Meet People with RLS: Joseph
Hey. I’m Joseph, but my friends call me Joe. I live in Omaha with my wife and four children. One girl and three boys. I am 36 and I have painful sensations in my legs, like something is crawling beneath my skin. The sensations keep me from sleeping at night.
Back in 2001, I was running marathons and competing in triathlons. I’ve always been an athlete. I just like to compete. After one particular race, I was so tired and run down, I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t recovering like I used to. And I was having odd pains in my legs and feet. I decided to see a neurologist. Over a 3-month period, I visited multiple doctors, and was finally diagnosed with having restless legs syndrome – or RLS.
For me, 2001-2004 was almost unbearable. I would be up most of the night, every night all by myself trying to walk off the uncomfortable feelings in my legs. I remodeled our basement single handedly over the course of a few months during the middle of the night. I was so tired all the time; I found it hard to complete simple tasks due to extreme fatigue, like changing my son’s diaper. And I couldn’t take care of my home. Family and friends stepped in and helped me out. And for me one of the most troubling things was that I could no longer exercise. I was just too tired. I was an avid golfer; I played all through high school and even tried out for my college team. My friends and co-workers would ask me to play a round, and I would turn them down. I knew I only had so much energy to spend each day, and if I didn’t save it for my wife and kids, I would never get to see them.
I worked with my doctor to find a way to manage my symptoms, but it was still a process for me. Now, I experience symptoms less often. Sometimes I still have to move my legs around, but I’m drastically better. Best of all, I’m no longer too tired to play with my kids.
So much progress has been made since I was diagnosed in 2001, and we now know more about RLS than we did then. My goal is to continue to raise as much awareness for RLS as possible, so that others don’t have to suffer like I did. Last year, I ran 50+ miles in one night to bring attention to RLS. This year I’m going to run 75 miles, and my son has asked me to run 100 miles next year. If my body will let me, I will do it! RLS is a genetic condition, so I don’t yet know if my children will have RLS like I do. I hope not, but in the meantime, I’m going to do everything in my power to help people understand about this life-altering condition.
If you want to hear more about what I have to say, click here.
