I had a spasm last night at 2 a.m.
 

Okay, not trying to panic but when your toe starts arching up (and I'm sleeping), and I wake up and I go "oh no, please don't let this happen", It's very painful.

Now I used to get spasms when I was a kid. Once in a great while, my middle toe would all of a sudden rise up in the air. I would look and go: "Oh, my look at this thing". I would press it back down and it would be fine"

Rarely happened again. Then as I got older, I would get spasms in my upper left muscle in my chest. This usually happened when I visited my mother in Florida (we did not get along), she was a (well, let's just say she was not a nice person).

But that passed also. Then years ago (when I was going through the crap with my son's behavior (about 10 years ago), I got bladder spasms (every test ruled out everything, so I just called them bladder spasms). One night I was in the shower and the hot water poured over me and it passed and it never happened again, thank god for that.

So about 6 months ago, my left foot started doing the spasm thing in the toes. I was laying on my bed and I started to do stretching exercises and BAM, the spasm started in my calf and I had to just wait and it went away.

So last night (in my sleep), it woke me up and my big toe was arching (all my itself, so I know this is a spasm). I tried not to panic (lasted all of one minute). I just tried to relax my body, I too my right foot and gently put it over my left foot and pried the left big toe back down. Then I sat up, slid over to the side of the bed, slowly got up, and i was fine.

Now you might be asking what happened right before bedtime. My girlfriend (the one with the alcoholic son who is driving her crazy), called me up from a motel and she was all upset about her son and she was drinking too. So I gave her support, and of course I started thinking about my own son. Not enough that I cried or anything, but I'm wondering if all the little stressors in my life (and of course the big stressor), my son, and the fact that we are trying to get a wound treatment center to see Alan and we found out that they bill as a clinic visit and it's $50 every time you go, and sometimes it's 3times a week. So we are trying to find one that bills through the hospital so there's no copay. Well could the fact that my mind has all these things going on and my body is responding with spasms.

I mean, I eat healthy, I do my walking, my PN is fine due to the Methyl B-12. I got so unnerved when I woke up this morning, the first thing I thought of was Dystonia, but I don't match any of the rest of the symptoms. This is only my toe.

I didn't have to do warm compresses or anything. It was over in 1 minute. I looked up the causes of toe spasms and they did say Diabetic Neuropathy, MS, Dystonia, and a whole bunch of other stuff.

When I have gotten these I was always lying down. Never when I'm standing, or walking. I feel perfectly fine this morning. Very confusing.
Anybody have these things besides me??

Mel

Melody
 

Hi - I used to get calf and feet spasms at night when I was working - I think it was beause of the shoes I had worn during the day - I'd go from heels all day long to flats to go play on the beach..... get them rarely now caues I'm usuallly barefoot inside - but do get them occasionally - if I've put some kind of stress on my legs during that day....

Anything different on your feet or??? lots of stair climbing or something along those lines?

Well, the only thing that MAY have influenced my toes were that yesterday I bought a brand new pair of crocs. Hot pink. I wore them around the corner at 6 p.m because I made a brand new batch of blueberry muffins and my neighbors go nuts over them, so I went around the corner carrying my muffins and wearing the hot pink crocs. Now these crocs are different than the black ones I ususually wear. They are a big smaller. My middle toe is longer than the thumb toe (on each foot, and my doctor noticed that the other day when he was measuring my feet for my new (insurance paid) pair of diabetic shoes. He said out loud "oh, your middle toe is bigger than your thumb toe".

So yesterday, I put on these hot pink crocks and I noticed two things immediately. They were a bit smaller than my black ones (didn't bother me at all). And when I slipped my foot into the shoe, the prickly things that stick out in the sole, well I FELT THESE PRICKLY THINGS. Didn't feel them on the back crocks.

I just said "oh, wow, my feet are getting an acupressure workout". After two minutes, I don't even notice them, because I sat on my friend's porch.

So as soon as I got home at 8 p.m. I took off my crocks. The spasm in my big toe happened at 2 a.m. So I really don't think (or don't know) if it had anything to do with the crocs.

I just spoke to my friend Esther and she said "oh my god, I used to have toe spasms every single night, I would watch the toe go straight up and you can see the bone go up as the toe goes up". "And there's nothing you can do, you just have to walk it off until the muscle spasm goes away".

Last night at 2 a.m. I wasn't about to go walking around the house in the dark, so I just took my right foot and gently pried the spastic toe downwards. It was very very painful, (didn't really know that toe spasms could be so painful).

Because all my life I've had spasms here and there, (in the calf, in the chest, in the bladder (they lasted for years and I wanted to kill myself, and I went to doctor after doctor and they never found anything). And the odd thing about the bladder spasm was that it mimics a bladder infection, only you pee normally, but you always have the urge to pee. Imagine having this feeling "down there" for 4 years. I was going through hell with my son at the time.

Well, one day I went to my doctor and said "I need muscle relaxers, maybe that will help". I did not take any xanax, I did not take anything during this time, so I figured the muscle relaxer (I think it was SOMA), I thought it would help.

So I fill the prescription, I took it home, and I was prepared to take it before bedtime. I will never forget what happened. Before I even took one pill, I was in the shower and the hot water was going on my body and it was like I took 10 muscle relaxers, my bladder just stopped spasming. I will never forget that. I never had to take any of the muscle relaxers.

This is why I feel that this is all in my head. My whole stress level affects my body. I know there is nothing we can do about the stress in our lives, only how we deal with the stress. I've dealt with a 26 year son who lives 3000 miles away who is a compulsive gambler and who never comes out of his room and who never gets off the computer.

I have had to put the worry about him about of my mind and heart. I have had to detach my mind from what he is doing.

I've been able to do this, but at what cost? It's like my son and I no longer have any connection. Don't know if anybody out there in PN land can identify with what I'm talking about. But when you go through this, your body has to react in some way.

And I think my body (in my sleep) is spasming.

I just took a co Q10 (my friend said it helped her enormously with her spasming toes). I guess I'll give it a try.

Isn't it odd that it only happened at 2 a.m. and lasted for 30 seconds. I think I would have lost my mind if it lasted any longer.

Oh, and this is important. What do I do if it happens again?? Do you put heat or ice on a spasm?? I never like ice on my body. Only warm compresses. Do you think that's a good thing for a spasm??

Melody

Hi Again
 

I used to get them actually late at night, eary AM - word of advice, dont jump up - woke up with a calf cramp so bad once I just started screming and hyperventilating from the pain, so made the mistake of getting up to try to walk it off.. passed out cold and cracked my head on the way down! (from the hyperventilating)... I found just staying in bed and rubbing the muscle until it stopped aching was the best therapy!:)

Now you know why I didn't jump out of bed at 2 a.m. and start walking around the bedroom. I just remained calm (pain was horrible), but since I know that spasms are horrible, I just pushed the big toe down as best I could. And believe me, when a toe is in the middle of a spasm, it doesn't want to go down.

Reminds me of when I was about 17 years old. I was asleep in my bed when I got this pain in my calf. I woke up screaming. My father and mother came running in and my father said "take it easy, it's a charlie horse". Never heard that word before. He massaged my calf and it went away. The next time this happened was 6 months ago when I tried to stretch my hamstring in the bed and it started to spasm. So I just stopped, I started to massage it and that was it. So from age 17 to age 59, no more calf spasms. Isn't that strange.

You know, how when you have a sprained ankle, they say to do RICE, Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation.

Well, what do you think is the best thing to do for a spasm?? Ice it, or warm compresses. I'm heading in the direction of warm compressions.

Simply because I remember being in the hot shower and my whole body just relaxed.

Melody

For a while last year i was getting such bad calf cramps while sleeping that my calf muscle was sore for days afterwards. I havent had any in a long time now.

Spasms and charlie horses
 

Hi Melody:

I get those too. I have found that if I sleep with a heavy bedspread on my bed, I apparently lift up my toes while I am sleeping and every now and then, get those toe spasms, where they rise up and are very stiff. I sit up and press the toes down with my other foot. OF course the spasmed toes hurt the whole time.

In the winter when I have that heavy spread on I get the charlie horses too and the only remedy for me is to again sit up on the edge of the bed, and either massage the calf with my hands or stand up. I am careful not to fall. A cane on the side of your bed might be a good thing to have for balance.

Now during the summer I have just the top sheet and when chilly outside, a very light blanket and have not had many cramps or spasms lately. But I agree, they are very very painful and quite disturbing. Some say that drinking more liquids will help prevent them.

But my dear, I am much older than you! I never had them till the last couple of years. Hope others will have some tips.

Cheers...
Shirley H.

Don't sweat it Shirley. You've still got it going on!!!!!

We're two hot chicks (even though we get spasms).

Right now, here in Brooklyn, the weather is absolutely crazy. The humidity is through the roof and the thunder and lightening before was something else.

