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7 Things To Do When You Get A Spasm

By Akila Seetharam Indurti

Muscle spasms can strike just about anyone, and the reason could range from deficiency in diet to a bad posture.

The immediate solution should be considering change in the diet, fluid intake, change in exercise pattern or improving our posture.

Also Read: How To Manage Muscle Pain After Workout?

Spasms are involuntary contractions of the muscles of one or more muscles and can affect the neck, leg, feet, back or stomach. They can cause a lot of discomfort to a person who gets this.

Muscles just tighten and stay up this way causing pain and agony and they can occur anytime like the spasm in the calf while we are sleeping causing us to wake up in pain, or the sudden pull that we feel when we get up first thing in the morning.

Also Read: 12 Remedies For Leg Cramps At Night

It is ideal to avoid doing sudden movements in order to not be affected by these muscle spasms. There is no treatment as such; however, there are quick remedies that one can go in for in order to get rid of the pain and agony.

Here are 7 things that can be done whenever there is a spasm, do have a look.

Exercise Right

Exercise Right

Always do warm-up exercises before beginning a workout and cool off before completing the session. Abruptly plunging into an exercise regimen and bringing it to a stop can cause inflammation and tenderness of the muscles, leading to sudden spasms.

Walk erect with a good posture and also sit upright without slouching while working on the desk. All these changes make the muscles more resilient.

Drink Water

Drink Water

Dehydration can also cause spasms and cramps, so it is wise to drink plenty of water, especially if you are exercising hard and long. Including electrolytes, especially sodium and potassium, would also replenish nutrients that are lost after an exercise.

Rest

Rest

A spasm always leaves a certain amount of soreness, so it is best to rest the muscles for a few days when you are affected by a spasm of pain. The strained muscles should be given adequate rest to heal and get back in shape.

At the same time, keep moving slowly and gently, so as not to develop stiffness. Stretching should not be considered, as it would aggravate the condition.

Hot Fermentation

Hot Fermentation

Heat helps the muscles to relax. A heating pad or a hot water bottle or bag can be used to massage the area that has had a spasm.

This can be done for several times in a day as soon as you get the spasm. It provides a great relief from the pain. Heat can be used if it is going to be followed by activity afterwards.

Cold Compress

Cold Compress

Placing an ice bag or cubes of ice wrapped in a cloth can reduce the pain and swelling. If you are going to rest for a while, then applying an ice pack would be a good idea.

Eat Healthy

Eat Healthy

Eating good nutritious food keeps many ailments away. Many abdominal or bowel spasms get relieved by tweaking the diet to include green leafy vegetables, fresh vegetables, seasonal fruits, bananas, brown rice, flaxseeds, oats and many other mineral-rich foods.

A few natural foods ease spasms to a great extent. These are aloe vera gel applied on to the area or aloe vera juice or apple cider juice taken internally.

Check On Medication

Check On Medication

Sometimes, a common side effect of many prescription drugs can cause muscle cramps and spasms. If you have started taking a medication recently and a spasm occurs soon after, keep a watch to see if it is the result of the drug you are taking.

However, this often works on a trial and elimination process, as it is very difficult to generalise the effects of medicines.

Story first published: Wednesday, April 27, 2016, 16:56 [IST]
Read more about: muscle back pain body pain