Leg Cramps with Femara?.....
Hi Ladies,
I am 2 months into Femara and Eligard (Lupron). The Hot Flashes are back! I am having lower back pain and front pelvic pain both of these are normally when I first wake up. Last night I flipped and flopped all night like a fish! Back hurt all night long. Also the past 4 nights I keep getting leg cramps. I keep reading but everything is connected to Tamoxifen, so I am curious if anyone on Femara has had leg cramps. I go for herceptin tomorrow and I plan on asking about those and the front pelvic pain. Also after tomorrow just 2 more herceptin and I am done!! 
Thank you for any input.
Love to all,
Susan
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Susan-I have been on Femara for almost 1 year. Everyone is different but for me most of the bad SE's happened within the first few months. Sleep has always been an issue for me but I do think it was worse during the first few months. Joint pain was the worse then to but I still have it now when I get up from sleeping or sitting for a long time. I don't remember any actual cramps though.
I just really think everyone has their own reactions to these drugs. You are still getting other drugs too so they may be reacting to each other. I hope your onc has some answers for you tomorrow.
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Well, I've had pretty much constant nightly calf cramps while on it's kissing cousin Arimidex. Even had episodes of frank in turning of my toes (called pedospasm, yikes).
I finally got with the program and followed the kind ladies advice here by ensuring I took my calcium, magnesium and vitamin D. It's too early to tell.
Tonic water has quanine which often helps with the cramps. But I didn't use it.
Advil did seem to help when the pain was bad. One at night on occasion.
Also heating pad prior to sleep and gentle stretching.
Hope you get some relief.
Tender0 -
Thank you BMD and Tender (haha loved the kissin cousins)
Isn't this just a wonderful experience we have to go thru? LOL NOT!!
Tender I didn't get my period this month either, so I am figuring everything is working as it should. Just hoping nothing comes falling out from the netherland area!
I am getting me a dove soap bar for under my sheet and gonna try that! Alot of women swear by it for cramps. Or perhaps I may need to get 2 seeing as I cramp in both calf areas. At least if I wake up in bubbles I will know if I am becoming incontinent! <giggle>
Again thank you BOTH for your input!
XOXOXO
Susan
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That's too funny, Susan!
I wonder if our dear Joan suggested the Dove soap bar under the sheet. Maybe it lubricates the toes and feet incase they cramp too. However, I happen to know she flatly rejected my idea of Crisco anywhere near a bedroom (long story, earlier post).
Loved the bubbles! Tiny bubbles, wasn't that a song?
Tender0 -
My wife had thigh pain, foot pain, hip pain at different times all through her 5+ years on Femara. She did a lot of exercise and then also got various pain killers added to her arsenal of pills. Not an easy road..
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Susan,
Ask your Dr. if its ok to take calcium, magnesium and potassium. Those 3 will usually take away the leg cramps, with drinking extra filtered water throughout the day. It will be better to take the magnesium separately from the calcium. 2 hours apart, and eat more foods high in potassium. Cramps should vanish if you get the dose right for yourself. How much water are you actually drinking each day? Coffee doesn't count.
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Hi Suzy,
My aunt was the first to tell me about this, then I am also on the Komen boards and it has been recommended there also. You put it under the bottom sheet of your bed around your calf area and if you cramp you rub legs on it and it stops them.
I just bought a new bedtopper so I put my soap in a pillowcase and sleep with it in legs reach every night. So far I have not had any cramps since my post. I did increase potassium by diet, bananas etc.
Also ALL I drink anymore is water. A little juice here and there but mostly water.
Hey I suggest you put a bar in a pillow case and if your hands cramp try rubbing and see if it helps. You will have to report back on this though because you will be a first! I wish you the best!
Susan McD
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Hi Arco,
Is your wife done with Femara now? How about her memory did she forget ALOT? How is she doing now?
Thank you so much for your input,
Susan
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OHH dear Tender,
Yes Tiny Bubbles is a song! LOL I will be singing it if I ever wake up in bubbles!
Love you,
Susan
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Hi Rosemary,
Thank you for advice! I am already on a calcium supplement with D.
I am working on the potassium, I am not sure about magnesium though. I take Paxil and I am not sure if the 2 can be taken together.
Anyone care to enlighten me?
