Medical Question - Flower Mound,TX

I had this as a kid. It was growing pains and it's miserable. Try the banana (potassium) and rubbing her legs. There isn't a whole lot else you can do but to be there for her. She will grow out of it at some point. Big hugs!

I had severe growing pains as a child,my daughter and son had them. The best thing you can do is apply heat.Muscle rub helps some.

I experience this quite often in my adolecence. If she is very active and is eating well then it really is just growing pains. Trying cold/hot compresses and massage. If it continues you might try a chiropractor.

A multivitamin might help, as well as maybe some ibuprofen or motrin, as you mentioned. Maybe even rubbing BEN GAY or Aspercreme on her legs before bed before the pain starts. Also, check the arches in her feet. If she's wearing flip flops or shoes with little arch support, this can cause her hips and knees to be misaligned, causing pain in her ankles, knees and hips. Have her wear good sneakers with arch support and socks over the next few days, too and see if that helps.

Growing pains are very real and it's very possible for that to be all that it is.
I still remember my legs hurting me so badly and my dad would come in and rub my legs for me. My mom thought I was full of it, but my dad...
he said it was growing pains and he would stay with me until I fell asleep.
Both of my kids had growing pains in their legs too so I knew right away what it was. They were fine running around during the D. but at night, they would cry that their legs hurt. I did just what my dad did. I stayed by them and rubbed their legs and relaxed them until they could to to sleep.

If I hadn't had them, I wouldn't have known. My mom never did so like I said, she didn't believe much about it. But my dad was awesome. He'd had them too and did what his dad did.
It does go away.
But the pain is really real.

Best wishes!

It is growing pains. Potassium helps with this - give her a banana when the pain starts, it helped my son. I made sure he ate bananas everyday when the pains were more prevalent.

Yes, very common between the ages of 3-5 and then again at 7-9. She will eventually grow out of it. A supplement with calcium and magnesium called Natural Calm for Kids is a great way to either minimize or all together get rid of these "growing pains". It really helped my son when he was 3. Your pedi obviously ruled out anything serious that it could be (like juvenile RA) with the x-ray. So, just know that it won't last forever, but the supplement works great and can be found at Whole Foods. Hope this helps!

My almost 11 year old daughter has them too. They are very bad when she is going through a growth spurt. I was told to try banana's and they work. We keep banana's on hand everyday. When she starts to feel the pains, she tells me she needs a banana and will have 1 in the morning and before bed for a few weeks. They really do the trick for her. I rarely give her pain medicine or rub her legs. The bananas are enough most of the time.

My grandson (and his daddy) have experience with growing pains – during growth spurts (bones lengthen primarily during sleep), tissues surrounding the bones have to stretch faster than they are comfortable doing. Pain is so much harder to cope with when it wakes us at night – the same amount of pain while playing would probably be easier to tolerate. Ibuprofen and massage are both good. You could try warm or cool compresses.

I really like several topical creams and gels made by Boerke and Tafel, and you can find these in nutrition centers or health food stores. They use homeopathic remedies to address several different kinds of pain and irritation. I'm thinking that one in particular called TriFlora Gel would be good for this kind of pain. I use this one on arthritic ankles, knees and toes, and get remarkable relief within 5-10 minutes.

Good luck. I'll bet you're all really glad this is only an occasional problem.

In addition to Tylenol/Ibuprofen/Ice packs, our doctor told us to make sure they get plenty of water during the D.. That also seems to help. Good Luck!

My daughter was doing that and I finally insisted on a blood test. My pediatrician ran an arthritic panel on her and found it to be through the roof. My daughter had bacteria resistant strep at the time and the only symptom she had besides the scarlet fever rash was the severe leg and hip pain. We discovered the strep had settled in her joints causing pain, but it wasn't constant either. Has she been checked for juvenile rheumatoid arthritis? Good luck and I hope you find a solution.

I can remember being woken up in the middle of the night with them when I was little. We have used Tiger Balm on both of our daughter's when they complain of them - it is natural & the dr said it is safe. Good luck!

Have you notice after the pain she grows like there is no tomorrow? My daughter is 11 and she is still going through twice a year and than she grows 1 to 2 sizes....

We increase calcium during the pain.... not neccesory suppliment but if she will take extra calcium that would be nice, but if she does not than increase milk, cheese or anything that is rich in calcium. We also notice fresh coconut water helps. You could get fresh-young white coconut from any oriental or some wal-mart.

Our little one does that and it is often very hard to watch. We just keep the ibuprofen and lotion on the night stand so we can keep rubbing her painful areas.

