Leg Cramp Follow Up

I'm writing this because so many of you commented that you or your spouse also suffered from leg cramps. I hope this information helps someone.

I have been taking a prescription potassium supplement and using the magnesium oil I bought at Whole Foods for two weeks now. Although I have tried to drink more water during the day, I am not pushing it to extremes like I did in the first few days. I do drink Pellegrino with dinner, and most nights consume most of a liter. I only stretch lightly when I think of it, and that is not often.

I've had new blood tests that are showing good levels of potassium and magnesium. They were low before. Apparently all the avocados and other high in potassium things I have been eating, and the magnesium in my Cal-Mag were not enough. (Avocados have more potassium than bananas.)

It is difficult to describe how different I feel. Until I relaxed, I didn't know I was tense. I do know I was afraid to turn or change my leg positions in bed because if I did I was likely to set off a cramp. I often had what I can only describe as a "jangly feeling" in my entire body: a slightly nervous feeling. 

I have been fighting sleeplessness for a long time, and would often have to get up to walk out cramps in my feet or legs several times a night. I would also visit the bathroom, but that was just because I was up already.

I have not had a cramp for ten days. I have been falling asleep much quicker than before, and only waking once to go potty, and then falling back asleep easily.

My whole body feels calm, no more jangly feeling.

My mood is better because I am more rested.

I can turn over in bed without worry about setting off a cramp and my feet and legs are relaxed. There has also been an improvement in my Restless Legs Syndrome, but that comes and goes so I don't know if it is related.

One negative: I have gained three pounds in one week. This may be because I am now "hydrated" as opposed to being "dehydrated."
I can live with a gain of three pounds if it means no more cramps, but have to be careful not to gain any more. Weight gain is not supposed to be a side effect of taking either of these minerals.

Only one more point. For me, this is the first time a doctor has taken this problem seriously. I guess it took a trip to the ER. If you get leg cramps, insist you get a blood test for potassium and magnesium. It sure has made a difference in the quality of my life. 

What My Doctor Said ...

I think this will be the end of this post line! 

Basically my doctor was no more help than any other. She listened and she was understanding about the pain I had experienced, but she could not give me a cause nor a real solution.

My Potassium levels were a bit low, but still within "normal" range. She prescribed a Potassium supplement. My Magnesium levels were not tested in the ER, but she had tested them in January and they were OK then. We discussed the use of the Magnesium oil, and she was OK with it.  I will have additional blood work in a week to check these two minerals again.

She gave me a prescription for Valium to be used as a muscle relaxant if I should have another occurrence similar to last Tuesday's. Its good to have it as an emergency treatment that will ease the cramps and keep me from having to call 911 again. 

We agreed that increased  hydration and stretching were both good and I should be sure to do.

Just to be on the safe side, she is ordering a Vascular Study on my legs.  We don't think there is a problem, but it is an elimination of a potential cause. She said the pulse was not strong and my feet were very cold.

If I learn anything else that might be of interest to others who have leg cramps from time to time, I'll be sure to share.

But other than that, I am returning to post about RV travel,  food, and getting ready for full timing!

Cramping Legs, follow up

I want to thank all of you who left comments on my March 13th post about having bad leg cramps. It warmed my heart knowing so many cared about me. I have carefully read all of your suggestions, and am working on changes that will hopefully prevent this from ever happening again.

Thank you Jim and Sandie for saying you would have hit the guy who said they were "just" Leg Cramps. My feelings exactly, but at the time I was curled up on the floor unable to move.

Al's description of my situation as being like "having a whole herd of alligators attacking my legs all at once". Yup. They just didn't want to let go. 

Potassium, magnesium, water, quinine, stretching, water exercise, Epsom salt soaks, Hyland's Leg Cramp PM, bananas, dates, potatoes, and pickle juice. I'm willing to consider them all, but I've tried the Leg Cramp PM in the past and it didn't do much for me. It is a homeopathic remedy.

I used to eat a banana a day, but it never helped when I had moderate cramping. I stopped eating bananas and potatoes when I started my weight loss plan last year. They do have a high glycemic index without the benefits of high fiber. Especially if they are ripe, which is the way I like them. On Wednesday I did some reading about foods with higher potassium levels, and find that avocados have more potassium than bananas and have more fiber. I've been eating an avocado several times a week for the last couple of months just because I like them and they have been reasonably priced. But I will still start including bananas into my eating plan again. 

It's the butter and gravy that make potatoes fattening, so I guess I'll include some plain steamed new potatoes. I had some last night and they were fine without any butter. My overall diet has been very high in vegetables and fruits so I don't know how adding these back in will help all that much.

