Growing pains in a 4 year old

[AberdeenAnxious]

My dd wakes at least once a week during the night complaining of painful knees which I'm presuming is growing pains. She went to bed tonight saying her knee hurt and I rubbed it for a while to try to help her without medicine. She eventually fell asleep but woke up a few minutes ago saying it still hurt. I gave her paracetamol in the end.

I wondered if anyone had any ideas of how else to treat the pain? I remember my mum rubbing my knees in bed but I must have been much older - more like 8 or 9. I don't remember being given medicine for it. She's so little though, and if it is growing pains like I used to have, it's a really horrible dull ache that's difficult to ignore. Impossible, I would imagine, for a 4 year old.

Any ideas welcome!

Not sure I'm going to give you much hope I'm afraid. DS (now nearly 7) has had these on and off for at least 3 years, mainly in his lower legs. They seem to come on every few months for a few nights - always the middle of the night! He seems to have quite a high pain threshold but these really make him cry :( He won't let me rub them so I usually dose him up with Calpol and talk to him until he falls asleep.
Might be worth a chat with the GP if it is happening so regularly.
Good luck, its horrible seeing them in pain when they are so little.

Thanks. I've just ordered microwavable lavendar heat pad in the hope that the heat may give her some comfort in future. I may take her to the gp just to get it checked out.
Sorry to hear your son suffers with pain too. You're right, it's awful seeing them in pain.

Both my dc had growing pains in their legs for years on and off they would wake up in the night in a right state paracetamol and rubbing usually did the trick, apparently it's something to do with the lactic acid build up in the joints.