My son is 6 yo and has had pains in his legs for a few years.....waking up in the night and complaining and sometimes crying b/c it hurts. We also use ibuprofen as a remedy but started giving him liquid children's vitamins that we purchase at Central Market. It has made a world of difference.....He's very tall -- wears sz 8 even though he is 6 yo and the dr thinks it's also "growing pains". You may try some good vitamins to see if that will help your daughter. Blessings.

My son who is 7 yrs old has had the same thing, we even checked his blood to make sure he had enough potassium, etc. He will wake in the night crying and nothing will calm him down. I use ibuprofen as well and will usually run a warm bath for him to sit in for a little bit, it does seem to help a little.

My eldest daughter, ( i have three) also regularly complains about these aches and pains in her legs etc, she is now 9 1/2 years, average build and very tall (already 5ft) she first started complaining at about the age of 6 and other than nurofen for kids,and a hot bath with radox there is little else we can do, however I have noticed that the pains come and go and usally restricted to periods of growth spurts and I have to say (touch wood) that these pains are less frequent now in the past 6 months,,,,,its an age thing . My middle daughter ( just turned 8) has also complained of pains but usually in the knee area, unlike her sister is very small for her age and petite and again the pains came when she grew a little she is now about the height of a 6 year old....... no doubt by the time my 6 year old comes to it we will have it down to a fine art, however I have to say she is average height for her years.....perhaps it is linked to those children who are not average build and height.....

My husband and one of my kids has this. The bannana is helpful, as is some over the counter meds like tylenol, ice, rubbing them, and waiting it out. I'm so sorry! It is hard to watch! I never got these, so when my daughter crys about them it is hard.

M.

Hi B D,

From my own experience those sound like growing pains. I remember crying quite a few nights between 6 and 9 years for that. I grew early and fast and I was the tallest kid in my class until the boys hit puberty around 13 years. I'm 5' 9" and haven't grown taller since I was 15. My mom gave me pain medicine and rubbed/ petted my legs when it got really bad, but the only truly effective remedy is to outgrow the phase. It was most painful at night time after running around all D. and the pain was likely aggravated by the running, but keeping a 7-year-old still would be unrealistic and inadvisable. I know it's tough now, but she'll get through it and it won't scar her for life.

Hang in there!
L V

Hi BD-

I am very familiar with those pains, for myself and others I know. I wish I would have known as a kid what to do for those pains. But I am convinced that it is a magnesium/calcium deficiency that can easily be corrected by supplementation. I think the Natural Calm would be a great place to start, unless higher doses are needed. It really is very simple to treat and very common. The remedy usually works within minutes and surprising that more Dr.'s don't know how to treat. FYI: Potassium can also be helpful.

BD

My son did that about that age. He would wake up crying saying his legs hurt. As you have found, our doctors said it was growing pains. We told him milk at bedtime would help. He would drink a glass of milk before bed every night and it did get better.

Ask about getting some blood testing, ferritin, lyme, infections, virus, immune system issues, etc

Hello,

These sound like growing pains and my 8 year old has had these as well. Very intense and comes on at night usually. We treat with Tylenol or Motrin. It is very common at this age and just something that is a part of growing up. I remember having them as a kid as well.
G.

Hi there!

Boy do I remember growing pains! I, myself had them as a child and remember how painful they were. The pain would wake me up and I would just cry and cry.

I son also had them when he was younger (he is 11 now). For both of us, though, the pains only lasted for a year or so.

Having them for a few years seems excessive. Have you thought about getting a second opinion, for your peace of mind?

Good luck to you both!

It probably is growing pains. What I do with my boys when they complain of their legs hurting for any reason like that I will massage them. If it get's too bad I would suggest taking her to a chiropractor. I remember though when I was young they would wake me up and I would wake my mom up screaming and the only thing that made them better was my mom massaging them. Also you might give her a warm bath or put a heating pad on her legs when the hurt.

Good luck and God bless!

I feel for your daughter because I used to get them in the middle of the night when I was growing up. The only thing that sometimes would help (or at least give me something to think about) was pointing and flexing my toes (my pains were in my shins). They were growing pains for me, thank God I outgrew them! Good luck!

My son is 7 and has had "growning pains" since he was 3! he was also x-rayed etc with no real issues. The number one thing that has helped my son is strectching exercises. He does lunge stretches every D., espically before bed and this has cut down his complaints by 80%. Before we moved to Texas he was in Karate and during this time had barely any complaints, so exercise is the key!

i agree it's growing pains. my son has them bad....i'll have to try the banana!!

Ice and pain relievers are great advice. My son had growing pains as well. I'm proud to say he did survive and is now 14 and 6' tall! =)

As an aside, my daughter had a different growing problem starting when she was about 11, she started getting stretch marks on her legs and back areas from growing. She's now 21 and still has some of those marks that more than likely will not go away!

