Night Cramps

I've never experienced muscle cramps, even when my magnesium stores were almost depleted years ago. But I had muscle eye twitches that went away after I took mg/taurine injections a couple of decades ago.

The only severe muscle cramps I experienced was when I got on my Stairmaster in the mid 90s that disabled me for 6 months during PVFS.
 
With FM, my shin and thigh muscles are especially "tight" feeling and my left shin (the leading foot in hiking) has an easy tendency to cramp and this cramp lasts well overnight and requires tizanidine (which works best on actual spasms).

Could be something about calf muscles themselves or the connective tissues. Has it been studied in other mammals?

Now at 75 years old and with FM of long duration and its peripheral and central nerve abnormalities, my thighs (left one especially) feels heavy and rather painful before I start out for a gentle 20 min total walking time (but an hour's duration because of constant rests) in the woods, no more than an occasional 30-45 degree incline, twice a week.

Even that restriction leads to a persistent rather severe ache not well relieved by tizanidine (though a hot microwave pack is soothing while it's in contact), that lasts well into the next day and with less severity when walking around the block on subsequent days, as well as finding the stairs painful and difficult.

I don't have peripheral vascular disease that I know of. Good leg muscle development until after age 70.

Prior to my lastest walk, I pre-medicated with half strength ibuprofen/acetominophen and could feel a certain lightness in the muscle. I implemented an OT-like reform of my walk: a I slowed down my pace, rested standing every few paces and sat down aplenty. I almost completely avoided any uphill walking. Nothing more than a necessary 20% incline for 30 yards, twice.

This careful plan worked so far. No thigh pain during or after the walk. I am using the handrail to help haul myself up the stairs.
 
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Jonathan Edwards said:
That's what all the literature says but if you think about it it makes no sense for one muscle to go into tight cramp and all the others be fine if it is a problem ith salt balance. And when I have seen severe magnesium deficiency in people on drip feeds on surgical wards they did not get cramps. They were just weak.

I don't think it has anything to do with muscle physiology. I think it must be a nerve thing.
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is the vinegar/pickle juice thing an old wives tale or correct in being more neuro/nerve?

I was intrigued because I just tend to have a 'thing' for adding it to all sorts as I crave the taste of salt and vinegar so didn't mention it at first then AI suggested the above, which I'm conscious without looking into it could be another thing from 'spot a pattern come to wrong conclusion' thing. But if there is any truth it put a new perspective on what ended up being what I tended to reach for most if the vinegar was the immediate bit rather than the salt/beans etc. having 'done the trick/work'.

I never blinked twice to think on it as I tended to wear heels a lot so of all body parts that were being taunted to spasm that seemed so logical I never thought further, even now I think well I often sleep on my front so it's not about the foot resting but I could have fallen asleep with it either being pushed down by quilt or bed etc. But if these are people who are outpatients and none of them reported an increase that blows that one
 
Jonathan Edwards said:
That's what all the literature says but if you think about it it makes no sense for one muscle to go into tight cramp and all the others be fine if it is a problem ith salt balance. And when I have seen severe magnesium deficiency in people on drip feeds on surgical wards they did not get cramps. They were just weak.

I don't think it has anything to do with muscle physiology. I think it must be a nerve thing.
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That's interesting.

I've cramps whenever particularly unwell, have a headache, time of month or sleep loss. Magnesium helps. Same unripe bananas, coconut water, or lots of plain potato.
 
I get these night muscular cramps/spasms in my calf and foot arches and they are triggered while I’m sleeping. Sometimes they even get inserted into my dream that makes me wake up and deal with them. it can happen multiple times a night. Very painful and only relieved by standing on the leg with the cramp and or walking. They’ve progressively gotten worse over many years and nowadays I get those cramps in my hands also the day or two after hand exertion, but never at night. The hand cramps are much more difficult to resolve.

@Jonathan Edwards, I have asked all the questions that you have posed in your first posting and come up blank. I’ve consulted neurologists to no avail, although the introduction of hand cramps that are not night cramps must mean something…

it seems something is causing a sginal that flags the muscle to clamp hard… there must be some research on this somewhere…

does the fact that these are extremities signify anything?

I think it is a nerve thing.
 
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I used to get this pretty regularly years ago in my 40s waking up with cramp in one calf. Always the right I think. Not had it for at least the last 6 years since I’ve been in my current house but probably a decade or more. My life has changed so much since I remember this I barely drink alcohol, no coffee, no longer working- so no way of pinpointing why I had it then but not now.
 
I just remembered I get something like cramp in my toes once in a while. It's not really painful though, it's like they have locked and stiffened in a odd position and when I try to staightenen them they can lock back again. It happens when lying down. I usually draw my legs up and place my feet flat on the bed which seems to fix it.
 
I do get leg cramps regularly but not very often. Maybe once a year. Always when I sleep at night and I hate them because I am not even doing anything.

The cramps are really painful and wake me up. Always in my calf. The other day I had such a strong cramp that I had residual pain in my calf for days afterwards.

I always wondered what the hell was going on as I am really just sleeping, not doing anything. So now I know that it is not just me and it is actually a bit of a mystery.
 
Mij said:
I've never experienced muscle cramps, even when my magnesium stores were almost depleted years ago. But I had muscle eye twitches that went away after I took mg/taurine injections a couple of decades ago.

The only severe muscle cramps I experienced was when I got on my Stairmaster in the mid 90s that disabled me for 6 months during PVFS.
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You seem to be contradicting yourself here - you never had muscle cramps, but you did in the 90s! Could you elaborate?
 
Have experienced cramps in the evening , usually when in bed, toes ,foot or - echoing those who suffer from such nightime cramps -most often in my calf muscle .
Its usually only one leg or area at a time and is infrequent (currently 3 or 4 times a year).
Its always been sporadic and yes, I too had cramps as a kid.
(I use a spray -you spray into your mouth at onset- called Cramp Stop. “Beat the cramp monster”. A nurse who looks after someone with MS recently suggested this and it works surprisingly well for me. Hadnt found anything prior made much difference. It lives in my side table).
Have also experienced twitches.
Old injuries (broken bone sites, deep cut or wound sites), around my eyes/eyebrows , odd brief randomn muscle twitches.
Makes sense to me that its a nerve thing.
(Neuropathy or nerve pain -although I assume more extreme - in the same ball park ?).
 
MeSci said:
You seem to be contradicting yourself here - you never had muscle cramps, but you did in the 90s! Could you elaborate?
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I had severe muscle cramps/fatigue/soreness after exercising on a Stairmaster (one time) for 6 months during PVFS two years after a viral infection, this might have been my first "PEM" experience, so I consider this different from night cramps for no apparent or unknown reason. I'm not sure I'm explaining it right, but I also had a similar experience after I contracted Covid, but except with Covid it was leg exhaustion after going out for a one hour power walk.
 
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