The Not-So-Young and the Restless

I used to watch that show religiously because my mom did when I was growing up. I remember being jealous of Nicky and Victor because they got all of my mom's attention and I just had to deal with poking her in the arm until she finally realized I had been yelling her name for a half hour. The actors and characters on there are not so young any more, and neither am I. Isn't it sad that we have to get older? I mean, I am grateful for the things I have, but I am noticing that parts of my body are not what they used to be (not that I ever looked great, but at least they just giggled instead of giggling and hurting).

So, what is this post about, you may wonder? I actually was not planning on writing about The Young and the Restless, just the restless (please forgive my randomness). My mom has suffered for years with restless leg syndrome. If you have never had restless legs, be grateful. I know there are millions of worse ailments and diseases (I am not trying to downplay something like malaria with some weird muscle thing), but it can be really annoying. You cannot get comfortable, you twitch, you feel like you have to constantly stretch and move, and you cannot sleep because you can't stop moving. It's annoying. She says it's the worst on planes because you cannot do anything about it. I have had it several times throughout the years and it is enough to drive you crazy. I don't know what causes it, but I have a theory about something that helps... bananas. I don't know if it is because there is a fair amount of potassium in bananas, but that seems to keep it away for me. Well, we didn't have any bananas last week (I rarely ever get to make banana bread because we go through them so fast). Three bunches is not enough for the girls and I (David hardly ever eats them because he is afraid he will get his hand bitten off). Anyway, because of this, I had myself some restless legs.

One day last week, it was so bad that I woke David up at 2:00 am and he couldn't go back to sleep. I knew I was having a rough night, but I was able to get a good share of sleep. Earlier this week, I wasn't so lucky. I had a really rough night and was never able to get into a deep sleep. It was exhausting the next day. The next night (after a horrible evening which involved me getting seriously ill from some food samples at Trader Joe's and then walking into a half open door... brilliant, I know), my legs started up again. I fell asleep with the girls watching a movie and when it was over, I put them to bed and was kicking, stretching, and twitching. It was awful. I had already cried several times that night and knew I could not survive another day without sleep. I just started crying and praying. I didn't know what I was going to do (as you can tell, years of watching soap operas has made me quite dramatic). Then, a thought popped into my head. A little over a year ago, my sweet friend Kimberly told me about a little trick she had learned for restless legs and I was willing to try anything. So, at 11:30 at night, I was running around the house trying to find... a bar of soap.

See, Kimberly told me that putting a bar of soap in your pocket or under your sheets while you sleep can help calm restless legs (they actually have pills for it, but what can't you get a pill for these days? I like to listen to crickets... there's a pill for that). It sounds crazy (just like putting Vick's on your feet to stop coughing, but it totally works), but, like I said, I was on the verge of a breakdown. So, I wrapped the soap in a Kleenex and set it under my leg. Instantly the restlessness stopped. Now, I don't know what it is in the soap that worked, or if it was just a mental thing, but I don't care because it worked. I immediately calmed down and went to sleep. Amazing.

So I am dedicating this post to Kimberly for her awesome advice. We are excited to see you in a few months and for your son's birthday party! Thank you for being a great friend over the years and for saving my family from watching their mother rip all of her hair out :) And, if you have this problem, you should try it. It worked for me, and I have horrible luck (and am very dramatic).