My five yr old son has this same problem. His pediatrician also chalked it up to growing pains. So now, he'll awake in the middle of the night crying that his "growing pains" are hurting again. Same places even....WOW! We give him one of those soft ice packs and he'll usually fall back to sleep with it on him sore spots. I'm gonna go and read the suggestions the other moms gave you, since, like you, his pediatrician gave us no insight as to how to help him through it. Thanks for asking this question!

I tend to get cramps in my calf when I am extra tired (it was really bad when I was pregnant). Heat, massage and gentle stretching help as well as pain killers. Not sure if it is the same type of pain though. I would try the banana thing as well. When we were teenagers my best friend fainted in the heat and all they could find wrong was low potassium.

As a kid I used to suffer from leg pains. It was also growing pains. I remember being in a lot of pain too. After her baths at night, give her some ibuprofen and then try massaging her legs and feet. You can even massage them throughout the D. as needed. That should help some.

It is just so hard for me to write this off, generation after generation, as growing pains that you have to put up with. Few people commented that they went to the doctor for it. Course, we have to keep in mind that doctors have very very few hours in nutrition so if you're very low on a vitamin or mineral, they won't and can't test for it.

If I couldn't get an answer from a doctor, or a chiropractor that studies natural healing, then I'd at least turn to the web to see if any experts are out there advising something that works most of the time. Or ask the people who train on this stuff at places like Whole Foods. Or, ask a certified Nutritionist. I know one: Debra Hillard-Jones in Euless who is good for me and my situation. Ask her if she knows or knows who knows what causes the problem and the fix before an appointment.

You've had some good responses so far, and I would like to add my two cents worth.

I would encourage you to keep checking in with your doctor about this, and maybe even get a second opinion. The reason I say this is that those of us on this site are not trained medical professionals so we aren't always able to give you appropriate medical advice. I would hate to see something happen to your child because you got unsuitable advice from us. And, sometimes the "home remedies", while well meaning, may cause more accidental harm than good. (Please don't get me wrong, many home remedies are valid and work wonders, but sometimes some people have bad reactions to them and we just need to very careful.)

Also, I feel tht doctors sometimes are a little too quick to brush of a mothers concern about her child. I'ce seen it happen before where the doctor has thought the mom was juset over reacting and just looking for some reassurance that her child was ok. You may need to push your doctor a liittle bit to take your concern more seriously.

Additionally, sometimes doctors miss things the first time aroundl so you might want to consider getting a second opinion from a second doctor if this doesn't clear up. It never hurts to have a fresh pair of eyes looking at the case, to see if something else can be done to help your child.

Good luck, and I hope your child feels better soon.

poor thing. i had them for years and am now very tall. my parents used to rub my legs every night and used bengay on them. it was the only thing that helped besides warm baths and heating pads. i feel for her...i used to cry at night because they hurt so bad. talk to the ped about using bengay on her legs. they may have a childs version now...i dont know.

the mag/calcium sounds very interesting but be sure to follow Dr's orders on magnesium, I have heard that too much (not sure how much is too much) can have adverse affects in the colon.

Also you might want to talk to a Airrosti therapist, I use Dr Smith in Keller, it may help, call them and discuss it with them, ###-###-#### is the practice he works out of, you/your daughter will know with in 1-2 sessions if it will help or not (it is a form of physical therapy if you will) www.airrosti.com but they will also tell you up front if they don't think they can help, most people only need 3-4 sessions total. personally I swear by Airrosti therapy for any type of soft tissue injury.

My dd struggled with this a lot and finally I took her to an orthopedic massage therapist. She was able to figure out what was wrong in the positioning of my dd's hips and legs, correct it, and give her excercises. Starting that nite my daughter hasn't had her leg cramps. It wasn't covered by insurance but was well worth it. In case you're local, my person in Nancy Horn at Eagle's Massage in Allen TX.

This was something I dealt with as a child. I had the same problems, and the same tests/x-rays/blood draws etc. Growing pains was the best guess for me as well. Looking back I think that was a correct diagnosis. Tylenol, lots of stretches, alternating heat and ice packs. This lasted until I was about 9 or 10.

calcium/magnesium supplements and bananas.... they will help prevent the muscles (etc) from binding like that.

My daughter also gets these and we wonder if sometimes it's also related to extra activity and possible dehydration which can also cause leg cramps. We add drinking lots of water to the other ideas below.

my neice is 8 and has the same issue! she has had it for years though! no one has been able to help her though.....well sorry but I am not sure what they have tried long story there....I know they do stay up w/ her and rub her legs and that helps but as far as medical stuff they have tried I dont think they have again...long story. good luck xo