How to Relieve Toddlers’ Joint Pains With Warmth

As mentioned in my introductory article (here), applying warmth is one of the three natural and easy ways to take away our children’s discomfort caused by growing pains. The other two things you can do are massaging and stretching. However, there are times when warmth does not ease the tightness and feeling of pressure inside the thighs, but rather intensifies it.

Hot or Cold?

I found out which worked best for us from my beloved little one, who would tell me that his feet and legs felt uncomfortable and hurt, but absolutely hated it when I wanted to put a warm hot water bottle on his thighs or cover them with the blanket. But when I brought a hot water bottle with cold water inside, he really enjoyed it. He also slept with his thighs sticking out from under the blankets, and the rest of his body apart from his hair and nose totally covered up.

His preference for heat or coolness also varied with the season. In the hot summer season he usually preferred the “cold water bottle”, whereas in winter the warmth was very welcome.

I always mention the second option of a cold hot water bottle and the influence of the seasons when someone asks me how to treat growing pains, because sometimes warmth is simply not what our little ones want, yet at that moment we misinterpret their rejection of warmth as a general complaint about the pain.

This is especially true when our little ones are still too young to communicate clearly what they want, or when they wake up from the pain and are still a bit groggy or simply overwhelmed by being woken and feeling pain. My little one always appreciated and welcomed both massaging and stretching to ease the discomfort – often in addition to warming or cooling the feet and thighs. In these two articles about massaging and stretching your little one’s lower legs and feet, I explain in an easy to follow and step-by-step illustrated guide how to correctly and effectively massage and stretch the feet and lower thighs of toddlers and young children.

Now, back to the first remedy: See whether your little one prefers warmth, or a hot water bottle filled with cold water. It needn’t be an ice pack or cool pack out of the freezer or water out of the fridge, as that’s usually too cold. Instead, use lukewarm water or cold water from the tap. It’s cold enough. Taking a damp towel and placing it on the thigh also works very well. But you need to change or lift the towel quite regularly, as the body warmth will soon even out the difference in the temperature and take away the cooling effect.

If your little one says that warmth feels better than coolness, then here are a few hacks and important tips to keep in mind.

Applying Warmth – When it Helps and When it Doesn’t

Many growing pains are caused by what I refer to as the “pre-cramp-stage” – very short cramps directly located in the muscle tissue. They feel like stinging or biting and occur before the onset of a full-on cramp. Since the muscle is hard and worn, warmth that can soak all the way into the muscle helps relax it and gives the muscle tissues a break.

Another cause is sticky fasciae (the thin layers of fibrous tissue that cover every muscle). Fasciae are usually loose and smoothly wrap around each muscle. But when they stick together, like the wool of a sweater washed too hot, they are not flexible anymore. They then put pressure on the muscle itself, which in turn is counteracted by the muscle, and this feels like strain and tiredness.

Here, warmth that is allowed to soak all the way into the muscle tissue is also a great way of relaxing the muscle. However, in order to loosen the fasciae, the muscles would have to be massaged or stretched. The same is true if the muscle and fasciae put too much pressure on the tendon (the flexible but inelastic cord that attaches the muscle to the bone). It is also felt as either discomfort or pain, which usually cannot be completely alleviated simply by applying heat.

Hacks and Tips For Applying Warmth

The easiest way to loosen a tense and cramping muscle is to apply warmth with a hot water bottle. But in case you decide that a hot bath is the best solution for your child, bear in mind the following hacks:

Set the temperature a little hotter than what feels comfortable while you fill the tub. This way you can make sure that the cold tub doesn’t absorb most of the heat and leave the water cooler than you want it. Make sure you fill the tub high enough that when your little one sits/lies in it, their legs, most of their belly and also their shoulder-blades are covered. This way they won’t get cold during the bath and can fully relax their whole body.

You can also put some drops of massaging oil or special bath salts into the water – this too will relax the muscles.

A hot bath is very relaxing, but also hard on the circulatory system. An ideal length of time to stay in the water is about 15 – 20 minutes. If your little fish enjoys the soak and doesn’t want to come out after that, it’s alright too, just make sure that you’re there when they climb out of the tub, in case they feel dizzy.

It’s also a great idea to have a glass of room-temperature water (without gas) within reach; the warmth of the bath water usually makes our mouth dry and leaves us dehydrated.

Drinking water will also make it easier for any waste products that the muscle has stored to be removed. Incidentally, this is also true for massages; therefore always drink plenty of water before and after receiving a massage.

If you don’t have or want to use a bathtub, a nice, long, very warm shower will also do the trick to relax the whole body. Make sure your little one spends enough time in the shower to really let the warmth “soak” into their muscles.

If your child is not so keen on getting wet, or already in bed, you can also heat up a hot water bottle or put one of those special bean bags into the microwave.

The great thing about the hot water bottle is that it preserves heat very well and will not cool off quickly. The downside and also the danger are that it’s easily made too hot and can burn the skin.

Please don’t fill it with boiling hot water, and check the temperature on yourself first. You can do this by holding it against the inside of your arms for at least 10-15 seconds. The insides of our arms are quite sensitive – if they turn red, the hot water bottle still needs to cool off a little.

Bean bags are heated in no time, but they cool off very quickly and are therefore not my first choice. Here too, it takes time for the muscles to fully relax: put the hot water bottle/bean bag onto the place that hurts on the thigh or arm and let it stay there (if possible) for at least 10-15 minutes.

How about using this as an opportunity to spend quality time together by chatting or reading a story? Don’t forget to cover the thighs and feet with a blanket to keep them warm, even after you remove the hot water bottle.

Relaxing the muscles with warmth is great preparation for a follow-up massage.

I hope this helped and will make dealing with growing pains easier. Please make sure you also try to massage and stretch your little one’s feet and lower thighs. Not sure how to do that? Here are the articles with step-by-step guides.

Illustrated Step-by-Step Guide on Massging Kids Joint Pains

Illustrated Steps to Stretching Kids Joint Pains Away

More Questions and Answers

Can a three-year-old have growing pains?

Yes, growing pains occur as early as three years and can last up to the beginning of puberty (about 12 to 13 years of age), although it is not uncommon for toddlers younger than three to experience growing pains. Also, babies make huge leaps in their development and growth, so I highly recommend massaging them daily in order to prevent any discomfort and give your little one the other great benefits that come with a baby massage. Here’s an article I’ve put together for you on “how to do ayurvedic massage on a newborn.”

What are growing pains?

They are often a direct result of growth spurts or increased exercise during the day such as playing (running, jumping, etc.) or doing sports. These pains are usually muscle pains that manifest as cramping and throbbing during the night. They typically occur in the thigh and calf muscle or in the muscles located behind the knees, and less often in the arms. Children often describe growing pains as a feeling of ants or spiders in or on their thighs or the sensation of something biting or stinging.

How can growing pains be treated naturally?

The best treatment for growth pains is to relax the musculoskeletal system. This can easily be done by (1) applying warmth (warm bath, hot water bottle, heat bag), or cooling the thighs, depending on the cause of the pain, (2) massaging the muscles, thus loosening sticky fasciae, and (3) stretching. Painkillers are an option as well but will only dull the symptoms and do not take away the source of the pain.