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Thank you - conference and cramping

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Hi everyone

First, I want to extend my sincere thanks for the live streaming of the CML patient conference this past weekend.  It was such a privilege to be able to see these excellent presentations from the comfort of my living room, thousands of kilometers away here at the bottom tip of Africa.  I so appreciate that this outstanding forum made this possible.  Thank you a thousand times.

Second, last month I posted here about my experience with muscle cramps starting on imatinib after unusual side effects on dasatinib.  Scuba and Alastair advised me to add magnesium supplements to my diet, which I promptly did, and - lo and behold - the cramps are gone!  Thank you for helping me eliminate this side effect.

None of this would have been possible without this forum.  I am so very grateful that it exists - it has been my friend, my support and my guide through tough times.  Finally I'm starting to feel that I have my future back and that I'm kicking this disease.

Best wishes

Martin

That is great to hear Martin. I’m so pleased you found the video stream useful. Even better that Alastair managed to help you with your cramps problem - they are the worst! Together, we are able to help each other a hell of a lot. I can’t quite imagine how people managed to deal with these sort of things in the pre-internet era.

David.

Hi Martin,

good to hear you sorted out the cramp problems with magnesium. Can I ask how much you take and in what form? It would be helpful for others to know and maybe try to deal with this side effect in that way. I take 200mg magnesium citrate x 2 daily- one dose just after dinner which makes me sleep better. I also take high dose Vit D3 which over the last 2 months that I have been supplementing, has dealt a welcome blow to my issues with joint pain and muscle strength. I have recently tested myself by copying the younger/fitter people in London who seem able to 'bounce' down the very steep escalators on the Tube (Metro) stations. I have definitely improved my ability to do that and not made a fool of myself as yet!

Sandy

Hi Sandy and David

Thanks so much for the answers and for the information!  To answer your question, Sandy:  I take my magnesium as part of a supplement called Opti-cal (it sounds like it should be in the eye section, but is actually made up from something like "Optimum Calcium", I think).  Its make-up is as follows:

Calcium 500 mg

Collagen 150 mg

Magnesium (derived from magnesium oxide) 150 mg

It also contains Vitamin D, manganese (derived from manganese sulphate), potassium, copper and zinc.  I don't really have a Vitamin D shortage because here in South Africa I spend a lot of time in the sun - I've heard that 25 minutes per week in full sunshine with 25% of your body uncovered (this means face, arms and legs) is enough to provide the necessary amounts of Vitamin D.  I guess I'm lucky to live in this sunny climate (Johannesburg has 9 hours of sunshine per day on average).  Anyway, once I started these Opti-cal tablets, my muscle cramps disappeared almost instantly.

Those Tube escalators are quite something!  I remember being amazed at how deep they go... I think it was Leicester Square that just seemed to descend forever!  I'm glad you are able to negotiate them as someone younger than you would, Sandy!

Best wishes

Martin