Charlie Horse ?

[Adrienne]

Yesterday morning I woke up in such pain with a Charlie Horse ! (for those unfamiliar with this expression, a Charlie Horse is a cramp usually in the leg, that is sooo painful )

Supposedly if you can pull your foot towards you, you can lessen the pain and it eventually goes away... for some reason this wasn't working. And that was one of the longest 5 minutes ever !! I can't recall having sooo much pain from one of those and I can't remember the last time I had that experience.

So many health issues seem to have a spiritual connection, this or that is unbalanced, or needing attention ( please don't tell me to ask my body, what is the need ... as that doesn't seem to work for me) ... so I was wondering, is there any connection between this Charlie Horse, or leg cramping that has a hidden meaning ? And yes, I have heard that lack of potassium is a possibility for this happening.

Any other ideas, thanks in advance

Dream Angel xx

Lack of sodium AND potassium. Usually happens when you are dehydrated. If you drink about 3 large Gatorade's and you are still having them, see your doctor.

Spiritual reason.. Yeah your body needs vitamins lol or your spirit won't have a vehicle :P

the Quinine in Indian tonic Water is especially helpful for preventing cramping ,

[Adrienne]

thank you Laura & Neville

on the spiritual reason, Laura

[OnAPath]

I find dehydration to be most common, or I'll eat a banana. I used to get them a lot. Sometimes, it's as simple as the way your foot is turned under the blankets. Don't rule that out!

[Miss Hepburn]

Well, this is my expertise - being a massage therapist for 29.5 years!!
Oh, the stories I could tell from over the years.


First for everyone - if you get a Charley Horse - look at your diet the day before - notice if you've increased your coffee, caffeine intake and alcohol.
These are diuretics - and just suck the magnesium out of your tissues.

When you enter any drug rehab clinic this is the first thing they give you are massive doses of magnesium, btw.
Sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium all work together, of course, balancing your electrolytes and more.

But, it is usually a mag. deficiency that will cause a sudden muscle spasm
like a C. H. or a foot/toe spasm.
The USA is something like 95% deficient in minerals esp. magnesium because of our soil and naturally processed foods.

Magnesium is so hard to absorb (minerals are rocks remember )

Many of my clients will get an IV drip bec they can't even absorb an IM shot of it.
(In the muscle)

So, always, at least, take it in capsule form --- powder is best.

I tell people:
Take 1000 mg for 3 nights on an empty stomach...on the 3rd morning
you will see you have less aches and stiffness in your joints and muscles.

If the person is little I say 500 mg. If you take a bit too much for your body you can get intestinal gurgles and then some loose stools....no biggy, just take less.

Magnesium is the wonder mineral ---I have gotten more feedback/ thanks for this advice over the years than anything else.
(I minor in nutritional counseling.)

Also, as an aside, magnesium neutralizes acid - we all need to be alkaline, most
of us are not.

What everyone said above is also correct. Forgot I also say drink a quart of Recharge for those 3 days, also...a no sugar Gatorade-thing.

You woke up in bed with a horse?!


I've found this is the best thing to do with a cramp (I used to get the ol' charlie horse very often, especially in my legs and ribcage area, but after doing this practice I haven't had a cramp since - I believe it to be uncleared emotional energy which gets stuck and causes the muscle to cramp) -

When you feel the cramp coming on just sit with it and relax as much as you can, don't resist it as much as you can, if at all possible. Now, take a deep breath in through the nostrils and breathe out mouth, and at the same time breathe out through the cramp, releasing any emotional energy that may come up. Keep breathing through it until it dissipates, as it will either go away completely of lessen in intensity, the more you breathe through it, the more it will lessen, keep breathing until it goes away or is completely gone.

Simple, eh - no more charlie horse