize the energy or sort of just "feel" it, or both? Good to see you're handling your themes well, and I hope your RLS isn't giving you too much grief.
  7. That's an interesting idea, I've never tried mindfulness meditation. I'll definitely give this a shot.
  8. Sory to hear that. What a waste of your valuable time and money, let alone prolonging your actual suffering. Yeah I think I'm in agreement, that if homeopathy has benefits, they could at least be nullified by a poor practitioner. I'm sure there are some out there who try purposefully to do as little as possible, so you keep coming back. I'll keep my focus in mind, and I'll give it at least a few weeks of trialling.
  9. Thanks, will do. Hope your daughter is doing well. Most people I know (including one professor of mine) argues that any benefits from homeopathy is generally within a placebo effect. I'm not so quick to be judgemental, I'm willing to give it a try. Sorry to hear about your suffering with this conditiong. Yes, that's the thing! It's the sleep you lose that ruins you. I think my focus is definitely an issue, and in the day it's easier to refocus, but at night it's hard when there's nothing else to focus on. I've tried focusing on other things, but then I don't get to sleep, and the sensations are always nagging there in the background. This is probably true, because the symptoms have intensified over the year. It may be a combination of OCD neurology (repetition/automatic thoughts) and some sort of automatic motor-sensory response that I've trained my body to perform. I've tried various strategies to stop focusing on them, some things that require concentration (like mental arithmetic and problem solving), others that require less (like focusing on different parts of my body or a sound in the room). I've also tried just concentrating on my legs, because I thought maybe it was fueled by the struggle of not wanting to focus on my legs, but this didn't much help either. Either way, I think a change in thinking will bring positive results in some way or another. I'll also be trying a more "relaxation" angle from now on, including Progressive Muscle Relaxation and calming teas like camomile and kava before bed.
  10. Hopefully the therapist can guide me through some exposure.
  11. I used to, but not so much anymore. I found if I did heavy exercise in the evening that my muscles would twitch even more as they relaxed. So I do my runs in the morning now, because I'm not the sort who can sleep in anyway. And if I wake up early for whatever reason, there's no way I am able to get back to sleep.
  12. I think the paper definitely triggered it, because I had to get really detailed on it. I couldn't just skim over it and be done, I had to really get a picture of what the condition was and even how it felt. How would you go about using exposure for RLS?
  13. Sorry to hear that. It's driving me nuts. As a medical student, I've kind of been taught to be skeptical of homeopathy, but I'm desperate at this point. There is a homeopathic clinic in town, I think I might stop by and see what they've got to say.
  14. I think you're right, it is heavily connected with my thoughts, and the idea that just thinking about it can generate symptoms. Of course, it's distressing because I do indeed manifest in symptoms, which seems to validate it even more. If my memory of this were to disappear overnight.. I feel like maybe I wouldn't experience it anymore. But I've had this struggle for so long now, that it's like my body is just used to it. Maybe even without the thoughts, I would have no reprieve from this. A big part of the problem is that I just expect my legs to play up, and so they do. In the lead up to sleep time, it's already on my mind. It could be largely habitual, a sort of sensory-motor problem due to the repetitiveness (maybe motor tics?)
  15. Thanks a lot Whitebeam. Good to hear you're doing well. I'm not sure if there's an OCD group at uni, but I've been to a uni counsellor, She, I suppose understandably, had no idea what to say to me about it. Sometimes I can just ignore it, especially during the day. It's mainly during the night that it does the most damage. I really need that sleep and I just wish it would stop. I'll be trying the therapist before I go back to the doctor. Maybe I really do have it after all. I think it may be health related, because sometimes I think that maybe I have a brain tumor or cancer and maybe I don't know about it, or that maybe the RLS is part of a deeper problem. Generally I can dismiss these ideas because I don't see any evidence or symptoms (apart from the ocassional headache). But as soon as I thought about having the symptoms of RLS, it was like I felt this instantaneous tingle up and down my legs. I was thinking "don't be ridiculous, I don't have this condition", but that night trying to sleep was pure hell, and I feel like somehow I validated it just by worrying/thinking about it. Thanks, yeah I've been taking magnesium and iron supplements for a couple months now, but unfortunately no improvements. I do lots of stretching, but I feel like it's become compulsive.. if I can't sleep I will often get up and move around, do pushups, situps or anything else to try and take my mind off it and get the blood flowing. I've been recommended Progressive Muscle Relaxation and I'm going to start doing it every night. I probably need to do less moving and more relaxing, if that's at all possible...
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