The Humbled Homemaker: Easing Leg Pain During Pregnancy {A Natural Phenomenon}

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If you're pregnant and wake up at night with tingling, achy or cramping legs, you're not alone.

In fact, there are many different ailments that can plague your legs during pregnancy:

Sciatic Pain
Restless Leg Syndrome
Leg Cramps
Varicose Veins
Charley Horses

Image by tommo4074

I've personally experienced restless leg syndrome (during my second pregnancy), charley horses (during my first pregnancy) and both varicose veins and leg cramps during my second and current pregnancies.

I will write a separate post on some preventative and relief measures for varicose veins, but here are some things that have helped relieve my leg cramps (which mostly occur at night):

Sleeping on my left side, with my legs cradling a body pillow. (You can find speciality pregnancy pillows online, but a regular body pillow works just fine for me.)
Staying off my feet as much as possible (This also helps with varicose veins.)
Maintaining good calcium intake. If I do not feel like I am getting enough calcium through my diet, I make sure to drink a liquid calcium-magnesium supplement. I personally use the Natural Calm brand, and I get mine on Vitacost (if you order anything from Vitacost through this link, you'll get a $10 off coupon!).
I am not absolutely sure this is what has done it, but I've recently been taking Trilight Health's iron supplement. My leg pain has almost disappeared since I started taking this!

Have you ever experienced leg pain during pregnancy? What helped alleviate your pain?

*I am in no way a health professional or expert. This post is my personal experience and opinions only. Please do your own research and consult your trusted health professional if you are experiencing leg pain during pregnancy.
**I have included affiliate links in this post.