My EDS Challenge Day 20- Behind the Scenes in Hypermobile Life

I am taking part in #MyEDSChallenge and #MyHSDChallenge with the Ehlers Danlos Society. Since May is EDS awareness month, every day I will be sharing something about myself and my EDS journey to drive further awareness and community.

Day 20- Behind the scenes

Physical therapy. Most people think , “ohh that person has been injured so theyre going to PT to heal”. Yes this is true. But what they dont teach you (or insurance companies for that matter) is that a lot of people with chronic illness need PT weekly indefinitely to cope with chronic conditions. EDS/HSD is one of them. PT only helps me feel slight pain inprovement for a few hours or at best the rest of the day. They teach me about what is going on anatomically. Its one of the only times I leave the house, so its a bit of a mental relief to talk to people who know pain and EDS. They work on me viscerally and realign me. But its like any treatment, you have to keep coming back. Its my way to cope with the pain but its not a cure. Every time i see a new PT, they have a different set of skills and approach. I have learned so much in 7 years and some of the excercises I can do myself but not all. Its time to re educate people on what physical therapy entails. Its not always excercises to strengthen muscles although that is part of it. But other organ systems need to be worked on like blood vessels and nerves. This involves more gentle touch and not vigerous movement. So my behind the scenes photo is ONE of 2 of my current PT facilities. Behind the scenes for me also includes occasional testing to rule new things out, but usually nothing shows up.

Last updated May 21, 2021