Tiramisu Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Dd10's lower legs began hurting tonight and she's complaining about the pain. She is in obvious discomfort. She is not otherwise sick. The pain is in both legs equally. It starts a few inches below her knees and continues to the area above her ankles. Her knees, ankles, and feet seem fine. It doesn't seem like it's focused on any muscle group. I can't remember anything she'd done that could have caused this. It's weird. :confused1: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Growing pains? Give her an epsom salt bath and some calcium and vitamin D (they all work together). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted December 12, 2012 Author Share Posted December 12, 2012 Growing pains? Give her an epsom salt bath and some calcium and vitamin D (they all work together). Thanks, Jean! I actually have all of this on hand! I don't know why I'm so happy about this. Maybe for once I might actually be able to solve a problem! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shukriyya Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Has she recently had the flu? Like in the last week? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reya Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Ibuprofen + heating pad. It's a leg cramp. I've lived with them since I was born, due to a congenital muscle disorder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted December 12, 2012 Author Share Posted December 12, 2012 Has she recently had the flu? Like in the last week? This one hasn't been sick. Maybe the virus that my other dd had is on its way in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted December 12, 2012 Author Share Posted December 12, 2012 Ibuprofen + heating pad. It's a leg cramp. I've lived with them since I was born, due to a congenital muscle disorder. Would cramps appear in both legs symmetrically? Can you pm me the name of the muscle disorder if you don't feel comfortable sharing it here? Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownie Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Other possibilities... my legs ache when I'm getting a bacterial infection; mono; general fatigue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SJ. Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I used to get this sometimes as a kid and I sometimes still do as an adult, actually I feel this way today. As an adult I feel this way when I have been on my feet walking all day. Was she particularly active today? Did she wear different shoes than normal? I vote for ibuprofen and rest, maybe a hot bath with epsom salts (if you have them). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I used to get terrible growing pains in my legs that sound like what your dd is experiencing. My mom would run hot water over them and wrap my legs up in a blanket. It worked for me. When my sons went through this I'd give them tylenol and rub their legs with bengay and put dh's socks on them (his crew socks would cover up to their knees) to provide extra warmth. Sometimes I also put an extra blanket on their legs. That worked for them. I'd suggest heat and pain reliever to start. If it's growing pains those should help a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reya Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Would cramps appear in both legs symmetrically? Can you pm me the name of the muscle disorder if you don't feel comfortable sharing it here? Thanks for sharing. Yes, it can. Usually, it's one or the other, but sometimes it's both. Sometimes, I hurt from the first joint in my toes up through my scalp muscles. I had a massage therapist once say I was the only person she's ever met with knots in her scalp muscles! I have a myotonia congenita--dominant form, but a familial variant. Dominant shows up in EARLY childhood. Recessive usually shows up late childhood/teen years. Some people with MC have mostly muscle stiffness. I don't notice my muscle stiffness except as limited range of motion. For my variant (and I think about 30% of people with MC), the big problem is pain. Major triggers are tiredness (so it more often happens at night or after missed sleep), cold, and other cramping or illness (like my entire body usually spasms when I have a cold, much less a flu, and menstrual cramps are misery), and either overwork of the muscles or, more commonly, LESS exercise than normal. Management--a steady level of exercise is the single best thing to control the condition. It's a metabolic disorder, and one of the rare ones that is generally made better with exercise. Avoid--potassium. Eat more--salt! Complications--I'm at risk for malignant hyperthermia with certain paralytics are used in surgery. In pregnancy, the loosening of ligaments + muscle cramps can pull my hips a little out of joint, can cause sciatica, and really messed up my feet lat time, which was corrected by othodics eventually. Relieving the cramps instantly corrects the sciatica and hip problems. I have a tight tendon in my knee that means I can't really run anymore except on a treadmill put on an uphill incline--there is apparently no treatment. Also, makes natural childbirth considerably more painful, and my body acts like it's on pitocin when it isn't. I black out when pushing without oxygen! I can be in more pain after birth than during labor, though, if I can't exercise the next day. Only medicines to treat the condition are anticonvulsants. That's just too scary for me, so I don't take any. Management with exercise is usually sufficient to keep the pain at a very low level. Medicines to control pain--ibuprofen and the occasional opiate. Heating pads and hot baths work as long as I am in contact with them. Therapeutic deep-muscle massage gives pain relief usually for 3 days after. I'm thinking of doing botox injections in a couple of particularly troublesome spots in my back after the baby is born. