by S.E. Ingraham

Created on: October 10, 2009   Last Updated: October 12, 2009

As someone who has coped with this disorder for almost twenty years, I feel I can speak to it with authority and clear up some misinformation that seems to, even now, proliferate the Internet.

PLMS (Periodic Limb Movement Syndrome) is one of the most widely undiagnosed sleep disorders, mainly because of all the sleep disorders there are, it is the only one that occurs while you are completely asleep.

Only recently has the designation been changed to reflect a severity of the disorder that requires treatment, PLMD signifying Periodic Limb Movement Disorder as it has been discovered that a large percentage of the population has PLMS as some time in their life but are not affected by it. It's only when it becomes a problem, the diagnosis changes and the term changes and becomes a disorder.

It is true that some people do have both PLMD and Restless Legs Syndrome but, they are not connected in any way and they do not cause each other. This is a widely held untruth and one I would very much like to dispel.

Restless legs presents as an annoying feeling that the sufferer is aware of while they are awake. They report feeling strange sensations in their legs (and occasionally their arms) and can't control the urge to move.

Many sufferers describe the sensations as creepy, itchy, pins and needles like when your foot goes to sleep - they all agree it is a hard feeling to describe accurately.

Because it usually happens at night, especially when people are trying to fall asleep, restless legs, is considered a sleep disorder.

Restless legs does have some things in common with PLMD - it leads to sleep deprivation and stress.

PLMS/PLMD has no sensations associated with it and even though the twitching occurs with regularity every twenty to forty seconds, the movements are often infinitesimal and not visible to the naked eye.

However sometimes, the so-called twitching is violent and the sufferer awakes puzzled, to find a bed that has been torn apart. It is often the bed-partner of the person with PLMD who suggests their partner see a doctor about their disturbed sleep.

In my own case, I drop kicked my husband straight out of the bed and onto the floor several times before we realized anything was seriously wrong. Even then, we didn't have any idea just what was the matter.

People with PLMD, with or without noticeable sleep activity awake extremely tired but usually believe they have had a sound sleep. They have no sensation of having been disturbed during the night, and some

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