Hand And Food On One Side 'drawing Up'

[ravenwoodglass]

I have been having episodes lately where my second and third toes will draw up like they are cramping. It is uncomfortable but not as painful as it looks like it would be. It tends to happen to my foot after I lay down at night. I have just been getting up and walking the foot off then yesterday it started to happen to the third and fourth fingers hand on the same side. It eventually frees up after I shake the hand for a bit. While it is not unknown for me to have my hands spasm if I am holding something this out of the blue thing is getting annoying. I won't be able to continue my search for a doctor until the weather clears a bit, I have been looking for one for a couple years now, so if there is anything you guys know of that might help please let me know.

I don't think this is gluten related as I have none of my 'glutened' symptoms.

[RiceGuy]

I did used to get something like what you describe. One or two toes would just be drawn sideways or upwards, and the best I found for immediate relief was to apply pressure to the top of the effected foot with the heel of the other foot. But not against a surface. In other words, using the ankle joint to push that foot upward against something - I used the heel of my other foot.

While I can't offer anything specific, if it was me I'd be thinking along the lines of mineral (or vitamin) deficiencies, toxic levels of something like artificial flavors/colors, or naturally occurring substances which aren't well tolerated. I do know that the toxic alkaloids in nightshades effect motor nerve function. A quick Google suggests deficiencies in magnesium, potassium, and calcium.

Thankfully, it has not happened in a while, which I attribute to the supplements I take.

Here's a link which may help:

Open Original Shared Link

[ravenwoodglass]

Thanks for the reply. I knew about the magniesium and thought I was taking a supplement that had it. Turns out the amount is 1% of the daily value so I think I'll pick up a supplement as well as googling high mag foods. Do you know if I should supplement that above the daily value for a while? Thanks for the link, these are spasms more than cramps by their definition. I've been eating a lot of potatoes lately, my favorite cold weather comfort food so perhaps I'll cut down on those also just to be on the safe side.

[jerseyangel]

Hi Ravenwood,

I get the toe thing you described--the middle toes on my left foot will sometimes draw up/back painlessly for no reason. With my hands, if I grab something tightly sometimes they seem to lock into that position and then slowly release.

I was just on another thread the other day (restless legs) and a couple of us were talking about muscle cramping and tightness. Another thing that happens to me, as I said over there, is if I stretch my legs out in bed, my calf muscles frequently sieze up, as well as the arch in my foot.

One thing I notice is that when I make sure I drink plenty of water, it's not as frequent. Magnesium is another good thought, but I'm leery of taking that myself since I'm so prone to D.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

I think the B-vitamins and vitamin D also play a role in neuro issues, and DH (a PhhD chemist) says that multivitamin supplements contain the RDA which according to him is a bare minimum, not an optimum amount.

I would also wonder if something else is going on to cause either a malabsorption issue or if something is bonding to the vitamins (in supplement form or in food) that you are consuming?

I know I was told that thyroid hormone supplements, for example, should not be taken within 5 hours of vitamins as they bind to the vitamins.

Is it possible that a virus could cause this sort of thing if it attacks in the brain? Or could this even be a kind of mini-stroke?

I remember seeing both hands and feet draw up in a friend who was in a coma. The PT put her hands and feet in splints to prevent locking and atrophy.

SOrry I have no definitive answers to help.

[RiceGuy]

Thanks for the reply. I knew about the magniesium and thought I was taking a supplement that had it. Turns out the amount is 1% of the daily value so I think I'll pick up a supplement as well as googling high mag foods. Do you know if I should supplement that above the daily value for a while? Thanks for the link, these are spasms more than cramps by their definition. I've been eating a lot of potatoes lately, my favorite cold weather comfort food so perhaps I'll cut down on those also just to be on the safe side.

I haven't ever read anything that suggested taking a lot of magnesium to bring levels up faster, and I'd think there'd possibly be a laxative effect in that case. Some forms are less prone to the laxative effect, but it's really only something to expect with high doses. However, calcium tends to balance out magnesium, so you can always take calcium with it if you need to. Otherwise, it is suggested to take calcium apart from magnesium, so they don't compete for absorption. The typical recommendation I've seen is to start with 200-400mg. The citrate form is supposed to be well-absorbed.

The suggestion of B-complex and vitamin D seems like sound advice as well.

You can search foods by nutrient Open Original Shared Link.

[sbj]

Sounds like cramping due to dehydration or lack of potassium - drink plenty of water and eat bananas!

[ravenwoodglass]

I picked up a Calcium-Magnesium supplement this morning. I take a multi that is pretty high in most everything but I also take a D3 and a biotin supplement. We'll see if the additional Cal-Mag supplements help a bit. I will up my daily water intake. I never really get hungrey or thirsty and I may be consuming less than I should. If Things don't improve I guess I will have to speed up my search for a new doctor. Not an easy thing in my neck of the woods. Thanks for everything guys.

[maile]

Sounds like cramping due to dehydration or lack of potassium - drink plenty of water and eat bananas!

I'll second this one as I get the toe creeping thing as well the arches of the foot. at one point I was on a Dr monitored very low carb, low fat diet and was supplemented with potassium daily. my cramping/creeping continued until I was on a fairly high dose supplement (liquid), apparently it's quite common when you eat lower carb.

Not sure if this applies to your situation but adding in a daily supplement might be worth trying.

[JNBunnie1]

I picked up a Calcium-Magnesium supplement this morning. I take a multi that is pretty high in most everything but I also take a D3 and a biotin supplement. We'll see if the additional Cal-Mag supplements help a bit. I will up my daily water intake. I never really get hungrey or thirsty and I may be consuming less than I should. If Things don't improve I guess I will have to speed up my search for a new doctor. Not an easy thing in my neck of the woods. Thanks for everything guys.

I also get a non-painful spasm, but it's always been in my left hand, very rarely in my left foot. My pinky and ring finger mostly, will curl up uncontrollably. I started twitching a lot all over about six months ago, mentioned it to my health guru, and she also said to take magnesium. I take it 250 mgs every other day and not only has the all-over twitching gone away (thank god, you look really wierd when your eyelid twitches) but the left arm spasming has gone too. I can tell you also, Patti, I also have an unfortunate propensity to D at the slightest provocation, and have had zero problems with this new supplement. I get those cramps in my legs when I stretch at night too, that hasn't gone away though, so I guess that's not a magnesium thing.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

You know, I had occasional eyelid twitching before going gluten-free, usually when I was really tired.

It never occurred to me that I don't have it any more til you mentioned it.

If it has to do with magnesium, maybe it's because I wasn't absorbing my multivitamin?

Anyway, Raven, how are you doing? Keep us posted, okay?

[ravenwoodglass]

Thanks all for the replies. It most likely was the magnesium issue. I started taking a calcium-magnesium supplement 1000-500. I have also added a D3 to my daily supplements. It does seem to be helping as the cramping has stopped. I have never been a fan of supplements but I have been doing just a little research and some of us do have issues with absorption from food even after we have healed. Mostly of course folks like me who were undiagnosed for so long. Oh well, if I still have to live off pills at least they aren't the toxic drugs I was given for so long.

[pookie91260]

I have had the same problem for several years now. I cramp in my toes, hands, and legs. my mom always said grab on to something metal thats cold and squeeze. beleive it or not it works! I tried magnesium but it didn't help. I started doing a lot of walking and that has helped with night cramps. I also take an excercise class that invloves a lot of stretching. I strech out every night before bed and every morning when I get up.

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