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reya Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Also, my reflexes are slowed by the condition to the point where my sprint was as slow as the morbidly obese students when I was in high school. I ran cross country because I was better over distance, but my body doesn't recover between strides like normal people do, so I could never run more than 5 miles, no matter how much training I got. I do have extra-strong muscles, though--weirdly strong for a woman. I did weightlifting for a while, and in 6 months, I was squatting 250lbs free weights--the only reason I didn't do more is that I was afraid of injury! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted December 12, 2012 Author Share Posted December 12, 2012 Yes, it can. Usually, it's one or the other, but sometimes it's both. Sometimes, I hurt from the first joint in my toes up through my scalp muscles. I had a massage therapist once say I was the only person she's ever met with knots in her scalp muscles! I have a myotonia congenita--dominant form, but a familial variant. Dominant shows up in EARLY childhood. Recessive usually shows up late childhood/teen years. Some people with MC have mostly muscle stiffness. I don't notice my muscle stiffness except as limited range of motion. For my variant (and I think about 30% of people with MC), the big problem is pain. Major triggers are tiredness (so it more often happens at night or after missed sleep), cold, and other cramping or illness (like my entire body usually spasms when I have a cold, much less a flu, and menstrual cramps are misery), and either overwork of the muscles or, more commonly, LESS exercise than normal. Management--a steady level of exercise is the single best thing to control the condition. It's a metabolic disorder, and one of the rare ones that is generally made better with exercise. Avoid--potassium. Eat more--salt! Complications--I'm at risk for malignant hyperthermia with certain paralytics are used in surgery. In pregnancy, the loosening of ligaments + muscle cramps can pull my hips a little out of joint, can cause sciatica, and really messed up my feet lat time, which was corrected by othodics eventually. Relieving the cramps instantly corrects the sciatica and hip problems. I have a tight tendon in my knee that means I can't really run anymore except on a treadmill put on an uphill incline--there is apparently no treatment. Also, makes natural childbirth considerably more painful, and my body acts like it's on pitocin when it isn't. I black out when pushing without oxygen! I can be in more pain after birth than during labor, though, if I can't exercise the next day. Only medicines to treat the condition are anticonvulsants. That's just too scary for me, so I don't take any. Management with exercise is usually sufficient to keep the pain at a very low level. Medicines to control pain--ibuprofen and the occasional opiate. Heating pads and hot baths work as long as I am in contact with them. Therapeutic deep-muscle massage gives pain relief usually for 3 days after. I'm thinking of doing botox injections in a couple of particularly troublesome spots in my back after the baby is born. Thanks, Reya, for sharing all of this. I have read about different neuromuscular disorders, and this sounds like one even though it's a metabolic disorder. Can they be the same? I never thought of how they would affect so many areas of life. I appreciate this information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted December 12, 2012 Author Share Posted December 12, 2012 Dd did respond very well to the espsom salt bath. I also gave her some calcium and D3. I got a chance to read descriptions of growing pains and they seem to really fit dd's situation. It was interesting to see that dd also has some other factors that tend to appear in kids who have a more difficult time with growing pains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Dd did respond very well to the espsom salt bath. I also gave her some calcium and D3. I got a chance to read descriptions of growing pains and they seem to really fit dd's situation. It was interesting to see that dd also has some other factors that tend to appear in kids who have a more difficult time with growing pains. I'm glad that it helped her. I hope it continues to do so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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