Paxil is the whole reason I am on Femara and ovarian suppresion. I can't get off of it!
I tried and I became a train wreck waiting to happen! I have been on it pre BC for Panic Disorder for 10 years almost 11 now. I truly wish I had NEVER started it because I don't know if I will ever be free from it! It has and does help me but I am terrified to try to go off it again right now. Maybe later this year I can try again!Love to you
Susan
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Susan,
I wouldn't know if Mg and paxil will collide. I take Mg for the same reasons you take paxil. Panic attacks, depression, leg cramps and a whole bunch of other reasons. Kris might come along. If it has something to do with a drug she usually can find it.
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I Susan, glad to see your are doing fine. I have been quite busy lately searching information on the net about Eligard Femara and herceptin and forgot to check back this web site. I also have pelvic pain more intense on the left side, this has started about 1 month after my eligard shot. So I have been searching for info and could not find anything related, so now I read that you also have pelvic pain then may be it has something to do with Eligard. I also have leg cramps/pain similar when I was getting taxol but less painful. I do 60 mins of exercise every day and I find this very helpful for the leg pain. Are you constantly losing weight? because I have been and my oncologist told me this was very unusual and right now I am going through several tests in order to figure out the reason. She scared me because right now I am underweight (44 kg). I lost 15 kg since the start of my chemo. I am constantly eating and I am now quite fed up of eating. Is your estradiol level remains low with eligard?
Sig
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Hey, I know this is almost three years old but I've been having leg cramps for the last three or four days and nothing helps! And I'm on Femara. Taking D, Calcium, etc. Just went back to work after a long winter vacation so I suspect that's part of the problem; I'd heard from a chiropractor that "running around" can deplete vitamins and minerals just like running an actual marathon can. But at least I now know it's related also to Femara.
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Will also try the Dove soap in bed as well as on the easy chair while watching TV. Interesting!
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I have been on both Arimidex or Femara since my treatment for Stage 1 breast cancer ended in August 2008. I have taken myself off both of these drugs to gain some respite from the hideous side effects I have experienced that include severe bone and joint pain, horrifying leg cramps at night, arthritis-like debility, thin hair, lack of libido, etc. The first time I came off Arimidex, I finally started to feel like I was recovering from my treatment and I stayed off it for six months. My onc convinced me that studies show that those women who suffer the worst side effects are most likely those women who receive the most benefit from the drug. I went back on Femara until March 2011 and that time I stayed off it for 3 months. Sad to report that my "recovery" was not quite as dramatic as the first time. It is now 34 months of taking these drugs and that means that I have 26 more months to go, but now that my rheumatologist has my bone and joint pain under control (Arthrotec 75 mg X 2 daily, Cyclobenzaprine 10 mg X 2 daily and the latest "miracle" drug, Co Q10 over the counter), I am suffering from hideous leg cramps. I am considering taking another break from the aromatase inhibitors just to enjoy a few pain free months (and get some sleep). My Oncotype DX score was 39 so I'm terrified not to continue this drug, but the thought of having to do an additional 5 years (as studies suggest) is something I just can't contemplate. I count the DAYS until my initial 5 years are up. Good luck, ladies, and go see a rheumatologist. Even if I have to take 5 pills to overcome some of the side effects of that nasty litte tiny pill, I am determined to somehow get 60 months of that stuff into me. New goal: additional meds to get rid of the leg cramps!!
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I am only 10 days into Femara and the legs and feet cramps during the night are so painful. Also dealt with my head getting soaking wet, had to get up and use a towel to dry my hair some and change my pillow case. I am an awful sleeper to start with and these added afflictions are awful. I was taking arimedex but had the same issues so my doctor switched me to Femara. I am ready to take my chances and not take any of these drugs.
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Joan, I started taking a small dose of magnesium daily. I started to improve my D/calcium absorbtion, but it also seems to have improved the leg cramps.
As far as the night sweats, that drove me nuts at first too. It has, however, calmed down to the point that it doesn't bother me very often anymore. It was worst the first 3 months or so.
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I know putting a bar of soap between the sheets sounds ridiculous, but putting a bar of Ivory soap between my sheets has always worked to get rid of my leg cramps!!!
