holy charley horse

in the middle of the night I was woken up with the most dreadful pain in my calf. I actually began screaming out loud and when I felt my calf you could feel the muscle bulging out. I was paralyzed and could do nothing but yell.

Now I am scared to go to sleep tonight, because I feel like it could happen again and it hurt soooooo bad.

Any tips on how to prevent them or what to do when you get one to make it go away a little quicker?
TIA

Re: holy charley horse

Try eating a banana or something with potassium to prevent them. If you get one pull your toes back......it seems to relieve the pain

Re: holy charley horse

I agree with pp, point your toes up (towards your body), it'll relieve the muscles. hope it doesn't happen again!

Re: holy charley horse

Step on it. If you have What to expect, they have a section specifically for it!

Re: holy charley horse

Re: holy charley horse

I used to get them and now eat a banana a day and no issues.

Re: holy charley horse

i had one last night too!!! they s u c k !!!

Re: holy charley horse

I get this a lot, but I've been doing more yoga lately and stretching more and it's helping tons. I used to get this a few years ago even when I wasn't PG, but it's definitely worse now.

Best thing to do is rub it out when it happens. Flex your feet and point them over and over to get the blood flowing again.

Try to flex your feet more when it's not happening. You can also run your foot on a ball to stimulate and stretch it.

It's awful, but with some stretching, it should get better so it won't happen again. I had it a few nights in a row, but since I've been doing more concentrated exercises I haven't had it again. HTH!

Re: holy charley horse

i swear by vitamin water gatorade by my bed every night , the 3 days i didnt have it by my bedside same thing happened to me . plus when u wake up and stress before u stretch flex your foot

Re: holy charley horse

I posted this a week ago... water, a banana, and/or red raspberry leaf tea has helped me a lot.

Re: holy charley horse

I have to stand up and walk on it to work it out. I find sleeping with a pillow between by legs helps my charlie horses and hip pains.

Re: holy charley horse

I use to get them bad with my previous pregnancies and just started them this week with this pregnancy (18 weeks). I learned to try to stop them before they get bad. When you feel it coming on (when they don't sneak attack ya) - flex your foot on and off for a few - sometimes it stops it and sometimes it lessons the pain. I can't always stop them and have been right there with you - nothing you can do but scream!!! I have read drinking water and/or eating a banana before bed can help. Some say they are from lack of potassium and some say dehydration can cause them. Who knows...

Re: holy charley horse

I had them with both pregnancies for a couple of weeks, drink lots of water and eat bananas, definitely helps! I haven't had them in about 6 weeks now and I'm due this weekend