Could I be under/over-medicated, as I have been getting chronic night cramps in my feet and legs.
I am out of bed @4 times a night with this awful pain.
I am taking "Sirdalud" muscle relaxing med's when I go to bed, but it only seems to last a couple of hours, then I am awake with the dreaded cramp again.
TSH 0.58
T3 free 2.52
T4 free 1.17
Had magnesium, potassium, calcium, parathyroid, liver and kidney tests, and not lacking in any of these.
Drink plenty of water, tried tonic, but it does nothing.
I am at my wits end with these pains, as my legs ache all day, and I can always feel like they want to cramp all of the time.
Any suggestions very welcome X
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Lydia8132
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Please add ranges on these results (figures in brackets after each result)
Recommended on here that all thyroid blood tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and before eating or drinking anything other than water .
Last dose of Levothyroxine 24 hours prior to blood test. (taking delayed dose immediately after blood draw).
This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip)
If/when also on T3, make sure to take last third or quarter of daily dose 8-12 hours prior to test, even if this means adjusting time or splitting of dose day before test
Is this how you do your tests?
How much levothyroxine and T3 are you currently taking
Hello there, my TSH range is 0.35 - 4.9t3 1.8 - 4.2
t4 0.71 - 1.85
I was on a quarter of a t3 tablet (6.25)
75 mcg t4 tablet.
I did stop the t3 as I thought this may have been contributing to the cramping, my Doctor cannot find anything wrong with me, and I am getting desperate.
The pain and lack of sleep do not make for happy days!
Thank you so much, would I be on the right track if I take @65mcg t4 and 12.5mcg of the t3? I am very low in D3, but have been taking a mega oil supplement for 5 days, and already taking magnesium every day, sometimes twice. I will up my B vits. as well. Regards, Lydia.
Hello again, sorry for the late reply. I only stopped the t3 after the test results. My d3 was 23.1ng/ml in the range of 30 - 100, so well below.My b12 was 490 in the range of 280 - 850, tested 23/11/20.
I have upped my t4 to 100mcg and my t3 to 18.75mcg, and last night I was getting tingly legs and minor crampy feelings in my feet and achey calf in my right leg. My calf has been tight all day today, I just don't seem to be able to get this right - or does it take a while to adjust to different amounts of the med's?
I'm also having a lot of trouble staying asleep, awake @ 1.00, 4.00, 5.00, then get up around 6.00 as legs start to feel twitchy.
My right forearm and hand is also a bit crampy all of the time.
If you are ready for taking magnesium be aware that there are, I believe, 5 different. Pls check with your doctor which one you need. Personally, I am taking Magnesium Glycinate as is good for my entire body.I wish you best.
Had magnesium, potassium, calcium, parathyroid, liver and kidney tests, and not lacking in any of these.
Magnesium testing is pointless. Only about 1% of the body's magnesium is found in the blood. The remaining 99% is found elsewhere in the body.
The level of magnesium in the blood is quite tightly controlled. If it runs a bit low the body moves magnesium from other tissues into the blood. As a result people rarely show low levels of magnesium in blood tests - but they could still be deficient in other tissues.
If people supplement magnesium and take more than they need the excess will be excreted via the kidneys - as long as their kidneys function properly.
Someone with kidney disease shouldn't take magnesium except under medical supervision.
The normal dose of magnesium that people supplement is roughly 250mg - 400mg per day.
For info on the various kinds of magnesium supplements there are (they aren't all the same and some are better than others) see these links :
And if you post the results of those tests you mention (magnesium, potassium, calcium, parathyroid, liver and kidney tests) we might be able to comment on whether they really are okay - being in range isn't the same as being optimal.
I had terrible leg cramps before I started supplements of magnesium. I use magnesium glycinate as easy on stomach, but there are many others (as links of other forum members show).
Muscular cramps are related to magnesium deficiency in the body, also drinking a lot of coffee ☕ does this as well as it flushes out magnesium. High lvl's of mental pressure/stress depletes magnesium too. My two cents.
Sometimes I pop a magnesium tablet with ibuprofen or paracetamol when I find that pain relief does not suffice on its own. The magnesium tablet speeds up pain relief. A dollop of magnesium gel also helps with some muscle cramps, e.g. during periods, lower back or cramping shin muscles. These tricks used to help before I went on the pill to manage difficult periods, which used to land me in A&E. You can find magnesium gel on HB's online shop or Amazon as not all shops may stock them.
Crampex from Chemist works well for cramps in legs, calves..
.OH swears by them as he used to be up frequently during the night hopping about with pain. I also introduced OH to Magnesium betteryou spray which he sprays on legs at bedtime.
Crampex is usually taken when you feel the cramps are likely to start.
OH Mother relied on crampex religiously during her 93 years........She took levothyroxine for 50+ years.
Hope this helps and sure hope your cramps settle....
echoing what so many others have said on here... my most recent magnesium test showed that my levels had gone up from the past but i was getting the worst cramps of my life recently - to the point i was limping for more than a mile and the muscles that had cramped were super sore and tender for up to a week afterwards. i had recently started taking moderately high daily doses of vitamin D (for me at least - 4000 iu daily) and happened to read last week anecdotally someone mentioning that high vit d supplementation caused her to become deficient in magnesium. so the last time my muscles cramped up a few days ago i popped a 200 mg mag pill right away and it resolved really quickly actually.
I suffer from leg cramps periodically, for some reason always during the night. I find a warm bath with a mugful of Epsom salts dissolved into it very helpful...it doesn't have to be deep, just enough to cover your legs. I believe it supplies magnesium directly to the muscles. I do this just before going to bed. They are very cheap to buy...any chemist should sell them, or I buy mine at the local country suppliers...jn the horse section! Hope this helps.
Thank you, everyone, for your comments. I have found that my med's were too low, and I was mega deficient in D3. Since making these changes in the last few days, it has been like a miracle. I was recommended that my thyroid med's should be @ 60% of the range, by one of the administrators - the wonderful SlowDragon, and I was below this level. Thank you SlowDragon, with all my heart xxx
Same here. Doubled over cramp in stomach, calve, thigh. I am trying to drink more water as I was also having inner ear problems. I want everyone to know, here in the U.S. many are experiencing inner ear, vertigo problems, dizziness which lasts from 48 hours to two weeks. It may be covid-19 related. I had it, my cousin’s friend Karen was hospitalized with it, and two surgeons said they had experienced the same symptoms. Mine only lasted 48 hours. I tried flushing my system with clear fluids. They ran every test on Karen while she was in the hospital and not one came back showing infection or a reason for the dizziness. Mine was the worst last night when I tried to lay my head back on the pillow. Just letting everyone know there is a viral thing going around with inner ear problems.
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