The name of my blog is "Too Tired Mama". This is because I'm a mom who wants to do it all -home improvement projects, pin worthy crafts and activities- but I struggle with a couple chronic illnesses so that isn't always possible. My goal with this blog is to share when I'm successful in going forward with my DIY projects, and some of what happens in between my productive spurts.
Today I'm going to focus on one specific illness since May is its awareness month. Ehlers-danlos syndrome is a genetic connective tissue disorder. I handle my illnesses with a sarcastic sense of humor so you will be getting some funny memes along with some educational tidbits as I explain what EDS is and what it means for me.
One of the major criteria for EDS diagnosis is hypermobile joints. That means my joints can stretch further than average or I'm "double jointed". This also means that things "pop out" of place frequently. Almost every time I stretch I get that nice popcorn sound. I have the most problems with my spine, neck, shoulders and hips, but I also get lots of pops from my wrists, ankles, elbows, knees, etc....
snap, crackle, pop!
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| diagnostic criteria for joint hypermobility |
This extra bendiness and popping is because my ligaments and tendons don't support my joints properly. Some of my fatigue & pain happens because my muscles have to work harder to keep things where they should be so they wear out faster or spasm & cramp.
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| sometimes cards against humanity can hit close to home |
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| EDS & migraines fact - https://invisiblezebra.wordpress.com/ |
I also get frequent migraines. I'm working with a neurologist to figure out the causes and solutions, but the current working theory is that it's a combination of muscle strain and blood pressure issues caused by POTS(postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome)/dysautonomia.
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| EDS blood pooling fact - https://invisiblezebra.wordpress.com/ |
Dysautonomia basically means my autonomic nervous system, which controls heart rate, blood pressure, digestion and a variety of other bodily functions, doesn't always work correctly so I get really bizarre symptoms. I have to be especially careful to stay hydrated since I tend to have low blood pressure. I also wear medical grade compression hose on bad days to keep the blood from pooling in my legs.
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| sometimes tomorrow Rayla gets to pay for what today Rayla did |
Another important thing to note is that I'm not fully symptomatic every day, but if I overdo it on a good day I am usually in for a bad day shortly after. There are days I can completely knock out a project and days I barely get to the store and end up using an electric cart because I'll end up passing out if I walk more than the distance from my car to the checkout registers.
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| yep. |
I share this information not for attention or pity, but to promote understanding in those that don't deal with these kinds of issues and to help those that do feel less alone. I know it can be hard dealing with the unpredictability of chronic illness and you are not alone.
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| you mean everyone's body doesn't do that? |
****I don't own any of these images. If you know who they belong to please let me know so I can link back to them, thanks!
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