Joint Hypermobility

went to the hospital on monday. my appointment was in the rheumatology department. the visit was pretty short and the doc thinks she knows what i've got. she doesn't think i have fibromyalgia, but

a classic case of joint hypermobility.

this sounds quite cool, like i can move really fast. afraid not, bulbboy is closer to rather than stretchy boy rather than the flash. stripping down to my undies, she checked my bodkin over and found my joints to be all pretty loose. she added "aren't they?" she quickly added that it was a bit of a silly question as

these have been the only joints that you've ever had.

in the past my joints have tended to be a bit more supple than most. never quite managing the splits but other areas freak people out. not just the clicking but the fact that my shoulder blades can protrude so far out they look like mini wings.

most of my joints click, and i apparently now have flat feet which causes feet pain. sharp twinges now and again. this doesn't quite account for the sore skin i get but does explain the rib popping out of place. also this stimulated a memory of my hips dislocating (on 2 occasions). they never dislocated fully but started to do something they shouldn't while i was stretching during a gymnastics class. painful at the time but i forgot about it totally until sitting with the doc in her office. helpful tip:if you can put stretch down and put your hands flat on the floor while keeping your legs straight, don't go further than that. :)

anyway what can be done? swimming and cycling are the best forms of exercise for me to build up cardiovascular strength, and build up the muscles in my back to help posture. the gist of it is there is a problem with the collagen holding the joints together. by strengthening the muscles either side of the spine, i should minimise bad things happening.

"basically i'm stuffed?" i asked, regarding treatment. she agreed saying that other than taking painkillers, if i know i'm going to be doing more than average physical work, and light exercise there's not a lot than can be done. i got a leaflet with information about joint hypermobility.

i think i am done with doctors. maybe i'll go to a well known homeopathic doc if things come up, or an osteopath to put things back in place. other than that, just carry on regardless.