Night-time foot pain in children

My son is 10 he has complained about night time foot pain for some time now. He has so far been diagnosed with "leg length discrepancy" and the foot pain is a result of that and extremely high arch on the right foot. He is seeing a othopedic doctor in a few days to find out why one lag is longer than the other. Hope this helps someone get closer to an answer, do take the pain serious I wish I did sooner.

 

Finally figured out the cause of my son's night time foot pain. He has Hypermobility Syndrome. Since finding this out I have met 3 other children with similar night time foot pain who have hypermobility syndrome. He also has an issue with his heart that indicates he has possible Marfan Syndrome. Turned out for us all his issues are fairly related.

If your child is waking up screaming with foot pain you might want to look into this. Its a relief to finally know the cause although there is very little in the way of treatment. The positive news is we found out about his heart condition and possible Marfan's syndrome which does need to be monitored and that dad has a heart condition that needs to be monitored.

 

Wow am up at 3 am googling this because
My 3 year old woke up at 2am crying from
Pain. Gave him Motrin. Will go to the doctor
See what happens and update you all. Glad
To have found you all here.

 

I find a way to cure the night time leg pain in children. And I believe I know why it happens.

You must notice that the night your child had foot pain is the day he/she played a little harder. And he/she ate the same amount of food as usual. Lower sugar level in blood at night cause the pain. The cure is: drink a cup of sweet milk. The pain will relieve in a minute. It is simple and safe, just siring 1 table spoon sugar in 8 oz. warm milk (sugar dissolve fast in warm milk)

My daughter started night time leg pain at age three. I took her to the doctor and she was diagnosed as growing pain. But the doctor didn't know why it happens and no cure for that. I tried everything I could to comfort her like massage, warming pad, even pain relieve spray but nothing actually worked. After so many helpless and sleepless nights, I decided to try pain relieve medicine: Tylenol. In less than one minute after taking Tylenol the pain was gone and in two minutes she fall asleep again. I was amazed and also questioned. As I know no medicine taking by mouth could effect that fast. Sugar! The sugar in Tylenol works. The next time I tried sweet milk and it worked!

I personally prefer a cup of sweet warm milk. You could try a can of soda drink (not diet) if you like. To prevent it happens again, encourage your child eat more if they play harder that day.

Try it, it is 100% harmless. Please share with other parents if it works for your child.

 

I'm in my thirties, and I was browsing the internet because I'm in pain (AGAIN) and it's been on and off since I was a kid. I remember always telling my mom that my feet hurt, and when we did go to the doctor on a routine check-up she mentioned it and the doctor asked me about it, and I said the pain was deep inside my foot In the end, the doctor thought nothing of it and I was left to suffer. But the pain is real -- it's just hard to explain to parents how they hurt, exactly. So when I was younger, I would wrap/tie bandannas to my ankle, put my feet against the wall, or let my feet hang over the bed... it's weird how trying to temporarily cut off circulation would relieve the pain, but I liked how good it felt when the blood came rushing back to my foot. When I got older, I finally understood the trigger: cold. I also had some thyroid problems in high school, so I'm wondering if I have Reynauds. In any case, cold nights like these are uncomfortable, but I've just taken to wearing good old-fashioned socks and getting foot massages when I can.

I guess the symptoms and causes are different for everybody, but it IS a relief to affirm that the pain wasn't imaginary, and I wasn't alone back then! Good luck to everybody out there, and may your kids find relief, even in a warm comforting hug from mom and dad.

 

My 4 year-old daughter, same thing. Foot Dr. said he sees it a lot with young girls (didn't mention boys) who wear their princess shoes/hard shoes where the top of the shoe cuts across the middle of the top of the foot. The pressure of stopping, starting, shuffling, etc. all day puts pressure on the tendons/bone and only really hurts when they lie down and try to sleep (night time or day-time naps) as the pressure on/off the foot has changed dramatically and starts throbbing - and they can't specify where the pain is as it hurts all over the foot. Wearing tennis shoes, Ibuprofin, etc. and not wearing the hard shoes for about 2 weeks should help.