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This is a pretty old topic, but I have been on Femara since September, and about two weeks ago awoke in the night to go to the bathroom. As I was getting out of bed, I had this indescribable pain in my leg. It was so bad that I thought I had a blood clot, or was dying or something. It was different than any other leg cramp I'd ever had, as it wasn't confined to my arch or calf and didn't respond to my pointing my toes toward my knee as cramps always had in the past. After several minutes of bearing weight on my leg, it subsided. Today, I was resting in bed as I am recovering from a nasty bout of bronchitis, and I got a similar cramp, only this one was centered on the top of my ankle and forced my foot upward, so I couldn't move it.
These cramps feel like I'm being taken over by aliens. I assume they're from the Femara. Just as I was getting over the crazy joint pain side effects, now this. I hate to gripe, but I would love to feel that I was back in my old pre-BC body.
Thank you for letting me rant,
Mary Anne
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I have been on Femara/letrozole for 5+ yrs and I get horrendous leg cramps at times. However, it is not the Femara/letrozole that is at fault - it is low K (potassium) levels.
1/2 way through 12 weekly Taxol, my K levels 'tanked' and had to go on mega doses of K to keep levels in normal range. I still have to take K to keep levels up but occasionally it will drop and I have to increase for a while then drop back a bit. When a cramp happens, I take another K and within minutes it will subside - if I don't take, it will get worse and continue happening until I get K levels back up.
This may not have anything to do with your cramping issues and certainly DO NOT take mega doses of K without your Dr's approval as too much K can be as deadly as too little. I have the approval of my Drs to handle my issues as I do after blood work showed the issue and I do get check. Mg (magnesium) and Zn (zinc) levels also need to be in proper ratios.
Talk to your Dr.
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I’ve been taking Femara for about 3-mo, had my first Prolia injection (worst injection pain I’ve ever experienced) about 2-mo ago and I JUST had the most horrid calf cramp. I couldn't walk it off because I couldn’t put any weight on it. My leg wouldn’t straighten, my toes were going in unnatural directions, I couldn’t stand up, I couldn’t even kneel. It lasted 5-min. I was bawling and kept saying “what do I do???” I now have what appears to be a broken blood vessel in the same almost horizontal position as the cramp. I’ve read all your stories here and don’t see anything about a broken blood vessel - anyone? I also haven’t read where anyone said they’ve had Prolia injections. The side effects from this fun thing are so terrifying I wonder how the FDA could have OK’ed it!! I take all the right supplements. but I haven’t tried the Dove or Ivory soap bar under the sheets and as silly as that sounds, I’ll be doing that tonight. And I know I didn’t drink enough water yesterday. I read where someone said ALL they drink is water anymore and last night I had a huge hot chocolate and an iced tea. Not the smartest thing I’ve done.
As I’ve told friends: “Don’t get cancer. It’s not nearly as much fun as I thought it was going to be.” 🥴3 months down and only 57 more to go - yay.
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I'm on Arimidex and do get leg cramps. First, they were only as I lay down to go to sleep but lately, I started getting them very strong during sleep, so much so that they were waking me up. One night, when this happened, I also noticed that my legs were cold so I grabbed a pair of leggings to put on. They just so happened to be a tight, stretchy pair of spandex leggings. No more cramps that night. I kept wearing my tight leggings to bed and didn't have any more cramps. Maybe the warmth plus the compression is helping prevent them.
I also notice when I exercise regularly, the cramps are less frequent and less severe.
I do take Vit D3, calcium and magnesium but it seems to have no effect on the cramping.
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I am not taking Femara or any other AI but have had leg cramps at night for many years. Drinking dill pickle juice helps and I recently read in the People’s Pharmacy about rubbing liquid soap on legs. Well, last night I was being tortured by leg cramps and out of desperation I tried the liquid soap.....worked like a charm.
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Thanks for your reply. I wonder if the liquid soap is along the same lines of people swearing a bar of soap under the sheets down by their legs helping? So weird.
I haven’t had a cramp that bad in a couple years and I was unable to make it to the bathroom. It’s only 6 steps away! I was frozen in pain and even unable to drop to the floor. Worst pain I’ve ever experienced. I might just keep some liquid soap on my nightstand or I might even try the preventative method of a bar of soap under the sheets. But both options, right? I’ll try anything.0 -
Hmmmmm....Interesting because I do usually wear leggings to bed and that night I didn’t. Thank you for that.
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