I hope to get some advice regarding some strange foot/calf cramps
That I am getting nightly, generally between 2:00am and 4:00am in the morning.
These are strange cramps with a tightness, pulling sensation.
I mostly get them in my feet, however, I have gotten a couple of calf cramps.
Achilles tendon cramps, cramps along the top of my foot, arch pulling, etc.
My current meds are rifampin 600mg which I pulse every other day as per LLMD
Bactrim DS at 1600mg daily, flagyl 250mg once a week and diflucan 200mg twice weekly.
LLMD did prescribe sleep aids-Neurontin 600mg, of which I can only take
One-fourth of a pill if I want to function at all next morning.
My cramping symptoms did occur within two to three days of starting rifampin for bart.
Researched rifampin and found that it is usually Rx'd for leg cramps.
Anybody with some input/advice on this?
I tried levaquin, but couldn't do it.
Is this possibly a bart herx? Lyme symptoms returning?
My vision is starting to get blurry again (maybe from serious lack of sleep)
Also, rifampin has caused some serious yeast issues for me.
Found that rifampin lowers the effectivenss of diflucan.
Diet is very restricted. Daily probiotics taken.
Can't seem to get this thrush off my tongue.
Any advice or comments would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance for your help and consideration.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by lou (Member # 81) on :
Cramping may be a sign that you are not getting enough magnesium. What amt and when are you taking this? It can also occur during herxes.
I found that magnesium taken about four times a day (away from certain abx), including a slow release type at bedtime, and reducing calcium did away with cramps, except when a herx occurred.
Posted by 8man12 (Member # 7664) on :
Lou, is right.Sometimes they get so bad in your calves, you can see the muscles moving all around.And you almost wanna get your legs hacked off.
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
I am taking magnesium, 3 x daily at 97mg a dose.
I only weigh 105 lbs (or less now).
My LLMD said 3 a day.
I believe he thinks the leg cramping is associated with rifampin,
so that is why I am pulsing it.
Thanks for the suggestions.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by Jellybelly (Member # 7142) on :
I get a very similar cramp. It is across the top of my foot through my ankle and up to the ouside of my chin bone. One of the worst cramps I have every gotten. Most difficult to get to stop. No position to stretch it out and I have had to put ice on it several times to get it to stop.
It is the one that shots me out of bed the fastest. I've had them for about 7 years and I have learned a few things. They were definetly worse on the nights that I consumed to much calcium or stuff with a lot of vitamin D like eggs, or salmom.
I still eat all of that stuff but am careful not to consume a lot in one day. And as already suggested, MAGNESIUM, MAGNESIUM and more magnesium. I take all that my intestines will tolerate, which seems to vary from time to time. Just doing those things helps enourmously.
There is scientific reasoning I found out that causes the flair up when consuming the calcium and vitmain D. I knew it was happening, but had no idea why. I have posted the explanation a couple of times here.
My leg cramps are nearly gone these days. A side thought, is that if I remember right the same things that causes the leg crammps can cause similar problems in the heart which is just another muscle which needs to stay soft and well hydrate in ordered to function properly, not stiff like our other muscles.
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
Dear Jellybelly,
(Love your post name by the way)
I am not currently taking any calcium or vitamin D supplements....
My diet consists mostly of meat, salads and vegatables (no starchy ones).
Weird thing is that these cramps are usually worse on the nights that I didn't take the rifampin.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by Jellybelly (Member # 7142) on :
I don't take supplements of these either, just consuming lots of foods which are high in either of these makes a big difference for me.....more cramps.
Actually taking calcium supplements was one of my first real clues. Every time I took them the cramps would start up literally within a few hours and the night time was horrible.
I stopped calcium supplements years ago.
Posted by lou (Member # 81) on :
I would not want to contradict your lyme doc, and don't know the relationship between weight and Mg dose. However, I am taking somewhere between 800 and 1000mg a day, and some types of Mg are better than others. You can research this in the archives as it has been discussed a lot. I am using magtab at bedtime and magnesium chelate and magnesium malate, just to cover all the bases.
Don't think it will hurt you to experiment with dose, increase it to see the effect. Think the worst that can happen is loose bowels. If that happens, just back off on the dose a little. You are probably getting plenty of calcium if you are eating yogurt. Ca and Mg oppose each other and you have to have the right balance. Lyme seems to cause Mg depletion in some way. Marnie is our Mg expert.
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
Thanks Lou,
I always appreciate and respect your opinion.
I will up my magnesium supplement today.
I actually buy mine at my LLMD's office.
