The cramp twins

At 6 on Saturday morning I awoke writhing in pain with a terrible spasm shooting from the back of my left knee, down the leg and out through splayed and spastic toes. The cramping lasted for about a minute and during that time, as I breathed deeply and rolled around trying to release the taught, tortured tendons, I thought “oh shit, is this what labour contractions feel like? Just in my belly instead of my leg. Is this my body preparing me for giving birth the way it has me getting up to pee 3 times a night as if in preparation for having a hungry crying baby to tend to?”

The pain was almost unbearable but eventually it stopped. I hobbled to the loo and then back, managing to get a little more sleep, but I’ve been hobbling ever since. The calf muscle feels pulled or like, crunched-up.

As one does with any ailment these days, I Googled it. “calf cramp pregnancy”. And would you believe it- this is a common thing for women to experience in the later stages of pregnancy. I’m not alone. But most women cry and/or thump their partners awake to assist with massaging out the pain.

The reasons for the leg cramps are varied and range from potassium or calcium deficiency, to legs taking strain from the extra weight they are carrying. But I am taking supplements and haven’t put on that much weight. I’ll take heed of the tips for keeping leg cramps at bay nonetheless. They range from stretching the calf muscles regularly during the day and before going to bed and taking a warm bath before bed to staying hydrated and eating bananas. Hopefully this will put an end to the cramps but apparently they get worse as the pregnancy progresses. This is the third time it’s happened to me, by far the worst, and I can’t possibly imagine it getting any worse…

On the topic of calf cramps, I have to add that this afternoon Robbie announced he is also suffering from a calf cramp in his left leg. One has to wonder if its not just a case of sympathy cramps. Like the sympathy cold symptoms he suffered on holiday when I was bed ridden with a cold. Or the first trimester lethargy. Although in defence of his leg cramps, he did get on a surf board today for the first time in about about 20 years and all that paddling could no doubt have been responsible.

A sorry pair we are this evening, limping around the flat with our cramped calves!