Is Dr. Mom in the house?

[InsaneCdn]

This one is "stupid". As in... I really don't want to go running to the doctor.
But I don't have an explanation... and the rest of you have seen so much that maybe... you can tell me if it does - even potentially - mean something serious. Or if its just my usual klutzie body.

Woke up before the alarm this morning (rare). So I felt lazy. Rather than jump out of bed, I stretched my legs and back while still in bed - and when I straightened my leg and pointed my toes, the one leg got this horrid cramp in the calf - about half way up.

The pain was so bad I couldn't pull my foot back or bend my leg.
I massaged the leg a bit, and it let go enough to function.

But... this is now over 9 hours later... and that spot on my calf is still sore.
Not interfering with walking or anything, just sore.

This is not the result of an injury. Everything was perfectly fine when I went to bed.
For the record... I fight to keep enough calcium in the system (can't have milk), so that could be ONE factor.

Beyond that... what does a whalloping big cramp in the leg raise flags about??

Thanks in advance for your help, Dr. Mom.

IC

 

[keista]

Potassium.

If they start happening more frequently, it won't stay sore all day long - your muscles will get used to it.

FYI I get really wicked leg cramps. I learned the best way to stop it is to "force it out" get feet on the floor and gently push foot down to standing position. Mine are so bad that I rarely can do that, but don't despair, you can get the same effect up against a wall! Yes, my bedroom walls have footprints all over them. Won't that be fun if a CSI team ever has to be in there?

 

[susiestar]

It is a charley horse. I get them, have for years. Eat a banana every day for a while. It helps, but not too much banana. I think it is the potassium. Massage the area gently. Be sure to push fluids for a few hours after you massage a sore body part, esp ones with-o caffeine. It helps flush out the lactic acid that builds up and can contribute. Ice it for 15 mn periodically if you can tolerate cold (I can't apply cold to my body for any reason because it makes my muscles know and they won't relax for a month or more. Odd, but it is what it is.) After 24 hrs you can apply heat to it if that feels better. Don't use heat the first 24 hrs after a muscle strain or cramp because it will make it worse.

Sorry you had this. They run in my family - at least twice a month as a kid I woke up to my dad yelling because he had one. Not a lot of yelling, just that surprised OW! that he couldn't help. Mom pushes bananas on him because she gets tired of rubbing out the aches after she wakes up to his OW!

 

[muttmeister]

I've had them too. They say it's potassium - bananas are good. There is also a school of thought that says putting an unwrapped bar of soap in your bed, beneath the bottom sheet, down by your legs will keep you from getting them. Sounds stupid. Shouldn't work, but for a lot of people it does. I don't know if it's a psychological thing or what but I keep a bar of soap in my bed and I don't get them anymore. Cause and effect? Don't know but it's free and it doesn't hurt anything.

 

[DammitJanet]

Both Tony and I get them too. He gets them more often in the summer months or if he is sweating a lot or working in cramped positions. I can guarantee that the way you stretched your toes pulled at the muscles along the back of your leg and they just seized up. The minute they ever do that, you need to immediately just sit on the edge of your bed. Dont even try to stop the cramp in bed by rubbing it because it will just cause it to continue. If you get those feet on the floor it will start to stop. Then start walking and it will work out. Yeah it can be sore for awhile but it will calm down. Either eat banana's or you can up daily vitamins or add a potassium pill. Also magnesium would be good to take as well.

 

[Signorina]

Definitely a Charley Horse - I got them horribly when I was pregnant. Since you can't have calcium- definitely get more potassium. Dehydration is also thought to be a factor - which may explain why the are more prevalent in the summer for Tony. Putting your calf up against the cold bathtub often cures them. I remember that the spasms didn't last long - but often left residual soreness. I've gotten a few after long evenings out too - so make sure you are drinking enough water.

 

[HaoZi]

Agree with all the above. You can also try adding yogurt to your diet as well. Yes, they can bind up the muscle so tightly that it feels bruised for days afterward. Massages worked well on mine combined with gently trying to stretch the Achilles tendon.

