Q: I’m a post-graduate qualified advanced practice ICU registered nurse. I had heard of soap for muscle cramps and considered it to be nonsense.

Then one night, I had an excruciating leg cramp. The calf muscles had a rock-hard lump of spasmed muscle. In sheer desperation, I remembered the soap trick and dragged myself into my bathroom to get a bar of soap. Within seconds of holding the soap against the spasm, it completely resolved. If I moved the soap away from my skin, the spasm would return.

I put the soap in a clean sock and wrapped the sock around my calf. This secured the soap against the spasm, and after about 30 minutes, the cramp had completely resolved.

It works, though I certainly don’t know why.

A: Thank you so much for sharing your story. Knowing that there is a likely explanation for the soap trick may even bolster your enthusiasm.

We believe that the fragrance in the soap activates TRP (transient receptor potential) channels in the nerves. These in turn communicate with nerves in the spinal column to relax the muscle. Of course, the full details are more complicated and involve ions, since TRPs are ion channels.

With or without a mechanism, we’re glad the soap is helping you fight cramps.

Q: I never had chapped lips, but I started using one of the more famous products only to find my lips were more chapped than before. Maybe this product had something in it that promoted dry lips, hence you would buy more of it. Once I stopped using it, my chapped lips healed. I use regular Vaseline at night now if I experience any dryness.

A: Dermatologists often recommend Vaseline (petroleum jelly) as a moisturizer. We don’t know if they would suggest putting it on the lips, though. You might want to try coconut oil (solid at room temperature) or olive oil to protect your lips when they need it. Such flavors as cinnamon and surfactants such as sodium lauryl sulfate are common culprits in causing chapped lips.

Q: I often have insomnia when I first try to sleep but more often after waking up in the middle of the night. Reading or doing a puzzle didn’t work. Listening to white noise or nature sounds didn’t help either. Neither did melatonin.

I got the idea to try falling asleep while listening to an ebook because I would often fall asleep while watching TV. I found that listening to a calm ebook helps to “overwrite” my racing thoughts, enabling me to sleep. It has changed my life.

A: Thank you so much for a clever idea on coping with sleep troubles. We know people who find that listening to talking makes them more awake, but others, like you, find it soothing.

Q: Years ago, I got hooked on Afrin and couldn’t sleep at night without it because of the congestion. I was finally able to wean myself off of it by just using one spray in one nostril each night. I would alternate nostrils each night so only one nostril got the spray every other night. After about a week, I was able to stop using it altogether.

Now if I develop a cold, I only use it in one nostril, only at bedtime and alternate each night. This has kept me from developing the problem with rebound congestion again.

A: Thank you for sharing your simple, smart approach to overcoming decongestant dependence. Using a nose spray like this for more than a few days can result, as you discovered, in rebound congestion that may be even worse than the original stuffiness.

We have heard from many people who used their nasal spray for years because they couldn’t stand not being able to breathe easily through their nose. Some have used saline spray to dilute the decongestant gradually.

Your approach sounds simpler and just as effective.

In their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Send questions to them via www.peoplespharmacy.com.