I stopped exercising. Its weird for me to not exercise. I was in sports all the time as a kid and played volleyball through High school and College - heck I even coached volleyball for 7 years and trained my own athletes on the court and in the weight room! I still vividly remember the first time I stopped exercising. I was a nanny at the time for two rambunctious but wonderful boys. I was racing them down the quiet street from the park toward their home when I literally felt the bones in my pelvis come apart and then grind together - I stopped instantly and keeled over in the middle of the road. It hurt to walk and it seemed as if I had pulled a groin muscle. Later I found out I was pregnant and two years after that I found out I have a genetic condition called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS). Everyones ligaments loosen during pregnancy but when you have EDS the loosening can be quite severe. I didnt have any severe issues during my first pregnancy, but the second was awful! I had to sleep on my back because if I laid on my side my hips would slip out and I wouldnt be able to move them when I woke up and would be in extreme pain. At least 12 pillows took over my bed to support my limbs. My arms also would slip out of my shoulder socket and become completely numb. I still remember waking up in the night to nurse my daughter and being unable to pick her up! Walking was horrible and I had to wear this pretty fancy SI support belt that looked like a chastity belt with straps over my shoulders. To top that off anytime I left the house I had to wear a hard neck collar. I was having blurry vision due to instability in my neck! So anyways after the birth of my daughter I attempted to get back in shape. I was feeling very unstable and weak. After a week of exercising I fell in my living room while holding the baby and dislocated my knee cap and tore my meniscus. Ever since then I have been pretty scared to exercise. Running is basically impossible and even small attempts have caused minor injuries. So Monday of this week I went to my first Physical Therapy Appointment. My therapist was great and she seems to have a good understanding of EDS and hypermobility. It seems weird for me to re-learn how to exercise, but I am hopeful that I will be able to strengthen my muscles and be able to support my joints so I can run around and be a bit more playful with my kids! So do you exercise?
Posted on: Wed, 04 Dec 2013 23:32:54 +0000