That's when I can't stand up straight. But I don't want Alan to see me all bent over (isn't that stupidly vain??).

So I'm trying to walk in as feminine as I can be, and I probably looked like Quasimoto from the HunchBack of Notre Dame, and I said to Alan, "Please don't look at me, I want to have some dignity", and he burst out laughing.

At least I still make him laugh.

lol Melody

Melody
 

Try taking the magnesium and calcium on a regular basis. Mrs. D's thread in the vitamin forum discusses this combination. It has helped my cramps and twitches tremendously.

Billye

Mel my computer is crashing so get yourself checked for potassium
and with toes can be gout. The thing to do is try what Billey said
first and drink water. Go through hospital for wound clinic better Drs.
anyway, insurance will pay. I am spasm from head to toe. Darn this
sticken computer,no now. how this one gets through . Dakota
have a good time,i love you all,and may this is curse of putting
pig skin o a Jew.. Sue

Sue: You said " may this is curse of putting pig skin o a Jew.. Sue"

I have absolutely no idea what you mean by this.

Melody

Hi Mel, i agree with Billye, mag & calcium supplements worked for me with calf cramps, oh boy before hand, i use to wake up at any given time during the night with terrible painfull cramps, since David told me about the mag and cal, i have not had a cramp since and i don't take them every day just every now and again but its seems enough to do the job, i feel sorry for anyone that get cramps they hurt :eek:
all the best
Brian :)

brian
 

Before this comp. crashes again did yoou decied one to get???
Mel i'm Jewish and we are not suppose to have pork products/
Since i haVE THE PIGSKIN FROM KNEE TO ANKLE SHE WAS FOOLING
WITH ME. nOW I GOT STICKY KEYS DANG. i HAD TO POST THIS 3
TIMES. gOT TO GET NEW ROOF,HOUSE PAINTED INSIDE ECT. WAS
HOPING I COULD WAIT ON COMP. i HAVE FEVER AGAIN,BUT DON'T
WANT TO BACK TO HOSPITAL AGAIN. hAVE TO BE THERE tHURSDAY.
MY KIDS ARE MAD AT ME WELL 2 OF THEM,CAN'T DEAL WITH IT NOW.
oH MEL I HURT,SO BEING JERKED OUT OFF SLEEP IS NOT FUN. I HATE
IT TO. SUE

I know I'm going to hit myself in the head with this one, but Sue: why are you wearing a pigskin from knee to ankle????

mel

Mel
 

DON'T HIT YOURSELF, TRY AND IMAGINE ALAN'S FOOT SORE FROM
KNEE TO ANCLE,IT'S THERE TO KEEP BATCTERIAL AND OTHER NASTY.
THINGS OUT. THIS IS WHY I BEEN IN AND OUT OF HOSPITAL. iT'S
USED A LOT FOR BURN VICTUME'S. AND IF IT WORKS IT'S A MIRACLE.
OTHER WISE I WILL BE GOING THROUGH MANY SUGERIES,SO IT WILL
WORK. FOR ONCE I'M DOING EVERY,AND I MEAN EVERYTHING THEY TELL
ME IT'S NASTY AND VERY SERIOUS,NOT TO MENTION..tHEY TAKEN
A TON OF PICTURES,AND MY SON'S ARE ANGRY BECAUSE I WON'T
LET THE DR. CALL EVERY MIN. THEY MEAN WELL BUT,OH WELL.
SUE BUT MY FEVER WENT UP,WAIT UNTIL MORNING DON'T WANT
TO GO TO EMERG ROOM

[QUOTE=shiney sue;130087]Before this comp. crashes again did yoou decied one to get???

I haven't got one yet Sue, yesterday i went to a huge computor market,[ Sunday market] anyway i was checking out some of the Laptops there, the prices were a bit scary :eek: $$ to say the least, so for now i am putting it on hold for a while but then again i could go out tommorow and bring one home with me, so i will see what happens.
take care
Brian :)

Brian
 

They sure are a :eek: at least right now... Thanks Due

Mel,

I'm another who gets cramps regularly at night - they can vary in how many toes, the whole foot, etc., etc. are involved. I am responding because I saw that you were concerned about your shoes causing them. While they could be a contributing factor, I am unable to wear any store-bought shoes of any kind, and I still get them. I take my mag, and all the other good stuff . . . I imagine they would occur even more frequently if I didn't. Sure ain't gonna test that one out!

rafi

Hi Rafi:

No, it's not the shoes. The crocs are very big in the toe box.
You mention you can't wear any store bought shoes.

