Anyone Know Anything About Hypermobility In Joints Please?

[kvalidir]

Hi, I wondered does anyone know anything about hypermobility in joints, more specifically hip joints please? Went to the Dr this afternoon because I've had terrible lower back ache/ hip pain on the right hand side and was informed this is why and referred to a physio. I've been reading on the net and it says people are frequently tired all the time too, well I am but had put this down to my diabetes / thyroid issues. For anyone that doesn't know me I'm a 16 year old female. Any help gratefully received. Thanx xxx

[Buenchico]

>>>I've been reading on the net

Does that include the NHS website which includes a 'self-help' section on the 'Treatment' page?
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Joint-hypermobility/Pages/Treatment.aspx
(Perhaps something there might help?)

[kvalidir]

Yes I've read that Chris, ( thank you for helping) but I was wondering if anyone had any first handish info as I'm slightly bewildered why this has picked me as I have really good core strength ( I do marital arts, ride, swim, dance etc) and I haven't hurt myself at all, but this pain first thing in the morning is absolutely horrible and it take me a good hour of gentle stretching to get properly mobile, then I'm okay mostly except if I bend about 30o I sometimes get a sort of muscle spasm in my lower back:(

[EcclesCake]

I might be wrong but I believe Sparkles has this condition.

[kvalidir]

Ooooh thank you Eccles that would be helpful to know :) Hope she looks in.

[Scarlett]

I have hypermobility in my joints and have particular probs with ankles and knees. I really sympathise- it is horrible. All you can do really is get a good physio and strengthen as many of the surrounding muscles as you can. there are operations- I had a ligament reconstruction of my knee at 13 and have to have an ankle one soon, but best to avoid ops unless as a last resort.

[kvalidir]

Thank you Scarlett, it certainly is horrible and very painful :(
I'm hoping they can do something for me, and you, a ligament reconstruction sounds painful. Do any painkillers help you because so far I've found nothing which touches it and I've tried, ibuprophen and co-codamol, but still nothing even dulling it really first thing in the morning?

[black_cat51]

joko also has it

[kvalidir]

Thank you black cat :)

[jno]

I think Eve too; have a look out for them

[kvalidir]

I will thanks Jno :)

[joko]

yes i have it - in my neck, hips and spine mainly. i am also tired all the time.

unfortunately there is no cure and little you can do - a physio diagnosed it but wasn't going to even tell me as he didnt want me to worry, he only said when i told him i already knew.
chiropracter or osteopath can help if you find you have the 'one' bit that just wont loosen or 'crack out'.
realignment wedges can help too - you may find a rolled up t shirt under one hip or wherever, when lying down, can help - either hip, not just the sore one
naproxin can help a bit, and also try stuff like cod liver oil, glucosamine etc
they will only help a bit, but it all adds up i suppose

main advise is keep moving - i know when you are sore your instinct is to rest and keep still but that just makes it worse - you seize and then when you do move it can inflame it if you do something stenuous.
try not to click them unless you have to - stretch it out first - only click if you cannot get any relief. doing it yourself is not ideal and it can sometimes make it worse for a while and you will find you need to click more and more
you should be careful with all the sport too - one of the things i've been told is just becaise you can, say, lift that heavy thing, doesnt mean you should. every time you are damaging your joints in ways they should not be - you are grinding away areas that are never meant to touch etc -an its permanent.

mostly it is just genetic, but i also read that ballerina and gymnasts can actually bring on hypermobility - with the forced stretching and over bending etc etc

[sherrardk]

Two of my children are hypermobile. One had a biometric assessment (arranged through Ross on Wye hospital). He has the most outrageous flat feet.

[kvalidir]

Thank you ever so much Joko, that's all very informative. I find I have to have something really mushy to sink into when sleeping or I wake up in absolute agony, so I bought a new memory foam mattress and a couple of feather toppers and sleep with a feather pillow in the small of my back / under my hip- that way when I wake up I can at least creak out of bed, before I was literally frozen for a good few minutes until I had stretched myself into movement in bed. It all seems a bit grim as I'm a really active person and I have done ballet since I was 4 which might not have helped it seems:( I'll try to see if the Dr will prescribe Naproxen, and see if that helps as I could really do with getting rid of the pain for a bit. Thank you ever so much once again, that was exactly the sort of info I was after xxx

[kvalidir]

How re they getting on Sherrard, are they in a lot of discomfort or does it not bother them? This is a fairly recent thing for me ( last few months) before that I was really zingy.

