Shit. My first cramp was when I was lying in bed half asleep. My left calf started cramping, but I had no clue what was going on. I was too scared/in pain to attempt to touch it. I just stated in pain for probably 5 minutes but it felt longer. That shit sucked.
Now I can recognize it when it first starts and massage the fuck outta it before it gets really bad.
I was told overcoddling reduces resiliency. Parents always coming in to fix things without letting their kids try to solve it on their own. The kid may fail but the act of trying and figuring out why it failed helps greatly. Most parents just "don't want to see their kids upset" though.
Take it with a grain of salt, as I don't have any kids.