Pregnancy can be a time of new physical challenges, and hypermobility may make the season even more complex. Hormones can change tissue elasticity and the body may struggle to adapt. Dr. Shanda Dorff began working with connec...
Artistic athletes like dancers, gymnasts, and skaters require highly skilled medical care in order to maintain peak health while operating at an elite level. Understanding the unique demands placed on their bodies is crucial ...
Hypermobility disorders can be difficult to diagnose, with no one clear path forward. Without an obvious road to walk, people with chronic pain who suspect hypermobility disorders may feel defeated and overwhelmed, struggling...
People struggling with a chronic illness often feel overwhelmed at the idea of pursuing a passion. Health issues may seem insurmountable when trying to go after your dream, and you may feel hopeless and alone on your journey....
What is overstretching, and why should we talk about it? As the artistic world seems to demand ever more extreme ranges of motion from its dancers and athletes, many people turn to overstretching as a way to stay competitive...
Artistic athletes often push their flexibility to the limit, both for competitive and aesthetic reasons. Nowhere are limits tested more than in rhythmic gymnastics where hypermobility tends to be the norm. Vita Bachman, for...
Chronic illness can make your life feel filled with insurmountable obstacles. Pursuing your dreams, even in the face of health issues, may feel hopeless. But moving forward, even in small increments, you can accomplish great ...
Navigating medical care can be a daunting task at the best of times, but when you have a chronic disorder that is largely an invisible illness, you may find yourself bewildered and frustrated trying to get the care you need. ...
What exactly is dry needling? How is it different from acupuncture? What sort of issues might it be used for? Dry needling can be a vital part of an artistic athlete’s healthcare, but sometimes can be misunderstood. Mandy Bla...
Mast cells: interesting and mysterious. You can’t be born without them, but they don’t show up in blood tests. They’re found throughout the body and can affect multiple systems in vastly different ways. What makes them misbeh...
Are you suffering from gastrointestinal distress? People with hypermobility disorders have a higher prevalence of GI problems than the general population. Dr. Leonard Weinstock, board-certified gastroenterologist with experti...
In this Bendy Bodies podcast episode, we discuss dance athletics and EDS (Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes) with guests, Marimba Gold-Watts, Mariana J. Plick, Kyle Thompson, and Cailey Brandon. Whether you have a connective tissue dis...
In this Bendy Bodies podcast episode, we discuss the relationship between being neurodivergent hypermobility and EDS (Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes) with guest, Jessica Eccles, MRCPsych, PhD. Neurodivergency occurs at a much higher...
A very high percentage of dancers and athletic artists struggle with perfectionism: it’s what makes us so good at what we do, while at the same time can be unhealthy for us as individuals. Bonnie Robson, world-renowned psychi...
Jill Miller’s life was upended with shocking news of end-stage osteoarthritis in her early forties. This led to her exploration of healthy ways of releasing and restoring her hypermobile body. Her study of the body led her to...
Photography encapsulates a moment in time like no other art form, and every artist walks into the studio wanting to capture their best selves. Some walk away ecstatic, while others leave unsatisfied or even injured. Dancers a...
What support does a hypermobile young artist need? Hint: a lot. Hypermobile dancers, gymnasts, skaters, circus artists: the same hypermobility that gives them extraordinary lines and range of motion, also makes them vulnerabl...
What the heck is a pelvic floor and why should you care? The pelvic floor is a collection of muscle and connective tissue forming a hammock at the bottom of your pelvis. Hypermobile people should be especially aware of their ...
In this Bendy Bodies podcast episode, we discuss food for EDS dancers (Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes) and hypermobility with guest, Kristin Koskinen, RDN. Do you love a fresh start? Have you ever made a new year's resolution and th...
Why are hypermobility disorders painful and what can be done about it? When discussing conditions associated with hypermobility, like Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes (EDS) or hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD), pain is often myst...
Living with hypermobility disorders often means learning to live with chronic pain, and as pain is a whole-person experience - physical, emotional, and mental - it stands to reason that pain can have a profound influence on e...
Dr. Jill Schofield, founder and director of the Center for Multisystem Disease, is back to discuss multisystemic diseases and what she wishes everyone knew about them. She offers insight into how to get better care (and what ...
In this second interview with Dr. Svetlana Blitshteyn, board-certified neurologist and director of the Dysautonomia Clinic, we go beyond identifying common disorders such as POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome), a...
Dysautonomia is an umbrella term used to describe disorders of the autonomic nervous system (which controls all the automatic functions of the body like blood pressure, heart rate, digestion, temperature regulation, etc.). