things that made my hypermobile life a billion times better (for hypermobile people who want life improvements but don’t know where to start)
- pelvic floor physical therapy
- squatting toilet stool - brand name link but mine is literally a random one from target
- well fitting appropriate braces
- appropriate shoes
- a registered dietitian who made a meal plan with a goal to reduce inflammation and increase energy
- neck collar for any time spent sitting at a desk
- osteopathic muscle manipulation/Doctor of Osteopathy primary care physician
- cane for balance/rollator for balance and fatigue MAKE SURE YOU KNOW HOW TO USE THESE SO YOU DONT MAKE THINGS WORSE
- physical therapy with the goal of proprioception (which you may be lacking) and mindful movement (NOT acute injury or “strength”) this link is just a good podcast about hypermobile bodies and approaches to health
- if you have contracted COVID please make sure you don’t have Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) and other dysautonomia/COVID complications, as COVID seems to have caused or “awoken” POTS especially in hypermobile people and it DOES NOT always improve over time without medical intervention in these cases.
I am not a medical professional but I am someone with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome who was given no assistance after diagnosis and a decade later had no choice but to take medical leave from university learn how to thrive in my hypermobile body, rather than barely survive.
DO NOT take my advice over that of a medical professional and I encourage you to do your own research into any linked tools/references!
why pelvic floor physical therapy:
my initial answer: to prevent the scary scary organ prolapse!!!
my fully fleshed response: your pelvic floor is really the foundation for your whole torso and without good pelvic support, your spine, hips, and abdomen can be very unsupported and work overtime. hypermobile people are often neurodivergent https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8861852/ and can lack internal awareness causing (among other things) pelvic floor damage from holding in urine beyond the optimal time frame. because of this, i HIGHLY recommend you try out pelvic floor PT beyond the popular kegel exercises and try to promote both strength and laxity to work with you and support your whole body!
I originally started seeing my pelvic floor PT for organ prolapse and resulting vaginismus, but over the course of our year together I gained abdominal strength, better self care habits, and a much better sense of what was happening internally and preventing the need for surgeries in the future.