What kind of shoes do you wear??

Mel

I used to wear sandals I put together myself. Then I had a cobbler make a pair from my design. They have just a sole, kind of shaped to my feet, with a big toe loop sewn into the bottom (sole) piece. There is a heel cusp that rises up about 4' in the back. The top of that cusp serves as a holding loop for a strap that goes all the way around my ankle - the strap is adjustable and fastens with a small metal clasp.

They work pretty well but there are a few problems. They do not stay totally secure on my feet when I am walking down any slope and even with a cane, I have to be careful. Also, the ankle strap became a problem some time back, when my PN moved further up. So, I have developed another design - this one has no straps at all, not sure yet about the big toe loop. But I hope they will slide less.

And I also use the topless sandals I have posted about a number of times. They are not comfortable enough for me to wear too much -- but they work as a kind of change in sensation for a limited bit of time.

Topless Sandals

rafi

Sue I'm sorry your feeling so unwell and your family is giving you troubles. That was a few days ago so I'm hoping things are brighter.
Melody as for supplements I take that magnesium too and for me I see little change but a lady I know felt it really relieved for her. SHe swears by them. Does anyone take glucosamine msn here? I do and is suppose to sooth ache joints. Also don't forget about eating food rich in pottasium.

Rafi:

Oh my god, did that bring me back in time. I was 18 when these things came out. It was not well received by the general public. It was a novelty thing. They cost something like $1.99 (this was when I made $65 a week salary). But of course I had to buy them.

I remember people bought them so they would not get any tan lines.

I bought a pair. I remember thinking. "Oh my god, it looks like I'm walking barefoot." The instructions said "these can be re-used over and over, the adhesive will keep on working". They did not. So I dumped them.

But if you have a foot problem and you can't stand having anything on the tops of your feet, these would be perfect. Especially for around the house. It's like slippers with no top.

The only drawback is, let's say you want to go out for a walk and it' summer time, it's nice and warm, so you just attach these topless things to the bottom of your feet, and you go outside.

Do you have any idea, that if I did this, how many of my neighbors would walk up to me and say "oh my god, how can you go outside on the sidewalk with no shoes on?" Then I would just lift up my foot and go "oh yeah??, take a look, topless sandals". I would pay to see the look on their faces.

The only reason I don't get myself a pair of these is that I remember wearing them when I was younger, and when I went outside (I didn't care what people thought in those days), the shoe kept getting unstuck to the bottom of my foot, and I would have to stop dead in my tracks, press my weight on the feet and they would re-stick.

Tell me Rafi, have they improved the making of these topless things?? Have you tried them, and is the adhesive nowadays a better working adhesive? These sound like something all of us PN'ers who don't want anything on the toes, well these sound great (for the house I mean). I would hesitate to go anywhere wearing these outside because I'd be afraid of banging my feet, or my toes or having something fall on my toes. But for around the house, my god, these sound better than slippers.

Let me know. $10 is nothing these days if these things work.

And kudos to you for designing your own shoes. You are brilliant.

I hooked up something yesterday myself. See, I have problems with arthritic hands. I can't pick up anything heavy, or any glass.

So I don't buy soda bottles (even though they are plastic, I might drop them).

So what does a person do when they want a cold drink and they don't want to be taking out a big heavy pitcher of stuff in the fridge. We also don't drink anything carbonated so we don't buy soda in cans.

So what did I do?? I found an old 2 gallon dispenser of PUR water . I used to use it with the PUR water filters. Haven't used this thing in years. It was on the top of one of my cabinets.

I took it down. Washed it and said to myself "now, if water can go in this, why can't my Cranberry Pomegranate Drink stuff go in this"?? What I've been doing is making a big pitcher of the 4C Cranberry Pomegranate drink (kind of like Crysal Lite but without the nutrasweet). This stuff has splenda, is full of anti-oxidants, has no carbonation and I love it. But when you have to make pitcher after pitcher, well it's hard on the hands.

So, this PUR water dispense system has a spigot. So I made up a big batch of the cranberry pomegranate drink, I poured the whole thing into the spigot dispense system. Alan put it in the fridge. It's very long and narrow, so it doesn't take up any width. It just nicely sits on the left side inside of my fridge.

