Do you take a magnesium supplement? I was having a lot of arm and shoulders pain along with the restless leg at night. I started taking a high quality chellated magnesium every evening with dinner. It's made a huge difference. I buy mine at Sprouts.

For your wrist have you tried sleeping with the wrist braces on. I did that for a long time when I was having the carpal tunnel problems. If it even begins to feel like I am having a flare up I wear them at night for a few days.

Sounds a little like PMR (google it), but could be lots of things I guess. Hope

it is easily solved for you.

My shoulders, upper arms, wrists hurt a bunch for a while. I finally figured out, I was tossing my covers off and got to cold up there. I have since managed to teach myself not to toss the covers off my upper body, and the problem went away.

I am not saying, this is what is happening to you, just what I had, and how I got passed it.

Moni

I'm a side sleeper and my underneath arm sometimes falls asleep. They're not constructed to support the weight of our upper torsos. For me, if I roll a bit off my arm and very slightly onto my back (but still on my side), there's no problem. Ditto if I pull my arm out from under me.

If that doesn't work, why not go see your physician?

I'd avoid the amateur diagnoses offered here unless that's your inclination.

Moni - I simply cannot sleep if I am hot, even in the dead of winter I often have my bedroom window cracked. I hope thats not my issue.....I wont sleep a lick if I am over-heated, lol!

Elmer- I have found that if I keep my arm out from under my head & shoulders, it's not so bad, but out of habit, they end up back there. This has only been going on for a week or so, I often look here for suggestions & ideas.

ravencajun - I have heard that magnesium offers a lot of benefits & I think I have some - I will give it a try, thank you!

And I do have 1 wrist brace, I should try that too & see if there is any improvement. If there is, I will pick up another for my other wrist. I notice it is very painful after just a few minutes if I have any "bend" to my wrists at all while falling asleep.

School will be out in just a few more weeks & I will be typing a lot less, I am also crocheting very little these days (getting the gardens going), so we will see if there is improvement then.

Go to Target or Walmart and buy a body pillow......($8.95 at Walmart) Pillow cover is $10.00 or $15.00.....I bought a soft fuzzy cover at Target. The body pillow is twice as long as a regular pillow. The idea is to put it between your legs (good for the back) and to hug the top. by hugging the pillow you won't sleep on your shoulder or arm. I was hurting so bad, I could hardly get dressed or even turn the steering wheel with power steering! I had all kinds of tests done for auto-immune diseases and everything came out negative. The body pillow was a big help and I got two foam toppers from Walmart for my Tempur-pedic mattress. The combination solved my problem Try the body pillow and if it works you can buy the cover. That way you're only out $9.00. :-)))

Have you overworked yourself lately, lifting, pulling, pushing?? I'm wondering since you no longer have a cigarette to hold if your using your hands, arms to do other things that could be causing strain. By the way a BIG congrats to you for quiting the habit. This is a huge accomplishment. Proud of you!!

A good friend of mine quit a couple years ago and went through 'smoker's flu.' Or something like that. She had all kinds of aches and pains and felt ill. Look it up. (The hospital she works at insisted everyone quit and did blood tests, with the threat of docking paychecks, so she couldn't do it gradually.)

On the other hand, maybe the gardening has overworked your muscles? Spring is often painful for gardeners.

Or a circulation problem? See a Dr.?

I got a gel pillow from amazon that keeps me cool at night. Not the chillo with water. (I went through 2 of those. This one won't leak.)

I have this wrist brace for night, one for each wrist. They really help a lot when my arms and wrists hurt. I did have carpal tunnel surgery on one hand. Congrats on quitting smoking. At my age I now see the long term effect of smoking on people I know who smoked. Thank goodness I never started. The most darling girl in my high school class now is tethered to an oxygen machine all day and looks like an old, old lady. It breaks my heart.

Hope you get enough sleep soon.

wrist brace for night

Georgysmom, that's incredible! What an easy and inexpensive fix. I sometimes wake up with tingly arms but it's usually because it's because I've been sleeping on my back at which time I guess I pinch nerves.

Lisa, congratulations on your feat!

jemdandy - I have also heard that about the fitbit, I will try that over the weekend, thanks.

I did have a large body pillow, I got rid of it a while ago because it was just worn out & I wasn't using it much. I have a serious issue with heat when sleeping, I worry that the wrist braces will be hot but I think I need to try them.

Thanks everyone for your thoughtful suggestions & ideas.

andreap - I have been doing a lot of gardening, and that explains all the other pains, lol

Stretching before bed helps too and yes your body processes toxins out of your tissues after you quit so eat plenty of fiber and stay hydrated so you can purge them with the least discomfort.

My first thought was a vitamin deficiency, Magnesium is a good suggest, but there are others too. It could also be as simple as being dehydrated which can also cause cramping and/or pain.

I started taking a multi vitamin mineral supplement to bring magnesium and other minerals up to RDA and it helped my chronic restless legs and asthma. Long time ago magazines were writing that this sort of thing didn't improve overall health but I've found it helps.

If only I could eat beans and greens 3x a day I wouldn't need a pill. Beans once a day is great, beans 3x a day not great. If you could add some sort of bean dish a few times a week it could really enhance overall nutrition.

It does sound like you are overdoing things with your hands though. One thing that could help is heat. Grease up your hands and wrists with heavy moisturizer and wrap with plastic wrap before bedtime, can really help. I sleep cool rather than hot but even in uncomfortable heat this doesn't bother me and since it's cheap and easy to change your mind no real downside to try it. You might also gently stretch all the joints in your arms and hands a couple times a day, just take a break and do it.

Many good suggestions so far. I suggest that you pay attention to your posture both when awake and also in bed. If you have gradually gotten out of alignment in your neck and upper back, it can put pressure on the nerves to the arms & hands.

I have had to break myself of the habit of curling my head down as I sleep on my side, and have had to find a pillow with just the correct amount of depth to keep my head and neck level. The physical therapist says to sleep on my back only, but I can't seem to manage that yet.

lukkiirish - def not dehydrated, I drink at least a gallon of water a day, every day :)