Snowflake Posted July 3 Share Posted July 3 Good day guys, I hope all are managing. I have been taking 50mg of Prednisone daily for the past few weeks, in an attempt to assist with the loading dosages of my D3. It is helping, however I am having excruciating leg cramps mainly at night. Now it is also cramping on the muscle surrounding both my hip replacements. Get them some times when I'm driving also So, I do know that Prednisone actually depletes Potassium levels. Magnesium, for some reason, is just makes the cramps worse. I tried other anti cramp meds out there and its not working. Just wanted to find out if it is safe to take high dosages of Potassium for now and if it will aggravate the Clusters or will it be safe. Thanks 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FunTimes Posted July 3 Share Posted July 3 I will sometimes have leg cramps but I think the cause is to much caffeine. What helps me is Bananas (potassium) drinking lots of water and stretching on the floor (fake yoga). Not sure if this will help you with the pred cramps but it does help me. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bejeeber Posted July 3 Share Posted July 3 I very much like, and vigorously salute, the @FunTimes reply, and will just add my experiences as an adult life-long nocturnal cramps experience-er, whose wake up calls have been largely in remission for going on a year now: They can be a moving target, just like our 'ol CH buddy. Magnesium citrate worked for me for keeping them at bay for like a couple years at one stretch, then failed. Magnesium gluconate seemed to help at one point also, but individuals apparently can have different reactions to different forms - citrate worsens cramps for one family member, but gluconate doesn't Yep, the potassium-rich foods bananas, avocados, potatoes and sweet potatoes can potentially help significantly (at least until the target may shift) I didn't realize the sudden wake up cramps could be anything other than a ridiculously huge emergency-feeling level of painful until more recently when I had a couple that were a strange and thoroughly unfamiliar kind of 'moderate' I'm known to do occasional 'walking lunge' type leg exercises. Not sure what, if anything they're doing for me in the cramp department, but my current remission has coincided with the addition of this 'Advanced Electrolytes' supplement, one pill with dinner. I might question whether especially high doses of potassium are really required, but of course am fully acquainted with the desperate times/desperate measures mindset many of us here have been known to adopt courtesy of the CH! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHfather Posted July 3 Share Posted July 3 (edited) I have been very, very surprised that a product called Theraworx actually seems to help to quickly relieve my intense leg cramps. It's not preventive -- it's a cream or roll-on that you apply when the cramp begins (though sometimes I use it when I'm getting into bed at night as a possible preventive). It's just magnesium. Since it's topical and not consumed, maybe it wouldn't affect you as you have described. Amazon.com: Theraworx Relief for Muscle Cramps Foam Fast-Acting Muscle Spasm, Leg Soreness with Magnesium Sulfate - 7.1 oz - 1 Count : Health & Household I also concur with Jeebs that if you can find a form of magnesium pill that doesn't have negative effects, it would be good. I would say that oral magnesium has helped me more than potassium. Edited July 3 by CHfather 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bejeeber Posted July 3 Share Posted July 3 I neglected to mention that, guzzling the kool-aid and buying into the positive Amazon reviews, I have used the EXACT SAME THERAWORX AS @CHfather, and I was also shocked at how reliably and consistently it worked for relief of intense leg cramps - for me, it has routinely worked to relieve full blown cramps in progress, and I still religiously keep it at the bedside in case. This is iron clad proof that the world's greatest minds think in an identical fashion , although I'll admit I hadn't thought to try it right before bed as a possible preventative. I'm also now starting to consider the greatest mind @FunTimes comment about too much caffeine as a possible culprit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon019 Posted July 3 Share Posted July 3 (edited) ....if you're taking a statin (e.g. Atorvastatin) for cholesterol control a typical side effect can be leg cramps. boy-howdy those 200AM cramp-athons will get your attn. yes, i take Mg, but find that skipping a statin dose now and then is muy bueno. your doc may disagree...so discuss it.... Edited July 4 by jon019 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHfather Posted July 3 Share Posted July 3 7 hours ago, Bejeeber said: world's greatest minds think in an identical fashion 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanderson Posted July 8 Share Posted July 8 I would strongly encourage you to discuss these leg cramps with your doctor. It certainly could be from the prednisone, but there are some serious side effects of prednisone that can cause pain in the legs, like blood clots. i don't say this to alarm you, but if simple measures aren't releaving the cramps, please call your doctor. Prednisone can work wonders sometimes, but it is important to be aware of uncommon serious side effect potential. I had a blood clot in my arm when i was on prednisone, fortunately it was in a surface vein so it didn't turn out to be serious. But it felt like a tight muscle for a couple days before i realized something else was going on. Let us know how you are doing, we care! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowflake Posted July 8 Author Share Posted July 8 On 7/3/2025 at 5:19 PM, CHfather said: I have been very, very surprised that a product called Theraworx actually seems to help to quickly relieve my intense leg cramps. It's not preventive -- it's a cream or roll-on that you apply when the cramp begins (though sometimes I use it when I'm getting into bed at night as a possible preventive). It's just magnesium. Since it's topical and not consumed, maybe it wouldn't affect you as you have described. Amazon.com: Theraworx Relief for Muscle Cramps Foam Fast-Acting Muscle Spasm, Leg Soreness with Magnesium Sulfate - 7.1 oz - 1 Count : Health & Household I also concur with Jeebs that if you can find a form of magnesium pill that doesn't have negative effects, it would be good. I would say that oral magnesium has helped me more than potassium. I bought a vitamin called Plenish k sr. Didn't use it as yet since I read that it has alcohol as one of the ingredients. So I'm not sure if that would be a trigger since alcohol in general is like a death sentence for me. It came highly recommended to boost potassium levels since I am convinced that my potassium is really low hence the cramps. I am scared to try it though, part of me is saying just wing it for a few days and see how it goes. Lol 2 hours ago, sanderson said: I would strongly encourage you to discuss these leg cramps with your doctor. It certainly could be from the prednisone, but there are some serious side effects of prednisone that can cause pain in the legs, like blood clots. i don't say this to alarm you, but if simple measures aren't releaving the cramps, please call your doctor. Prednisone can work wonders sometimes, but it is important to be aware of uncommon serious side effect potential. I had a blood clot in my arm when i was on prednisone, fortunately it was in a surface vein so it didn't turn out to be serious. But it felt like a tight muscle for a couple days before i realized something else was going on. Let us know how you are doing, we care! I seriously didn't know about the blood clots. Thanks for letting me know. I only knew that it cause avascular necrosis cos it's what caused me to have my hips replaced at age 30. I know that Prednisone whilst helps a lot for a lot of conditions such as wheezing, skin issues etc, has a whole host of side effects that doctors don't tell you. Yet is is the most cheapest drug on the market. After I stopped the Prednisone going on 3 days now, I didn't have the cramps for the last 2 nights. However I have pain in the areas where I was getting the cramps still. The beast is still around but had no choice since it's hard to juggle with cramps whilst having an attack and taking O2. I did try orange juice to pick up my potassium and it did work. So Prednisone also depletes ones potassium. Thank you for the info. Much appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karensitas Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 Prednisone can lower potassium, which may cause cramping, but taking high doses of potassium without checking levels first can be risky. It’s a good idea to ask your doctor for a blood test to check your electrolytes. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowflake Posted July 17 Author Share Posted July 17 16 hours ago, karensitas said: Prednisone can lower potassium, which may cause cramping, but taking high doses of potassium without checking levels first can be risky. It’s a good idea to ask your doctor for a blood test to check your electrolytes. Ok thank you. Will check my levels. So far I'm just trying foods high in potassium etc. seems to working . 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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