Alendronate & leg pains

I started this med a year ago. No leg pains so far. I will pay attention to the possibility of that side effect and report it if I do. Thanks for your comment.

How long have you been on alendronate and is this the first bone med you've been prescribed? I am not trying to indicate that alendronate is the culprit because I am not a medical professional.

I was on alendronate quite a few years ago and experienced hip pain. Was told to immediately stop taking it. My osteopoenia has progressed to osteoporosis with no symptoms. It was recommended that I start Prolia but after researching I will never try that drug. I'm wondering if I should try alendronate again and see if I can tolerate it. Is there a chance it won't have that side effect again or am I kidding myself?

Sounds like you could benefit from the wisdom on this forum. I have learned so much. Are you seeing an endocrinologist? Does your current provider understand that the current thinking is to start with a bone building drug first like tymlos, forteo or evenity. But we are all individual.

I've been on for about 6 years starting 2009 but with a number of drug holidays. I also was on Evenity which improved my scores. I am trying to see if the aches are from the drug or from exercising! Certainly they aren't debilitative and it only happens at night.

What type of leg pain -- knee, hip, all over? I've been taking alendronate for about 5 months and haven't had any problems. One knee does get sore following exercise, but I don't believe this is associated with the medicine. I've experienced leg cramps commonly over the years (before being diagnosed with osteoporosis) but haven't noticed an increase in those. I actually don't believe I've had any since starting alendronate.

Bone, muscle and joint pain, as well as muscle cramps, are listed as possible side effects. I'd like to know if you find something out about your pain and it's potential link!

Have you tried magnesium at night. It not only helps with sleep it can also help leg cramps.

I did have some hip pain shortly after starting this (only taking it once a week) dr told me to skip a week or two and haven’t had any problems since.

I've not tried magnesium as a stand-alone supplement. I've read that it can decrease the absorption of alendronate if they're taken too close together so I've been wary to try it (though with the alendronate being taken in the morning once a week I doubt it would cause problems). I do take a multi-vitamin every evening that contains 100 mg of magnesium and I try to get a good amount through foods -- lentils, dark chocolate, spinach, etc.

Do you take magnesium yourself and if so what dosage?

I take 144mg of magnesium threonate at night. My friend also swears by tonic water with quinine for leg cramps. Hydration is 1st step! Make sure you get enough water. When I’m dehydrated I get cramps.