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A little stressed out this morning... and a Q about muscle spasms in 8yo


SKL
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I have a lot of imminent work deadlines and a sinus infection.  So the timing was perfect for Miss E to get a stomach virus last night.  And Miss A has something going on with her leg.  I'm not up to this today.

 

I was wondering if anyone has any thoughts on Miss A's leg.  She was making mild complaints about it off and on yesterday, but she was mostly walking and playing as usual, so I thought she was just trying to get out of going to TKD.  So we went to TKD anyway, and about 3/4 of the way through, she told the teacher she was having too much pain to continue.  She was in tears 15 minutes later and hasn't been able to walk on her leg since.  At times I could see the muscle contracting repeatedly as she was lying down.  I tried a little gentle massage and stretching.  I gave her some tylenol and put some heat on it and hoped that resting it overnight would help.  Today she still can't walk on it.

 

She thinks this all started on Saturday when she was wrestling with a neighbor boy.  She didn't say anything at the time, but she has a very high pain tolerance.  She didn't want me to tell her off about the wrestling.  On Sunday she had dance/gymnastics and archery, and went to her aunt's house for an overnight, where she didn't sleep well due to a large dog wanting to sleep on top of her.  :p  Monday she went around town with my sister and then had a 1.5hr gymnastics class in the evening.  I don't recall hearing any complaints about her leg all this time.  I saw her running and jumping and landing on both feet on Monday night.

 

I was wondering what is the right protocol in a case like this.  I called our chiropractor this morning, and they think they can help.  If they can't fix it, should I call our HMO, or is there a home remedy I should try?  I would like both girls to go to school tomorrow.  :)

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Back from the chiropractor.  They did an x-ray to confirm it's only the muscle, then they did a little massage and put some tape on it and prescribed an epsom salt bath.  They want her to stay home from school tomorrow too.  Hopefully it heals nicely so we can get back into our routine....

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Could it be Charlie horses? My kids get these when they are going through a growth spurt. They need the right balance of calcium, potassium, and magnesium; if magnesium is low Epsom salt baths can help.

This is pretty much what I was going to say. I have struggled with muscle spasms and Charlie horses and it is always when my diet is not balanced with the right amounts of calcium, potassium, and magnesium. You can also get them from not drinking enough water. My oldest has the same problem.

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Glad she is hopefully on the mend.

If is is just a muscle cramp, there is a home remedy that does help...but she may well balk at. Drinking an ounce or so of dill pickle juice is really quite effective. I first was told this when I played college soccer, and then again in the Army.

Serious runners also sometimes do this. I wouldn't make a daily habit of it, but if she is in serious pain you might give it a try as a temporary solution.

 

ETA: here is a link that does a fairly decent job of explaining the research (and I think it was only one proper study with lots of other anecdotal stories!). Basically, researchers think that the highly acidic pickle juice triggers a nerve center at the back of the throat (of course not specific!) and sends a message to stop the overactive muscle from cramping. But however it works, it can indeed be effective.

http://runnersconnect.net/running-nutrition-articles/pickle-juice-muscle-cramps/

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