Cramps don’t just go away, and it takes a little time for the body to recover to its previous state. This condition usually lasts a few seconds to a few minutes which at night, this cramping condition attacks the legs. So what causes leg cramps? Nighttime leg cramps usually occur when the muscles tighten suddenly in the calf. Conditions like this are often encountered when we fall asleep or even wake up in the morning. The National Medical Society says that when we sleep, the muscles in the legs and calves become shorter, making them prone to cramps. Calf cramps that occur in the legs at night, generally occur in adolescents and others who do sports at night.
But unfortunately, the exact trigger factor that causes the cramps in the legs that many people experience at night is not certain what the trigger is. But what is clear, there are several potential factors that can trigger cramps, including dehydration, lack of intake of potassium, calcium, magnesium and other mineral compounds, namely sodium and reduced blood flow to muscles due to prolonged activity on a chair without doing anything else or lying down too much, could potentially trigger these cramps to occur. However, there are several other things that trigger cramps in the legs during sleep at night that occur suddenly.
Dehydration
Lack of fluid supply in the body can also cause leg cramps that occur during sleep at night. Dehydration will affect nerve performance which in turn leads to cramps.
Improper Blood Circulation
One of the causes of leg cramps, especially at night, is due to the lack of smooth blood flow in the body. In addition, improper sleeping position can cause cramps, especially when you are sleeping, because the wrong sleeping position can block blood flow which in turn triggers the cramping condition to occur. When you feel the pain caused by the excruciating feeling of a monkey, but if the clam condition has already attacked, try to stretch for a while or if the creamy condition has already attacked, you can also compress the part of the leg that is affected by cramps using warm water slowly with once the tensed muscles recover with warm water.
Pregnant
The condition of being pregnant or pregnant is also associated with attacks of cramping conditions that will often appear. So it is not surprising that many pregnant women complain that they often experience cramps in their calves, especially when sleeping at night. However, calf cramps in the legs that afflict pregnant women in general are caused due to a lack of magnesium and calcium intake in the mother’s mother who is pregnant. For this reason, when pregnant, pregnant women are strongly advised to consume lots of vegetables and foods rich in calcium and magnesium to prevent calcium and magnesium deficiency as one of the triggers for foot cramps.
Muscle injury
Injury to this muscle can be caused as a result of doing too much activity during the day. The effect may not be felt so quickly after you have done a lot of activity and suddenly the muscles are injured and become cramps. Usually, we will feel the effects of these symptoms only at night. Which if it is continuously allowed, not only the physical organs in the legs that experience a decrease in function, it could be that your sleeping time becomes messy, because of the pain caused by cramps that are so excruciating at night. However, if the cramps have already attacked you while you were sleeping.
The following ways can treat these cramps.
- If the cramps have already attacked your body, especially in the legs, try not to panic. The panic body condition actually increases the frequency of tension in the muscles, when the muscles are tense the cramps will hurt more. Conversely, when a cramp strikes one of your body, then try to stretch and massage the cramped muscle slowly.
- Hold this position for a few seconds, so that the tension in the muscles can slowly relax. And after the pain subsides, there is no harm in doing massage to relax the tense muscles again and at the same time provide warmth.
- Keep in mind that cramps are also a result of fatigue, such as after exercising all day or doing hard homework. If this happens, try using an ice pack on the area around the cramp, not right above the cramped area.
How to Overcome and Prevent Cramps in the Legs
- To overcome the attacks of cramps in the leg, stretching (stretching) by doing massage to relieve contractions and improve blood circulation. Compress with warm ar and consume more water to replace lost fluids.
- Increase the consumption of water, at least meet the needs of fluids per day at least by consuming 8 glasses of drinking water every day, including one glass before bed. In addition, also consume more water before or after doing sports.
- If you often experience these cramps while sleeping, try to do relaxation movements on the muscles around your calves before bedtime. The trick is to do the ebrsiri about 60-90 cm from the wall with the soles of the feet in place. Do it several times, to be able to feel the side effects, you may need to do it for a few days.
- Avoid sudden strenuous exercise or activity. For this reason, try stretching your muscles by temporarily taking a proper breath and getting in the habit of cooling down after each exercise. This will give the muscles the opportunity to adjust so that they don’t cause cramps. And there is a breed, you do this heating every morning after waking up by doing a little exercise.
- The condition of leg cramps, especially in the calf, usually often occurs because the muscles in the calf are compressed with an irregular sleeping position. For that, you should sleep in a position that prevents your calf muscles from being compressed without realizing it. Take advantage of pillows to support the soles of your feet when you sleep on your back. While if you sleep on your stomach, as much as possible position your feet hanging over the edge of the mattress. Try to keep the blanket loose on the feet to prevent your toes and feet from facing down while sleeping. The condition of cramps in the legs while sleeping not only makes the feet feel sore, but this condition usually forces you to wake up because of the uncomfortable feeling that attacks and it is difficult to return to the position and state of deep sleep as before.
