growing pains - not the show

[oxfordcircus]

do your kids have them? my daughter has had them in her shins for probably 4 years. we always treat with tylenol and they seem to go away. any idea if/when she will outgrow them?

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Are they only at night? Because if they are not it could be something else. Can't think of it off the top of my head right now.

 

[MzDiz]

My daughter gets them in her feet right around bedtime about three nights a week. She's eight and we're going on the third year of "foot pain". Sometimes it's bad enough to bring her to tears.

I'm curious what other folks have to say.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

DD8 had to take a Motrin tonite for her growing pains. They last on and off for years! A hot bath seems to help or try putting a heating pad on low on her leg when she lays down in bed.

 

[oxfordcircus]

Are they only at night? Because if they are not it could be something else. Can't think of it off the top of my head right now.

It's always right before bed - without exception. And always in the same spot - on the front of the leg about 3 inches below the knee. I never had them growing up, but my wife did.

 

[Dina]

I had them as a kid-- in my hips and knees. My mom finally took me to an orthopedic surgeon, and I was diagnosed with Osgood Schlautters syndrome-- which is basically really bad growing pains. I would talk to a pediatrician. I had the pain bad 6th-9th grade, but junior year, they were gone.

 

[Nancy]

My girls never had leg pains, but hips and ribs were a problem. I don't know if dancing a lot brought the pain on in those areas..but the hips/pelvic area were the worst.

 

[Narnian_Princess]

I had them as a kid-- in my hips and knees. My mom finally took me to an orthopedic surgeon, and I was diagnosed with Osgood Schlautters syndrome-- which is basically really bad growing pains. I would talk to a pediatrician. I had the pain bad 6th-9th grade, but junior year, they were gone.

One of my good friends has this. He told me that his doctor said it's because his bones are growing too fast for his ligaments and tendons to keep up. His problems are all in the knees, though, not the shins.

 

[Luv'sTink]

I took my son to the Podiatrist, and he said what causes them are the bones, ligaments and muscles are all suppose to grow at the same rate and sometimes they don't so one pulls on the others causing pain.

It sounded legitimate to me! DS get growing pains in his legs.

 

[1Prince2Princesses]

If the Tylenol is helping, it probably is just growing pains. My 12 year old has suffered off and on to this day. He had a break from it for about a year, but gets occasional growth spurts. We did also try giving him more milk (at the pediatrician's advice), and oddly enough, it helped. Apparently, calcium deficiency can cause a certain type of leg cramps.

Good luck to your daughter. I know they're painful. Soon she will probably start recognizing the symptoms before a painful attack, and can curb the severe pain before it starts. My son started feeling them coming around her age.

 

[Aisling]

My son is 14, and has had growing pains on his shins and the tops of his feet since he was 2 years old. At night I'd have to massage his feet, not the padded underside, but the top side where you can feel the rubbery connective tissue. He even has stretch marks on his knees! The feet don't bother him much anymore, but maybe every few weeks he'll complain about his shins hurting, also right before bed, like some others have said. Lots of milk, tylenol, massage, and time will take care of it.

 

[Tinkim]

My kids don't seem to have these. Every once in a while they will complain of aches and pains but I usually can attribute it to something else, i.e., dance class, karate, or football. My niece, however, had growing pains for several years. She is almost 14 now and they seem to have stopped. She is quite tall though so maybe her body couldn't keep up with the growth of the bones, muscles, ligaments, etc. Although my DS14 is quite tall too at about
5' 10" and he never really had any problems. Hopefully, your daughter will grow out of that eventually. There are some good suggestions here to try and I hope they provide some relief for her. My niece used to use Tylenol and it did seem to help.

 

[nhrenee]

My ds had these. They stopped when he was 15.

 

[Tinkerbelle'sMOM]

My 11.5 yo DD gets them....in her ankles, wrists and hips! Poor kiddo....Motrin and a warm pack or hot bath help alot! A little Benydrl also, sometimes, if she is having a really hard time sleeping. After she gets these pains she sprouts about 2 inches in a week!

 

[ZPT1022]

My brother and I both had them growing up. Tylenol, heating pads, and because my parents are minorly odd, bananas and milk. My kids haven't had any yet but DD complains she is itchy at night all the time lately- I think it's just an attention thing though? oh, about the heating pads, we had these really neat ones that are like water in a sac and then you press this little silver button inside and it gets hot and stays hot for awhile and eventually the pack hardens up and cools down, but we were normally asleep by then. You boil it in a sock to renew it. My dad already had them for all his outdoor stuff but they gave them to us because they were worried about sending us to bed with one on a cord. They usually stayed warm long enough for us to fall asleep. You could also try the ones that you microwave (they make cute animal ones too!) or a hot water bottle, all good and no worries about electrical stuff or being near an outlet.

 

[golfgal]

I had them growing up and they are painful. I think mine stopped about the time I hit 13 or so. I am only 5'4" so they don't only happen to tall people.

 

[XYSRUS]

Yes, all my kids get them...mostly feet and legs at night. I, too, end up massaging their feet and legs, sometimes multiple times during the night. Sometimes, they're so bad, they can't walk even. I hear them crying from their rooms. A warm bath and ibuprofen or Tylenol helps too. My oldest has had them even before he learned to talk!

 

[KristiKelly]

My daughter gets them in her feet right around bedtime about three nights a week. She's eight and we're going on the third year of "foot pain". Sometimes it's bad enough to bring her to tears.

I'm curious what other folks have to say.

Does she play soccer? DS feet started hurting a few years ago during football season. Turned out to be something wrong with his heel bed, something'er'nuther. I took him to the podiatrist, he did x-rays and they had to have him fitted for prescription insoles. The Dr. said he sees it often with kids who play soccer and football. Told us to be sure and buy cleats with alot of spikes on the bottom for better grip. DS is now 9, this started around 6, he no longer complains with it but it lasted for about 2 years. I'm not saying that's what it is but might be worth looking into.

When I was little, around 8, I started getting terrible pains in my knees. My Mom would just give me an aspirin and told me I was having growing pains. Well, I'm now 36 and still get these pains in my knees, I'm only 5'3" so it's obviously not growing pains .

 

[irishbosoxfan]

My DD5 has been getting them for about a year now. Not constantly maybe a couple of times a month-But when she does hurt either DH or I will sit with her and rub her legs down until she says she feels better--We don't offer any meds because of our own beliefs but I think that came back and bit us in the butt about 2 weeks ago when DD8 fell and busted her arm and didn't make a big issue out of it---We took her to the doc the next day and the doc didn't believe it to be broken--then when the xrays came back the doc called us back in immediatly and told us we needed to watch her good because she had an incredibly high tolerance for pain and should have been screaming with how bad her arm was broke!!

But anyway we rub DD5 legs and she seems happy enough with that if they seem to be really painful I will give her the rice sock.

 

[DVC Jen]

My youngest got them - as soon as she started complaining about her legs hurting I knew I was going to be buying new jeans soon.

She grew something like 4 inches in one year. Maybe that isn't a lot - but it sure seemed like a lot at the time.