Thanks for the suggestions.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by hiker53 (Member # 6046) on :
Sometimes you can get an electrolyte imbalance and potassium is needed. If you do not want to eat bananas because of the sugar. Take 1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar in a glass of water.
Be careful and do no do this for more than a week as too much potassium is not good for the heart. It did help me with the cramps. Hiker
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
Several months ago I kept having hand and foot cramps. I finally decided to try a mineral supplement as I was already taking plenty of magnesium and calcium.
The cramping stopped in just a day or two. I use Solaray's Mega Multi Mineral.
Hope you find something that helps!
Posted by luvs2ride (Member # 8090) on :
Well, I'm always the odd one.
What worked for me was the detox foot pads. I use the ones from Healthmarvel because they are the cheapest.
I get the most benefit from the blue ones that are for heavy metal detox. All the cramping stopped.
Luvs
Posted by Cobweb (Member # 10053) on :
Hey Geneal-Waking up at night with painful(to put it mildly) calf cramping was a problem for me in early treatment. I was already taking 500mg once a day of Magnesium Malate Chelate.
LLMD increased it to 1000mg per day. And told me to do stretcing exercises before going to bed-I never really did the stretching exercises-but I did think about them
Leg cramping is no longer a serious issue for me and I am back down to 500mg per day. I weigh more than 100 and less than 200. Pick a number.
I still have painful right leg pain at night-but it's not cramping. I don't know what it is, but I look forward to it subsiding,too.
Take Care, Carol
Posted by Jill E. (Member # 9121) on :
Geneal,
I think you might be right about the Rifampin - or Bart herx - connection.
I developed kind of a restless legs kind of symptom when all my other Bart symptoms first appeared - myoclonus, tremors, etc.
I bombed out on Levaquin because I developed Achilles Tendon pain/weakness that lasted long after.
Anyway, I've been on Rifampin for months, and mentioned to my LLMD that my tendons feel tight behind my knees, on one foot, etc. Even my internist said my tendons in my legs felt tight when he was examining me recently.
My LLMD theorizes that Bartonella can affect the tendons.
So perhaps you and I are having similar issues - mine started before Rifampin, but the Rifampin is certainly making things worse. Plus my myoclonus and twitching are worse on Rifampin - even with taking the same amount of magnesium as before.
I keep thinking this is some kind of Bart herx or the Bart is becoming more apparent because of the Rifampin.
Hey, I'm usually awake at 2 or 3 in the morning - I think most of us are. We should all call each other!
Jill
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
I think the "night owl club" would be a good name for us, or the "night Yowl club."
Can you remember the days when you were awake at this time because you wanted to be?
My, how things have changed.
I upped my magesium yesterday (400mg) and took a tepid epson salt bath last night.
Don't know which one worked or if they both worked, but guess what?
No cramps last night! Yeah!!!
I do have increased muscle twitching and tightness-I thought bart herx as well.
I just want to get through rifampin....and not do this one again.
I've felt worse on a doxy herx or babs herx,
But gosh darn, that rifampin is hard to take.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by DolphinLady (Member # 6275) on :
I suffered from tight tendons/muscles all over my body, but especially bad in my legs (restless legs) until I started rifampin.
Posted by liz28 (Member # 4946) on :
I had a six-week herx on rifampin. The symptoms were severe, as you described.
For some reason, diflucan never seemed to work. Nystatin, kefir, probiotics, and herbal extracts that contained berberine all seemed to help.
Posted by LuLuFlorida (Member # 12066) on :
I agree with hiker.. you need potassium. Potassium is very high in plain nonfat yogurt (higher than bananas) so eat that. It will all help with yeast issues.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
geneal...did the mag work for you? [still?]
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
Hey Tutu,
I upped the magnesium by one capsule a day...and have made a point to take an epson salt bath every night.
That really has helped.
Now if I can just get rid of these twitches!!!
Actually, I eat yogurt twice daily, take theralac, watch my diet, etc.
I also have potassium supplements which didn't help at all.
So, I guess upping the mag helped....a lot!!
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by Virginia of Yore (Member # 3269) on :
Geneal, I found if I was taking increased calcium+D (Citrical) without taking much more magnesium, I also got those awful cramps. I think we lyme patients really do need more magnesium than typically suggested, especially if taking any extra calcium. Get the magnesium in capsules or liquid for better absorption.
Posted by DolphinLady (Member # 6275) on :
Cramps can be a side effect of rifampin.
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
Dear Dolphin lady,
I really do believe that these cramps are related to the rifampin.
So does my LLMD. He is hoping I can make it for another 3 weeks,
When I believe I am to return to babs treatment.
Rifampin has been a very hard drug for me to take.
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