Nightime leg cramps...ouch!

Last night I awoke from sleep with a cramp in my right calf. I don't typically suffer such cramps, I can think of only once or twice in my life I've been awoken with such a thing. And man! That hurt. Hurt to the point where I couldn't help crying out (very creatively) "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!!!!" waking up my S.O.

I could feel the muscle all balled up and after a few seconds of massaging it and straightening the leg and flexing the foot it subsided, and i could go back to sleep. It is still a bit sore this morning though. made me want to look it up...on the Internets of course!

So, the Mayo Clinic tells me:

The exact cause of night leg cramps isn't known. Some experts believe they may be due to abnormal processing of electrolytes — essential elements and chemical substances your body needs for basic functions — by muscles.

But then, oddly enough, they go on to list "common causes". If they don't know the "exact cause", how can they know the "common" causes? :)

About.com's Orthopedics section has much of the same information. They do point out that: "Leg cramps are more common in young (adolescent age) and older (over 65) patients." So I guess I'm uncommon!

I was probably a little bit dehydrated when I went to bed last night. i usually drink a lot more water all throughout the day than I happened to yesterday. I certainly didn't do anything new and unusual from a physical activity point of view, so dehydration is my story, and I'm sticking to it.

But I'll never make fun of those commercials again with the guy sitting up in bed grabbing his leg with an agonized expression on his face. I'm sure that's exactly what I looked like!

Comments

[sue]

Please please if anybody knows a cure for these leg cramps, please let us know. Recently, I have been waking up between four and six o'clock in the morning at least four times a week, with cramping in not one, but both legs from top to bottom. Not only is it painful to get up, but virtually impossible to even walk. It is more painful than labor!

[Elisa Camahort]

Hey, that sounds like it's worth a trip to the doctor!!! That is definitely not OK. Sorry I can't be of more help than that.

[Janet]

I used to have leg cramps until recently, and there are many good ideas on why they happen and how to get rid of them.

Go here

http://www.nolegcramps.com/

to read personal advice by people who suffer leg cramps like you do.

[Acupuncture]

As an acupuncturist, I see a lot of people with these types of leg cramps. Many people have found taking a good Calcium/Magnesium supplement and Vitamin E help to re-establish the Calcium channel balance that may lead to such a lock-up in your muscles. The Vitamin E helps to nourish the muscles.
From an acupuncture point of view, we can help, too! Acupuncture helps to re-balance the body from the energetic standpoint and this can help increase qi/chi/energy, blood, fluids circulation, relieve pain, relax muscles, etc - this ancient medicine is about understanding which systems are not communicating within an individual that then presents as leg cramps. There are wonderful herbal formulas to help relax cramps, too, but I encourage seeing a Licensed Acupuncturist/herbalist before grabbing Chinese herbal formulas to self-herbalize. I hope this helps a little!