I have found that sometimes tonic water helps, and sometimes it doesn't. It seems to help most when I've been hiking, so I will continue to drink it nightly when on an RV trip.

My regular doctor is on vacation and the soonest appointment I could get is next Friday. She asked me to bring in the lab results from that night, which I have gotten a copy of. As I look at them, it looks like all my results were pretty near normal. The potassium was on the low side of the normal range, and I couldn't find anything that looked like a magnesium test. The only really high number was my blood glucose level. We'll see what she says.

What I have found to try for the week is a product called "Magnesium Oil". (If you read all of the claims about this stuff it is a miracle product. I am as skeptical about it as I can be in regard to all the claims, but if it helps at all I let you all know.)

You spray it onto your skin (in my case onto my legs and feet) and the magnesium is absorbed thru the skin. I bought it at a Whole Foods. The clerk gave me a sample of it to try the first night. Actually the sample would have lasted several days, but I think it did some good relieving some small cramps I was getting in my toes, so I went and bought the product. It is rather expensive, but if it helps it will be worth it. She also told me to look up how to make it myself, which I did, and if it works I will give that a try. 


So there it is. I've been OK, except for a few little twinges.

I will post about what I learn after I see the doctor next week.

Till then I'll be drinking lots of water and ... 

Bad Night, Trip in an Ambulance

First off, both of us are OK.

Tuesday night I had a terrible time that ended with Craig calling 911 and me being taken to the hospital in an ambulance. I am very grateful that nothing was seriously wrong with me. No heart attack, no stroke, no accidental cut or fall.

What did happen was that I had the worst attack of leg cramps I have ever experienced, and ended up collapsing on the floor, writhing in pain and screaming for help. I'm usually a pretty tough old bat, and this was not like me. It was uncontrollable.

I often get leg cramps in the night. I usually can just get out of bed, get to another room and walk them out. Painful, yes, and the reason I try to get to another room is so my little uncontrolled whimpers don't alarm Craig. He knows he can't help me and I am best left to walk them out alone.

This time I had a few cramps as I stood up from the recliner I had been reading in, when it was time to get ready for bed. First my foot and then my leg muscle tightened. It was a bother, but I got relief in a few minutes of walking. I have found that drinking tonic water can give me some relief, so I chugged a large glass of it before going to bed.

Not long after getting comfortable, I felt the muscles on the top of my foot start to cramp. As I got out of bed, it seemed like every muscle in both my feet, both my calves, and both my thighs tightened at once.  I couldn't stand upright or walk. I managed to move a few feet to grab hold of some bookshelves, but the pain was so horrific I collapsed onto the floor.

Craig heard me screaming and came to help, but rubbing and trying to flex my legs and feet did no good.  It seemed to go on and on.  I became wet with sweat, then cold with chills. I felt like I was going to vomit. Craig asked if he could take me to the ER, but I couldn't get up to get to the car. He called 911 and at least six firemen and EMTs came.  

By the time they arrived, the worst was over, but I still could not move without the cramping starting all over again. After  taking my vitals and getting me calmed down, they determined I had not had a heart attack or stroke, and was "just" having leg cramps.  The EMT asked that in terms of pain, if childbirth was a 10, where did this fall.  I said 11.  Yes, worse than childbirth!

At first they tried to help me up, but as soon as I moved the muscles started locking up again. They decided I needed to go to the hospital, but how to get me out of the house was a problem.  They could have brought the gurney in thru the front door, but that involves two flights of stairs.  The other option was to go out thru the laundry room that is right next to the bedroom where I was, but the gurney wouldn't fit past the washer.  

So they wrapped me up like a sausage in a crescent roll in the quilt Craig had covered me with, and used it like a stretcher. 




The ride in the ambulance was not easy.  My stomach was flipping and the motion of the ride was no help. The EMT gave me something to ease it, but it didn't have much effect.  Wanting to upchuck when you are strapped down is horrible.

Once in the ER I was given a shot for the nausea and put on an IV.

I started to feel a bit better, and the young male nurse replaced the used basin with a barf-bag that looked like this except it was bright blue.

I told him it looked like a condom for an elephant!  

Fortunately I no longer needed it.

We ended up spend most of the night in the ER as the IV drip did its work and we waited for the results of some blood work. The older doctor was very kind. He reassured me that it was not serious, but also that he could tell how bad the pain had been. He said my upset stomach was a reaction to severe pain.

The cause? He said there are several theories, but no cure other than prevention by stretching before bed and drinking lots of water to prevent dehydration. 

Today, Wednesday, my legs hurt but are not cramping.  I have consumed eight glasses of water and feel like a water balloon, but if it will save me from ever having that happen again, I will do it every day.  

Coffee, wine, and tea don't count.