leg cramps

I've been getting cramps in my calves in the middle of the night - not too bad as soon as I stretch my foot it's gone, but this morning it was really bad my foot was pointing up and I couldn't straighten it out, fortunately DH was home and I yelled at him to come and straighten my foot.    Now my leg is just achey...

Any advice?  Is it lack of salt?  Pregnancy related?

I found this..hope it helps... it is normal!:) (from two different sites but all the weekly emails i get say that it's normal)

Leg cramps. Pressure from your uterus on the veins returning blood from your legs may cause leg cramps, especially at night. Stretch the affected muscle or walk your way through the cramps.

Most pregnant women experience leg cramps on the second trimester of pregnancy. These occur at night or early in the morning and may interrupt your sleep. There is no exact reason why leg cramps occur, but these can be caused by some factors like inadequate calcium intake, fatigue, and pressure of your uterus on your legs' nerves. To help you prevent or get relief from this second trimester discomfort, do these solutions.

• Perform exercises which can stretch your calf muscles.
• If you stand for longer periods during the day, try wearing support hose.
• Take regular breaks when your work requires standing or sitting for longer periods. Walk to and fro the office for a couple of minutes before going back to your work station.
• When leg cramps occur, try to straighten your knee and gently flex your foot upward. You can also try flexing the toes of your affected leg to relieve the discomfort.

I use to get bad leg cramps during the middle of the night and like kawwww said, she said it was the uterus putting pressure on veins.. Midwife suggested putting a pillow under your mattress where your feet are to help the blood flow easier, it worked for me.

I used to get this too, but really really bad - I would literally wake up crying at night it was so painful! I hadn't heard about it being the uterus putting pressure on veins, but had heard that it was a lack of calcium, so upped my calcium intake & that seemed to help.

yep Tiff that's potassium..supposed to help:)

mmm, banana's and icecream...  I could do that.

Is it just leg cramps? Or are you getting restless leg syndrome as well? It is quite common in pregnancy and it drove me up the bloody wall. It was kinda like cramps, but more like an uncontrollable urge to move my feet and wiggle my toes. I upped my iron intake and that got rid of it within a week. Leg cramps I have heard that magnesium tablets help. Putting your feet onto a cold floor in the middle of the night is good too!

lol, that was an amusing read!  DH thought I had just gone mad yelling at him to pull my foot down.

I dunno about introducing more salt, that can be really bad especially later in pregnancy as you'll tend to retain fluid worse (hello cankles!) and it can increase your blood pressure.

I have had restless legs for years and sometimes cramps, most of the population would have no imbalances of calcium or potassium (potassium usually goes out of balance with older people who have hydration problems). My homeopath suggested flax seed oil capsules and they worked a treat.