Day 2211 (Wednesday) 28th June 2023

Today’s photos

This is Menton

and this Beaulieu

 

Huw left very early this morning but was soon back because Kisbee wouldn’t start again so he had to walk up to clean the swimming pool. He came back an hour later as I was leaving for the train station to go to Nice – I haven’t caught the train to Nice in ages.

 

I called into International House because I haven’t seen the director, Romain for months. I knocked on his office door and he wasn’t there but a man showed me where his new office is. They have extended the school next door and there are quite a few new classrooms and offices. They are very busy at the moment but just teaching French, the government have changed the rules for granting hours for learning English. They used to give each student  a number of hours to use to learn English (usually about 30 hours) but now they are just paying 30% of the total thus no hours for me. The new rule only affects a number of schools so the other schools I work for will carry on, fingers crossed. It was good to see Romain again and he told me that if anyone enquires about English I will be the first to know.

I met Jennifer in Parc Mozart and it was great to see the park again

We did most of our lesson in the park but finished off in café Mozart with an Orangina.

I was early for the train and it was already at the station so I got on to get myself a seat. The train was pretty full leaving Nice Ville and when we got to Nice Riquier thousands of people piled on. There were two very fat people with a pram each and they both went over my feet, marking my brand new espadrilles. Nearly everyone was speaking English and I was very happy to get off in Villefranche – me and hundreds of others.

I have seen many signs in French pharmacies advertising remedies for ‘heavy legs” so the following explains this condition. 

Why do French women suffer from 'heavy legs'?

As the summer arrives, you're likely to hear a few French women complaining of 'les jambes lourdes' while pharmacies will be advertising remedies for 'heavy legs' - so what's behind this strange ailment and why do only French women seem to suffer from it?

While it might sound more like a complaint that would be made by someone feeling insecure about their weight, 'heavy legs' (jambes lourdes) syndrome is actually health-related.  

And in France, it's as common to hear someone complaining about their 'heavy legs' as it is to hear people saying that they're trop fatigué or that it's trop chaud.

But is it just a French thing? Are French women's limbs just heavier because of all that cheese and those pastries?

The fact that we don't have an equivalent expression in English has unsurprisingly led to some doubt in the English-speaking community about whether the syndrome actually exists. 

Even Wikipedia, on its English-language page for 'heavy legs' calls it an "alleged medical condition" of "French origin". 

In her blog ‘Turning Parisian’ Australian Diana Bowman describes her surprise upon hearing about this mysterious complaint.

"Another ailment which I never knew I had until the French told me about it was les jambes lourdes. In Australia, this is not really a thing (or if it is, I had certainly never heard of it).

"But as soon as I caught wind of this jambes lourdes thing, I knew they were onto something. And sure enough, a trip to the médecin confirmed that I should be wearing compression socks all year round and low, thick-heeled (man-style) shoes to counter my condition. Très sexy."

It seems the French are just as confused about this difference between our cultures as we are. 

"We French have specific ailments, such as heavy legs or a heavy shoulder, that don't seem to exist on this side of the Channel but are regarded as significant in France," London based French blogger Muriel Demarcus previously told The Local. 

"I am not suggesting that we French are a nation of hypochondriacs but we do take our health very seriously. Come to think of it, have you ever heard a British person complain that they are suffering from “heavy legs”? I haven't."

What exactly is it?

When people complain of having 'heavy legs' they could mean one of several things: that their legs and feet feel swollen, that their legs actually feel heavy or that they feel itchy, prickly, tingly or numb. Or they could be referring to pain or muscle cramps in their legs. 

These sensations often get worse as the day goes on and during summer as a result of the hot weather and are considered a sign of circulation issues. 

"'Heavy legs' is very much a sensation rather than a symptom of any particular illness," doctor Isabelle Koskas, who is based in Paris and specialises in vascular medicine told The Local. 

"It can be a result of serious circulation problems but usually it's nothing serious," she said. 

Koskas went on to say that it is usually women that say they have 'heavy legs' - particularly those who spend a lot of time standing up (which is a known cause of varicose veins) although some men also complain of their 'jambes lourdes'. 

So it's not an example of the oft-referenced French health obsession or hypochondria as some might say? 

It seems Doctor Koskas has the answer. 

"This is an issue of terminology," she said. "There's no reason why American women and British women should not suffer from the same kind of sensations even if they don't have a universal term that incorporates all the different things meant by 'heavy legs'." 

That means that while we might talk about having swollen ankles at the end of the day, for example, French women would refer to their 'heavy legs'.

So what do French doctors recommend sufferers of 'heavy legs' syndrome do?

Well, there are a few things you can do including avoiding staying in the same position for too long, resting as often as possible, raising your legs when possible and of course wearing those popular compression socks. 

And now you know all about 'heavy legs' it's likely yours will start to feel a touch more cumbersome when you're out and about. But if you need to go to a doctor, at least you can be sure that a French one will take you seriously.

You'll also see numerous over-the-counter remedies for 'heavy legs' in pharmacies at this time of year, while herbal supplements and even certain types of salt are sold as a cure for weighty limbs. We can't vouch for the effectiveness of any of them, however.