Charlie Horse Cramps!

Charlie Horses are usually due to deficiencies in Calcium and/or potassium. I have gotten them at various points in my life, but got them frequently while pregnant until I started taking a calcium supplement before bed. After that I only got them when I forgot to take the supplement for a couple of days. Taking potassium or eating something potassium-rich,like bananas, can help prevent them as well.

As for coping when you have them, I began to use the relaxation techniques I was learning in my childbirth and prenatal yoga classes. I would take deep breaths and consciously relax my, muscles. This actually made the pain stop and was great practice for childbirth! (of course I much preferred preventing them).

Good Luck!

1 mom found this helpful

i've had those all my life, but a LOT when i was pregnant. they are commonly caused from a calcium deficiency. my cnm recommends taking a calcium citrate supplement preferably with magnesium which helps the body absorb the calcium. it helped me a lot. if i was having one i would flex my foot as hard as i could and they would usually stop pretty quick (don't point or they get worse). hope this helps you too!!

Flex your foot-heel down toes up towards you (don't point your toe, that hurts worse!) and the pain should go away. This actually works better than even getting up and walking on it. Hope this helps, I know how painful they can be!

J. M.

Corny as it sounds, when a cramp hits, pinch the spot between your nose and upper lip, hard! It usually subsides the pain. As a real cure, though, my husband started taking Magnesium supplements and his cramps have all but stopped. Maybe run it past your doc?

Good luck!

Start taking a Calcium and Magnesium supplement before bed.

at least 1200mg of cal and 400 of Mag.

The Calcium will help with muscle pain's/cramps and the magnesium will help you relax.

Eat a banana every day & it will go away. (Not tring to rhyme!!) LOL!
That helped me when I was pregnant & my ob/gyn told me to cut DOWN on my dairy. I was having a yogurt, 1-2 glasses of milk, cheese & Tums every day and she said TOO much Calcium could cause it - although there is no research on that! If it continues, I'd call the dr. I think they should stop after you have the baby.
Feel better soon!

Hi L.,
I agree with the women that said eat bananas. I never got charlie horses until I became pregnant and then got them a lot. I was told to eat bananas and started eating them at least once a day and they stopped completely. Good luck.
Chris

I have the same thing happening to me. To try and prevent them I have been drinking a glass of water before bed. The charlie horses are apparently associated to not enough water in the system. Also I have heard that eating bananas is good too! good luck!

add a banana in your diet ever day

I started strethching every night before bed and that really help a lot. -E.

Drink milk and eat bananas to prevent them.

Charlie horse cramps usually mean you are deficient in calcium and magnesium or you are dehydrated. also, stretching your hamstrings before bed can help. But I also found when I was pregnant that stretching and pointing my toes could bring them on in the morning. Hope they go away soon!

All the response are all great ways to strech the cramps out but to avoid them completely is to eat banana's several time a day. When I was pregnant I was getting leg cramps nearly everyday and the Dr.gave me the idea of banana's.

A friend of mine just told me about this one a couple of days ago. Her son has been having them for quite a while and she was told to give him pickle juice!! She gave him some the other night instead of a motrin and then asked him the next morning if it worked..., and his response was " well I fell asleep so it must of worked" lol. I guess it's an old time remedy, but really I have no idea if it works or not.

Hi L.,
I had realy bad charlie horses when I was pregnant. My doctor told me to eat a banana a day and they stopped. You might want to try that before takign any medication. Then if the banana doesn't work, talk to your doctor before taking any medication.