Extreme leg pain only at night

Question

Not always but several times a week or several times a month I awaken during the night with horrible pain in either one leg or the other but seldom both at once. It's hard for me to describe the pain other than it is so severe it makes me cry. Sometimes my legs are hard to move about. The pain is in my thighs, calves and feet. It does not affect the joints. I've described it as someone shattering my leg bones with hammers but that's not exactly accurate. It is not RLS as I have that and it is well controlled with Klonopin. If I can make my legs move and then get out of bed without my legs collapsing under me then walking around a little bit eases the pain after awhile and then it goes away and I can go back to sleep. Can this be explained? Thanks.

This discussion is related to severe Throbbing leg pain.

DeannaSusannah · Answer

I appreciate your posting and while it's true that occasionally I have leg cramps or charlie horses, the pain of which I am writing is not that nor is it RLS which is well controlled with Klonopin. I can't swear that the pain is in my bones but the pain is so horrible and the way it feels is sort of like someone was shattering my leg bones with a hammer.

DrSharma · Answer

Hi there. These are nocturnal leg cramps or charley horse affecting, calf, foot and thigh. They can occur anytime of the day lasting about 10 minutes with possible soreness after they are gone. causes can be over exertion of muscles, same posture sitting, improper posture and dehydration, sedentary life style, deficiencies of calcium, potassium and magnesium. Certain disease like diabetes and peripheral vascular disease may also manifest these. treatment includes increasing potassium levels in diet, potassium rich foods are bananas, apricots, cabbage family tomatoes etc. pain can be relieved by applying a hot compress and massaging a cramped muscle, soaking in warm water or holding your toes to stretch your calf muscle. Exercises like toes up and wall stretches help. Consult a neurologist if this is unbearable and not all these measures help.

DeannaSusannah · Answer

Thanks for the info. It doesn't feel like muscle cramps but quinine is worth a try. I actually like tonic water so that's a plus.  I relate cramps to Charliehorses and this feels nothing like that and I can't recall ever having a cramp on the outside of my thigh but....I'm here to get advice and try it out so, again, thanks.
DeannaSusannah

deeneezy · Answer

Hello there,

There is a possiblity that you could be suffering from night time leg cramps where the muscles will go into spasm, this can last only for a few minutes or longer than 10 minutes. Sometimes leaving the muscles slightly tender for upto 24 hrs later, but this doesn't always happen.... i'm not sure of your age but this is usually more common in the more mature person. It can be very uncomfortable and wake you from your sleep, the pain is most common in the calf and back of the knee and can also occur in the small muscles of the feet, similar to what you have described.

Often night time leg cramps are treated with quinine, and one tablet is taken before bedtime to relax the muscles and prevent the spasms. However, many tonic waters contain quinine, for example shweppes tonic water. You might like to try having a glass of tonic water (read the label to see if it does contain quinine) before bed to see if this helps (you can add fruit juice to reduce the bitterness).

Try this for at least a week, if there is no reduction in the leg pain you are getting at night time then please see your doctor, I feel that it is unlikely that it is due to something more severe such as a deep vein thrombosis as it is alternating between legs and only happening from time to time. However, this shouldn't ne ruled out without seeing your doctor.

Try the quinine in the tonic water for now, see how you get on. Good luck.

Regards, Dee.