Growing Pains

[Zoomer]

Actual, not figurative.

A keeps waking up in the night recently, crying that her legs are hurting her. From what she’s said, and the fact that she’s really tall for her age, I’m surmising that these are actual bone-growing-faster-than-the-surrounding-muscle growing pains.

Has anyone any experience of this? I have tried massaging her legs, but she hates it and it doesn’t seem to help much if at all anyway. The only thing that works is giving her (child versions of) paracetamol or ibuprofen.

Is it a bad idea to be drugging my child on a semi-regular basis (maybe two or three times a week) ? If it is, has anyone found anything else that helps?

[Mayday]

Yes, my H (now 7) really suffers with pains in his legs.

I did a bit of research and read that it can be a magnesium deficiency. Obvs don't take my word for it and do your own research but H has been taking a multivit with magnesium in and touch wood he's had no more pain since. It could just be coincidence, mind but would be worth you looking into it.

[Zoomer]

Oh. I’m an idiot.

I’m such an idiot that this is going to sound too idiotic to be true, but...I get pains in my legs myself, restless leg style, which I have self-diagnosed as a magnesium deficiency and which I treat by taking Berocca most days. If I don’t take the Berocca for a while, my restless legs come back.

I really honestly never associated the two.

I don’t think you can give Berocca to kids, but I will research a kids vit with magnesium and see if that helps. Thank you so much, Mayday.

[Zoomer]

Hello, my daughter’s entire personality for the last few months’ which I just put down to Shit Happening.

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N.B. Might still be just Shit Happening, but worth a try to see if magnesium improves things.

[Luce]

Ah, F has always suffered with this (also tall) and the magnesium is a new one to me! I usually just treat with ibuprofen and massage his legs and its getting less and less as he gets older but still. Thanks, Is!

[Mayday]

Zoomer! honestly though most symptoms could be half a dozen different things couldn't they. My kids had a bug recently and I was convinced it was chicken pox looking at the list of symptoms (it wasn't!)

These are the vitamins that H has. I spent ages in boots checking all the packaging and these were the only ones I could find with magnesium in them (I'm sure there must be others though, my boots is tiny!)
https://www.boots.com/vitabiotics-wellk ... s-10077559

[Tits McGee]

L is 6 and gets lower leg and ankle pain which only seems to happen when she’s in bed trying to get to sleep. She’s tall for her age too and has grown again recently so I’d just put it down to growing pains. I’ll definitely give magnesium a try though!

[olive]

M is teeny but wakes often with leg pains and I just drug him and massage his legs until he drops off again. I’ll also try magnesium - thanks for the tip!

[Heebie Jeebie]

Beebie gets this and wakes us screaming with pain perhaps a couple of times a month. We give him calpol and rub his legs and he calms down and goes to sleep again. I remember having it myself as a child.

I wouldn't have thought of magnesium but will research and consider trying it too.

[Luce]

Yep, I remember having it a lot as a kid (I'm average height, 5ft7) and my average height dad had it too. Maybe it is a hereditary thing.

[Disco]

I had it badly as a child and so did Monk. I don't think that it's an affliction of tall people .

[Hobbes]

Eldest had this a lot, and a trick I read was just before she goes to bed stretch out her muscle by flexing the foot gently towards the leg, hold a couple of seconds, then the other side, and repeat a couple of times. Probably not explaining it very well! Stretching out the back calf muscle.

It did seem to work pretty well most of the time.

[Tits McGee]

Just bumping this to say that I've been giving L magnesium (Floradix from Holland and Barrett) for a while now and it seems to have done the trick! She hasn't mentioned having sore legs in weeks now, and it was bothering her every night.

[Zoomer]

Oh, I’m glad to hear that, Tits! What age is L now?

I’ve been giving A a half tablet of magnesium* most days and it seems to have cut down on the screaming occasions slightly but not altogether. J is convinced that Something Else is going on, and he was with a physio acquaintance of his today who felt A’s knee and said she seems to have a lot of fluid there. I’m a bit sceptical frankly, and think it’s probably just French hypochondria, but I suppose I’d better take her to the paediatrician anyway just to be on the safe side. Le sigh.


*the only mag tablets I’ve found here say from 6 up, so I’ve been giving her half because she’s only 3. Maths.

[Tits McGee]

She’s 6 ( ). I hope A is okay and I’m glad things seem to have improved, even just a bit. It must be so horrible for them.