YYYYYEEEOOWW!! Charlie horse!!!

I'm not sure what causes them or why I get them, but I've been a prime target for Charlie horses lately! A few weeks ago, I got one in each leg, a few days apart, so I was waddling everywhere until the stiffness went away, and yesterday, just as I was drifting off to sleep, I got a nasty on in the arch of my right foot! YYYEEOOWW!! And just when the pain was subsiding, WHAM! Charlie horse #2... in the same spot, of the same foot!! My fiance thought I was having a seizure!

I take a multivitamin and a calcium supplement every day (family history of arthritis and osteoporosis), so I don't think it's a mineral deficiency... I'm lactose intolerant and I suffer from IBS, but I doubt those have anything to do with it either...

are you drinking enough water? i use to get charlie horses alot in my legs when i wasnt drinking enough water.

Hmmm, my husband says that about cramps too. I get them a lot in my legs and apparently it has something to do with not drinking enough water. Or perhaps your cats are beating you up while you sleep!

Oh I can certianly sympathise! I was awakened this morning by a massive leg cramp. The not enough water theory makes sense as I only had 1 cup of water yesterday and toooooo much coffee!

Poor you! Hope its better now!

Potassuim. Eat a banana about every 2-3 days and it should help.

What is a Charlie Horse? I've only ever heard of them in the game Operation.

A Charlie Horse is a {{{wickedly}}} bad cramp, imagine a horse chomping on your leg.
Most commonly affected are pregnant woman.
Extra water and bananas(potassium) are a great way to reduce these and also magnesium.
I had one when I was 5 months pregnant in my calf muscle once and couldn't walk for 2 days after.

My hubby and I both used to get them...usually in the middle of the night...and if you were`nt the one being awakened by the cramp...you were by the other person dancing around in the room trying to get rid of it. (Trust me, quite a comical sight too...we are both BIG and sleep naked)
ANYHOW..... once we started taking Vit B complex (You can get it for under $4 at Walmart) we have no more leg cramps...but forget it for more than a day or 2 and they are back again! Needless to say, we don`t forget too often!
Linda

Lots of good advice so far...I was always told they were due to dehydration..drink lots of water!!..Charlie horses are soooo painful!!!

I don't want to scare you, but I've heard that blood clots in the leg are another thing that can cause severe pain. I hope what you have really is just a charley horse, but maybe you should get checked out by a doctor just to be safe????

Oh I've had them before - they are terrible. I roll out of bed and just shake and then I jump up and try running around and everything to get rid of the pain- then when the worst is over, if you flex your leg muscles at all it comes back again. That's the case for a few days. I drink litres and litres of water every day and a couple of bananas a day too.

Oh those suck!!!! I get them when I'm sleeping and they lock my leg tight. I can't move it's like I'm paralized and it kills!!! I have to have my BF rock my foot back and forth to get it to go away. Then it kills the rest of the night and I can't sleep worth a darn.