 

my son is 4 years old and for the last 3 months has been experiencing not foot pain, but in the toes, when he wakes at night he tenses all his muscles and screams because of the feeling in his toes(both feet) he says they hurt and it can take up to an hour to calm him. my doctor has no clue, and we're not quite sure what avenue to take on this. if anyone has suggestions on this please please pass it on...
a worried mum

 

Some kids have foot pain for various reasons, and sometimes kids are bad about describing pain-whether that is location or type. I am a pediatric physical therapist so I get to see a good deal of kids. Some foot things just to take notice-how does your kiddos arch look? If it your kid has flat feet or the ankle rolls in (pronated). After a while you can get midfoot break down which can manifest on the top of the foot. You may try orthotics-custom made or over the counter. If your kiddo has a high arch you may get almost like a plantar fasciitis (typically pain in the morning). You see pain in the morning due to the feet being pointed down while you slep then you get out of bed, bed your foot, stretch your arch, creating pain. Maybe your kiddos are stretching in the middle of the night, thus stretching the plantar fascia creating pain. This pain is often relieved with anti-inflammatories (advil, etc), massage, ice/heat. Again, orthotics/shoe insert can help.

You may try to incorporate daily stretching routines for your kiddos if they can tolerate-stretch hamstrings, calves (gastrocs/soleus), and toes. Do all in the morning and evening and be gentle. You may try to get a script to see a pediatric physical therapist to check out how your kid walks, their posture, and their muscle/bone alignment.

 

I have 2.5 yr old son who has sporadically had these pains in the last year or so. I didn't think nothing of it until it kept happening. My only guess is flat feet. I have flat feet and sometimes get pain. arches start forming in children between 2-3 yrs old. So imagine if the foot is flat and all day they are jumping, running, etc. how much pain that is on a flat arched foot. Its called flat catas????? something. anyways, im going to the podiatrist to see if i can get him some type of special shoes to help him. He doesn't have the pain often, just sometimes. Like tonight he couldn't sleep for 2 hrs because of it and they def. don't want attention, i have walked in on him with bare feet- he took his socks off and sitting on his bed. and i ask him whats wrong and he points to his feet. I hate seeing my baby in pain so im gonna take him in to the doc and see what he says.

 

i have it to

You should try warming foot pain. I had foot pain one night and that stuff worked!I

 

I searched for answers to this same problem to my son (7yrs old). My son has this since he was 4. But what I notice is that he suffers this pain when he's had a really tired day, like a playful day filled with running and jumping and everything OR we've walked long hour in a mall or some places.

I asked his pedia before and was told that it is just because his feet were tired. OK so maybe. So I encouraged my son to be more playful. So it can be an exercise and he should get used to being active and playfull, rather than just being at home sitting playing video games or drawing.

I thought it worked, its like being an athlete. Athlete's are used to constant muscle activity so they get used to it. BUT once in a while my son still complains about this. And just recently he complained.

I am an engineer so I am considering probably it is his bone structure. My son's legs are quite odd. His knees could meet inwards and he can make both his feet meet inwards full 180 degrees or more.

So with this I am thinking probably his bones, joints and muscle are in so much stress because they are not aligned it looks twisted to be carrying his body. And will cause pain if he runs around or walk for longer hours.

It seems that this forum are all about the problem, I wanted to find an answer or probably a solution. BUT reading through the thread there's no solution.

I WONDER IF EXPERTS HAVE LOOKED INTO THE BONE STRUCTURE OF THE CHILD'S LEGS AND FEET. And if there's a way to align a child's legs so that they can carry him in a well distributed load towards his bones and joints.

I have been thinking of probably asking a doctor to align, brace and encase my son's legs probably for a month until his legs get used to the proper alignment and grow from it within a month. I wonder if this will work. Any doctor's opinion here?

 

Hi,
My 3.5 year old son fell down our basement stairs the other day and thankfully only ended up with a bump on his forehead. But since his fall at bedtime he complains that his feet are really sore. They get really hot and sensitive so when i try to rub them or even put a cold cloth on them he gets aggitated with the feeling so he wants me to stop .. he legs are constantly moving and it takes him at least a 1/2 hour to fall asleep and wakes at least once during the night with the same symptoms.

 

Hi I just thought I would share my story. I have an 18 y/o daughter who started having these foot cramps mostly at night sometimes during the day when she was about 3 1/2. She's now 18 and she did outgrow them. I think the last one she had was when she was around 16. The older she got the less she had them. We did the Dr. route also and they never found anything. We learned putting heat on was the best thing, but sometimes that didn't help. I also now have a son who is 3 1/2 and last night he had his first foot cramp. It really shocked me, but I didn't have that helpless panicky feeling cause I had delt with this before. So I guess I'm trying to say they do outgrow them and have them alot less as they age. But I would check with the dr. anyway.

