F*%#ing LEG CRAMPS!

Hummingbird125 · March 2016

TWO nights in a row now I've been woken up with a horrible cramp. Once in my foot and once, far worse, in my calf. My leg is still sore from it today. We had a 6 hour drive yesterday and I stayed up way too late last night, so I guess those reasons are to blame, but the night before it happened as well, so who knows.

I've done some googling, but wondering if anyone has any tips/tricks for 1) preventing them from happening in the first place (I've read stretching before bed and eating foods with magnesium?) and 2) helping them go away as quickly as possible when you have one??

kiwico14 · March 2016

I get them, too, and with DS they got worse as I got closer to delivery. My best suggestion is to make sure you're well hydrated.

AliKay20 · March 2016

@Hummingbird125 SAME HERE. Yesterday was really bad! We had a four hour delay at the airport so I sat by our gate most of the four hours. Then a two hour flight so I sat some more. When Dh and I finally arrived at our destination, my legs were so swollen and I had terrible leg cramps. He gave me a painful massage and I wanted to slap him at some point because of the pain lol. So glad I tolerated it because the swelling went down and I was able to finally sleep.

But ugh, it's the worst at the end of the day and first thing in the morning. I should also drink a lot more water.

Jaspertheyoungturnip · March 2016

The way that has helped mine go away immediately is to have my fiance flex my foot towards my belly. It's always loosened my tense muscles up so quickly! And it doesn't hurt as much to have him flex it as the actual cramp.

avclub · March 2016

I had a really horrible leg cramp last week after having a few little ones. I woke up the next morning and my leg still hurt. I've made sure to have a banana every morning, drink more water, and stretch my legs before falling asleep. I haven't had another leg cramp yet.

ashleymz · March 2016

Yup make your feet go completely flat.... like if you were standing up and have your toes go up towards your belly. They will immediately go away. My husband taught me this after decades of playing soccer that what he used.

danahorowitz · March 2016

They are AWFUL!! I get them in the wee hours of the morning and they can wake me up out of a dead sleep. I keep water by my bed and I've found that drinking water and sitting up seem to help and even standing if I can manage seem to help. I'm going to try the feet/ calf stretch next time, I'm exhausted just thinking of 4.5 more months of this...

Hummingbird125 · March 2016

Thanks for all the tips! I think I'm going to try really hard to remember to stretch before bed every night and water, water, water! The things we put up with for these LO's....

No more Miss! · March 2016

I remember then from when I was pg with my DD. I would get them while I was stretching out in bed and kind of yawning. Now I try to remember to flex my feet right away several times so my calves don't tense up and cause a Charley horse.

Yes agreed, water and bananas too!

tmk0325 · March 2016

I usually eat a banana when I get up to pee in the middle of the night. The twins are starving but I also feel it helps with cramps. I also try to drink over 100 ounces of water a day and I haven't had any issues.

Mrsrundell · March 2016

I have gotten one calf cramp a few nights ago and my leg was still sore the next day. I pull my toes towards my shin and it helps relieve it faster but, it still hurts like hell!!

Cshau · March 2016

I had a few nights of bad ones then a friend reccommended Dr Teals foaming bath relax & relief and I swear it helps. The Epsom salt is supposed to be good for muscle relaxation and preventing cramps. Got it form Target.
When I did get cramps, I would flex my foot and it seemed to help it go away quicker.

jamiesc58 · March 2016

I was always told bananas help with leg cramps along with drinking tons of water.

MamaKSquared · March 2016

I've had 2 really bad calf ones and they were both while I was sleeping. The first one, I stretched my leg out really straight and long, then flexed my foot. That did NOT help. It actually made it worse! My calf muscle was really tight after that. Going for a walk helped loosen it up. I told DH about it (he plays a lot of basketball and some other sports occasionally) because he's had a lot of experience with it. He said to make sure I'm staying hydrated and my electrolytes are up. Bananas help him. I've also found that yoga (or stretching in general) helps.

GRJC · March 2016

Eat bananas, drink lots of water. Do some stretching/yoga before bed. Those should all help.

JLyn821 · March 2016

Ugh...I really don't look forward to these starting. They suck. The only thing that helped was flexing my foot towards my belly. I had to use my hands to pull my foot. My leg couldn't do it on its own. I didn't find anything that helped prevent them.

Jengle77 · March 2016

Be sure you are drinking plenty of water. I used to get them if I was hungover (lol) and with my first pregnancy if I was too busy to drink enough. And I drink a crap ton each day, like 150 oz, and the days I got them it was like 50 oz. Good luck!

Duffgurl · March 2016

Oh they are the worse! Pulling my toes back for a leg cramp has always helped.

Nikkoli98 · March 2016

Avocados way out do bananas for both potassium and magnesium, and have lots of healthy fats. They may be worth a try for those suffering. I've also heard that you can absorb some of the magnesium from the Epson salts, which might be why that is known to help. If your body low on magnesium your kidneys selectively try to hold onto it and will dump (sacrifice) potassium into the urine. Dehydration and calcium levels can also play a role in muscle cramps.

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