Ouch! Pulled Muscle?

[barry1010]

Cramp got me in the night - left calf. Jumped out of bed to stretch it out and now have a pain behind my left me. Hurts when I put weight on it.
Is it likely to be a pulled muscle or something else? How should I treat it? Am I right to rest it or is that the worst thing to do?

[naomi24]

I can't answer your question but I would recommend taking magnesium one a day tablets. No more cramp.

[barry1010]

Makes no difference for me, sadly, naomi. I took it for around 3 years and still got cramp. In any case I get a lot of magnesium in my diet.

[naomi24]

Oh that's a shame. I suffered cramp for years but no more, and I know it works for other people too. Back to the drawing board then.

[barry1010]

I tried quinine tablets for cramps but they gave me awful stomach ache. Cramp is a bugbear of my life, I often get it in my big toe which sounds funny but really isn't.

[bednobs]

i think you need a combination of rest and gentle exercise. Don't let it seize up by being still, but also dont run a marathon

[bednobs]

ps cramp is the pits. I have had it for the last 2 nights. because of my disability i struggle getting in and out of bed, and getting covers off/on and as my husband does so much for me already, i didnt want to wake him, so i just had to lie there letting the cramp happen

[barry1010]

I feel for you, bednobs. Maybe the hot weather is exacerbating the cramp.
I'm not sure if I've pulled a muscle or a ligament or a tendon (does it even matter?).

[naomi24]

It is awful. I used to be in tears with it sometimes.

[ladybirder]

Barry I used to get it a lot, it's awful, I feel for you. Magnesium worked for me but then I found out I didn't drink enough and a glass of water or squash would also solve the problem. I now have a glass by my side all the time and rarely get cramps anymore. Perhaps the same could help you.

[barry1010]

Thanks, lb. I have a dry mouth so already drink a lot, before bed and every time I wake up. Drinking a lot of water before bed has consequences

[ladybirder]

OH well, I tried;-)

Hope you find a solution. Perhaps your doctor can help?

[Sqad]

That was cramp, no pulled muscle, no ligament tears.
I ti extremely common to experience severe pain in the affected cramped muscle for 2 or 3 days, maybe more.

Exercise?......no.......do what you feel like doing. Voltarol or Ibuprofen cream rubbed into the affected muscle may well help.

[pastafreak]

I'd say your muscle discomfort is from the cramp. I woke with a tight calf muscle a few weeks ago...then remembered I'd had cramp over night.
I'd also recommend magnesium...men need 400mg a day. Do you think you get that much? That's a lot of leafy greens and nuts. Oh, and very dark chocolate!
I use Natural Calm which is taken as a drink...very few issues with cramp and I sleep like a log.

[Hazlinny]

I seem to remember a recent post re cramp where Himalayan Salt was suggested?

[barry1010]

The cramp was in my calf and is gone.
The pain is behind my knee especially when I put weight on it. I have just noticed the typo in my OP, apologies for that.
It is my knee I am having problems with.

[pastafreak]

That was probably me. I keep a tiny pot of coarse salt on my bedside table...a few grains helps if I get a bad cramp.
Not needed it in ages...touch wood ;)
Salt has potassium...I think that's linked to cramp also.
Will Google later.

[pastafreak]

Maybe you hurt a ligament when you had the cramp? Just guessing.

[Sqad]

Ah! right.
Then it is likely to be a musculoskeletal strain, secondary to your cramp.
My advice is the same.

[Hopkirk]

Pasta, table salt is normally sodium not potassium.

There is a potassium version for people looking to reduce sodium intake.

[pastafreak]

That would possibly be lo-salt, though I've read that Himalayan salt is higher in minerals than regular salt...so I guess somewhere in the middle between the two.
I know I've seen lo salt recommended for help in replacing electrolytes.