 

In response to those people with children who are experiencing nocturnal pain associated with the lower limb and feet. This is a common feature in young children with increased flexibility in their feet and often is associated with unusual foot posture (low or high arched feet). The best bet is to visit a podiatrist who will assess your childs legs and feet for flexibility and the position of their feet when weight bearing. The usual treatment for this is strengthening exercises to help improve muscle tone and maintain stability and where necesary provide insoles to help maintain a better foot position. Hope this helps

 

Hi everyone. I have a 5 year old son who had severe nightly foot cramps and pains since he was 2. The pains would begin while either drifting to sleep or while asleep and some nights he would wake once and sometimes every 30 minutes after I would get him back to sleep. Sometimes the pain would subside quickly and other times it would last up to an hour. I have had plenty of sleepless nights trying my best to soothe my poor boy. I tried EVERYTHING, natural and non, topical, oral, heat, cold, stretching, massaging, x-rays, blood tests, neurologists, podiatrists etc. I finally did a full allergy panel and it turned out my son has a gluten allergy and is allergic to Malic Acid in apples. It took about 3 weeks of being off gluten to rid his body of the antibodies but it WORKED! Gluten can cause inflammation so it makes sense. I have let him have gluten a few times and every time, without fail, he will have a bad night. The hard part is waiting for the gluten to exit the system. The repercussions of one pizza night can last a week! But its worth the lifestyle switch! I know how you and your little ones suffer! I have been there. Please, take them off gluten for one month and see what happens. Keep them really hydrated and eat lots of fruit and veg to help clear the system of antibodies faster. I hope it works for you and your little one. Best of luck!

 

While searching night cramps I ran across this post. I plan on discussing this with our dr.
Bless these people for taking the time to write all this out!!!




My 5 brothers and I HAD the exact same problem.

We all used to get bad leg cramps or "charlie horses"....sometimes in both legs at the same time. And it always occured late at night.

What I am about to share with you is what has helped us sleep comfortably at night. These cures are the results of my parents' loving research and their many hours of asking questions from experts around the country.

#1 Top Cure

--- Place a bar of soap under his fitted sheet close to his legs. It works best if one of his legs rest on it as he sleeps. You may be laughing right now but it WORKS. This came from an elderly doctor in Florida and we owe her our lives. I'm not sure how it works but the bar of soap is a miracle!

#2 Cure for leg cramps

----Coral Calcium : I know your son is 4 years old so PLEASE ask your doctor concerning this product. My siblings and I are older than your son and therefore we take one tablet a day as instructed on the label.. You can find coral calcium at any GNC store or Walgreens. The coral calcium improves the blood flow through your veins which, in turn, helps eliminate the cramping.

#3 Cure for leg cramps

Try to reduce physical activity 3 -4 hours before bedtime. As stated, I know that your son is 4 years old but if you could somehow reduce his play activity such as running and jumping several hours before bedtime, this will significantly reduce leg cramps at night. If this is not possible, make absolutely sure he drinks orange juice an hour before bedtime. This helps us tremendously!

#4 Orange Juice, Water and Bananas

You probably already been told that water and potassium from bananas is good for leg cramps. This is true ,however, the liquid that always stays in our refrigerator is orange juice. This is also what we drink DURING our leg cramps attacks. When your son has a leg cramp, get him on his feet and start walking as you push the cramp downward. Always work with gravity...not against it. As you are rubbing his leg and he is walking, make sure he is drinking orange juice during this process. The cramp will dissippate in approximately 10 minutes compared to the 45 minutes you are spending currently.

Very Important: After his cramp is gone, make sure he walks an additional 5 - 7 minutes inside. This will ensure better blood flow in his legs for a very comfortable and restful sleep for you and him!

In conclusion, I certainly hope that this information will be beneficial to your son and anyone else with leg cramps. I have not had a leg cramp in approximately 1 year due to the above steps. You will definitely be amaze with the power of the bar of soap.

 

don't worry, don't worry the reson your kids feet hurt at night is simply because there growing. They are not active when there sleeping and their body cools down wich makes their bones hurt. It's like athritis but its not lol.. Just try your best to keep their feet warm at night.

 

Thank you so much all of you posters for your help. My 4 yr old is dealing with the same thing.
He also had night terrors when he was young. I will look into Kohlers desease. Thank goodness for caring parents. As the doctor on this thread seems particularly unuseful. For the record for me, if my childs feet were actually cold, not just him describing them as cold I would have known what to do, warm them up.

 

I am not posting about pain (though my child does experience it), but just wanted to note how amazingly condescending you are to people who simply need to discuss and learn about a serious pain their children are having. Perhaps you should have considered politics?