So whenever Alan or I want a glass of this drink during the day, we just go to the refrigerator, take a cup, put it directly under the spigot thing, pull back the spigot (think Beer at a bar when the bartender takes a glass and puts beer into it), so the liquid goes into the cup, you release the spigot thing, you have your glass of ice cold whatever you are drinking, and I close the fridge. No more heavy pitchers coming in and out of the refrigerator. No more mixing up pitchers every other day. This thing will hold and dispense 2 to 3 days of this drink.

Best thing I ever thought of. Alan goes "now why didn't we think of this a long time ago"????. Takes up no more than 5 inches of width and it's long so it goes all the way into the back of the refrigerator. I'm going to take a picture so you know what I'm talking about.

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i2...t/Pitcher1.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i2...t/Pitcher2.jpg

So any of you guys who have the challenges of arthritis in your hands and some days it's hard to even open your hands, you just buy a dispenser with a spigot, fill it up with your favorite beverage, put it in the fridge and you're good to go. I know me, I'll have this in my fridge for the rest of my existence. Makes life a whole lot easier. I mean, who has the hand strength to be picking up pitchers of soda, or drink mixes and your hands hurt, and you might even drop stuff.

Just wanted to share.

Melody (the inventor), lol

Mel,

Talk about old-timey stuff . . . well, your solution (i know, bad pun) is great. As for the "new" topless sandals . . . the good news is that the adhesive has been much improved. The bad news . . . the adhesive has been much improved. When I first put on a new pair, it feels like something is permanently sewn into my feet. Of course, a lot of that is probably just my PN making it feel that way.

When new, I am not really able to wear them too long. With repeated use, the adhesive does get less sticky . . . feels better, but then they have trouble staying on. You just soap 'em up a little bit, rinse and let 'em dry . . . and the stickiness comes back pretty good.

rafi

Wow, the adhesive is that good huh?? I would never put them on Alan's feet, because his skin is so delicate and thin, I don't even like to use band-aids on them. It's like when I bandage the ulcer, and I put a clean gauze and then secure it with a regular Band-Aid brand band aid.

When I pull that thing off in the morning, well, it has stuck to his skin. I am looking into gentle adhesive bandages. That should be a bit better.

He goes back to his podiatrist on Thursday and we are still waiting to hear from the wound treatment center. His insurance told us that each time Alan goes to a wound treatment center, if it's billed as a clinic visit (and most of them do this), then Alan's co-pay is $50.00. Alan almost went nuts when he heard this. It seems that if it's billed through the hospital, then there's no co-pay. So naturally, we are trying to see if it can go through that way.

Boy, $50 a pop, and sometimes you have to go 3 times a week!!!. When you are on Social Security, well, that is not going to fly, believe me!!!

Melody

Melllllllll,
 

Are ya there ,are you already snoring,no reason,just wanted to say hi.

I love crystal light my nutritionist hates it for me. That and Diet Dew. I like that container very nice. You do have quite a mind. I like the pink lemonade though in the to go bottles of course are more expensive. Target had a good sale on them. For those shoes or even crocks what about support. That is why I wear walking shoes for enough bottom cushion and ankle support. Maybe everyone is different but I have even been wearing walking shoes in the house lately to support my legs better. Melody does your husband every post on here. Cause he seems like he has a lot going on too. Your a good caretaker but I hope you get some yourself.

My husband would never post on this board. I suspect he also has Aspergers Disorder. All it does it, it makes you not a social butterfly, like I am. It's a spectrum. My son has it. He's very high functioning, brilliant but a loner and a compulsive gambler.

My husband is very shy, a loner, but a hard working, very loyal person. He is just not comfortable being around lots of people (unless he knows them of course, then he thinks he's at the comedy club and tells jokes). But to post here, well he has never wanted to. He tells me 'Melody, go and ask Mrs. Doubtfire, this, or go and post on the boards."

Also, because he can't type, well, it would take him 1 hour to do what I just did in 10 seconds. I've been clocked at 145 words a minute and I won typing contests. So he just leaves it up to me to come on these boards. I love it. He does read the messages sometimes though.

And forget about me wearing my new crocks.

I bought a green pair and a hot pink pair. Different design. Little smaller in the toe box. It left me with all kinds of nicks and cuts on the tops of my toes. I now am all boo-boos, (no problem, they are already healing, I've become an expert on wound care because I take care of Alan), but I'm not putting on those crocks again, until I put a piece of moleskin underneat the toe box so when I slip my tootsies into them, they will not hit the top of the toe box.

So I'm off to by my Buffalo Chicken sausages at Shopright.

You take care,
Melody