 

[KTMom91]

I found that the soap worked as well, and to make it even sillier, the best soap was Ivory.

 

[Hound dog]

Yup. Most likely culprit is low potassium.

If it keeps happening, go get your blood levels checked.

 

[hearts and roses]

Potassium and magnesium. My mother in law drinks 6 oz. Cup of tonic (with-quinine) everyday and she says that holds them at bay.

 

[DammitJanet]

quinine is wonderful for them. You used to be able to by it in tablet over the counter in something called Good Legs or Happy Legs or something like that but they took it off the market about 10 or 15 years ago...ticked me off. I probably kept them in business. LOL. I cannot stand tonic water but I may attempt to try it again if I can put that Mio stuff in it to mask the taste.

The soap stuff works here best for restless legs, not for cramps. I have Ivory soap under my sheets to keep Tony from kicking the living daylights out of me.

 

[GoingNorth]

I use the bar of soap and it works. I'm on the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) spectrum and it makes me crazy that there's no logical explanation for this.

I talked a friend into trying it and it works for her too.

Snopes has it listed as "anecdotal"

 

[flutterby]

Bananas, yogurt, baked potato with-skin, beans - all good sources of potassium. But, sometimes those things just happen because you moved wrong.

 

[InsaneCdn]

But, sometimes those things just happen because you moved wrong.

And it probably doesn't help that I'm over-tired and won't catch up until the weekend (squeezing 5 days of work into 4 days, to be able to take Friday off!). I know. Not a good way to operate - but if I behave myself all the time, then the rest of the family doesn't get a life.

Thanks for all the tips and tricks. Part of the problem is that we weren't going through bananas fast enough, so I stopped buying them for a while. Looks like I need to add them back to the list.

And then... to find a good (non-dairy) source for magnesium. I know - milk is ideal, because it already has calcium and magnesium in balance... but I can't have milk protein.

 

[Steely]

Possibly try Almond Milk or Soy Milk for magnesium?
It is definitely more Potassium than anything else. I used to get them so bad that I would get bruises from the cramping of the muscle, shortly after I found out I was seriously depleted on Potassium. I have to have a XR for Potassium now to keep my levels up (possibly due to a kidney thing). So for now try, spinach, potato skins, advocado, bananas, gatorade, etc. If it continues get your levels checked.

 

[HaoZi]

Do you like dark chocolate? It doesn't have milk in it and is high in nutrients (and calories, healthy as it is it's still hi-cal). Look for a % number on the label, likely 70 or higher.

 

[Wiped Out]

I used to get these a lot. One way I am able to fight them off so to speak is when I feel one starting I stretch out my leg and really extend it at the heel. This almost always stops them before they get really bad. Another thing that really helps to relax if nothing else seems to be working is warm water. One time I had it so bad in my chin (very unusual and very painful-definitely a muscle spasm and not chin splints)that it continued to spasm as I walked. I finally drew a warm bath and it immediately stopped.

 

[DammitJanet]

I actually had to go buy a bottle of potassium tablets after spending a week up at Jamie's and staying in a bedroom upstairs. Just the walking upstairs and down all those times made my legs cramp up so badly at night. I couldnt eat enough banana's to fix it...lol. I bought a bottle of that Cal-mag stuff and the potassium pills and it helped but I was still miserable until I got home. I simply cannot do a two story house.

As far as you getting your calcium, I have found a wonderful way. Caltrate has now put out a yummy gummy that has the calcium and D3 in it that we need. 2 gummys a day is all we need. And they are delish.

 

[flutterby]

Just a word of caution: You shouldn't take potassium supplements if you're on certain medications, including ace inhibitors. Check with a doctor first.

 

[rejectedmom]

I agree that it could be a ion imbalance (ie calcium, Magnesium, potassium) . It could also be a vitimin D dificiency, a vitimin B deficiency, mild dehydration or a result of medication such as those for colesterol or blood pressure. If it persists I would speak to your GP.