[sherrardk]

I need to re-contact them about boy #2 as his feet are so flat they are causing his legs to go 'wonky'. My daughter seems better (she used to fall over her own feet all the time). My concerns are for when they are older.

[kvalidir]

Yeah that must be really worry Sherrard. I hope they are okay because this is really horrible. I thought I'd just somehow pulled a muscle, but it appears not :(

[Sparkles62]

Hi Hon , just spotted your post, I have mild Ehlers Danlos (Hypermobility).
also Chronic Fatigue syndrome, which they put down to the hypermobility and my Crohns.
It can be very painful, they always seem to advise that you keep active if you can,
i am on morphine patches for the pain, they do help a bit, but they don't take the pains away completely.
Your Doctor or Physio dept should be able to get hold of a Hypermobility booklet for you, which gives you some exercises to do , these keep your muscles and ligaments supple.
Is it just the pain at the moment or are you dislocating, My fingers go on a daily basis, my shoulders every now and then and when my ankles/ kneecaps go its a hospital job unfortunately - 6 hours in A&E last week :-(
Make sure you go for your physio, its sometimes a bit boring but it does help. X
I hope they can do something to make it easier for you and help you with your pain, let me know how you get on . X X

[slaney]

Hi Kvalidir - as you probably have gathered from reading the link hypermobility is a wide spectrum disorder ranging from no or occasional problems to the more serious syndrome.
Can I ask who made the diagnosis, what tests they did to confirm, and are any other joints apart from the hip affected?

[Scarlett]

Potters Joint Relief tablets have helped me- give them a try. A good physio will work out how you can deal with morning pain. I have to pummel and do exercises with a roller on my feet before I can stand up and then it's still painful. Get some massage on the surrounding muscles as tight muscles make the problem worse. Look up your nearest Alter-G treadmill so you can exercise without pain- they are amazing.

[kvalidir]

Hi Sparkles thank you for all that, again very informative. I've got no dislocation at the moment but both hips and the vertebrae in the bottom 1/4 of my back click and crack like mad, as does my right shoulder, ankles, wrists and fingers. However I only have pain in my back centre and right hand side ( lower), right shoulder, but more than anywhere my right hip which sort of links up to my back pain and is excruciating.
Interestingly Joko said that this can be genetic, and my one brother Richard has dislcocated his right shoulder 3 or 4 times and is having to have some sort of surgery but we didn't associate that because the first time he did it was diving for a goal, and he thought he must've hit it as he fell with his arm stretched out. My Grandfather also had a dislocated shoulder a couple of times but we're unsure of the run up to that.
It's just pain at the moment. I think I have a reasonably high pain threshold, I'm not a baby sort of person if I hurt myself but this is really debilitating and I'm exhausted all the time, which I'd previously put down to my diabetes and thyroid problem. I can't wait for the psysio appointment tbh, I just hope they can do something about it, or at least formulate a coping strategy because it;s getting worse by leaps and bounds :( thanks so much for your help Sparkles, I'll keep you posted.
Hi slaney, I went to my GP initially thinking I'd got some muscle problem and she examined me, asked me lots of questions about how long it had gone on for, what sort of pain it was, any other pain, could I click or crack my joints, did I have pain elsewhere, asked me to touch my toes with my hands flat on the floor, bent my fingers about, looked at my back again then called in one of our other GPs who has an interest in joints and hypermobility and decided between them that's what I have and referred me to a pshysio. It seemed quite thorough to me ( I was there over half an hour with them both discussing and doing various things) but I must admit I do hope they're wrong.
Scarlett I'll get some of those tablets today and actually I might go for a massage to see if that helps as well.
Thank you all so much for your help xxx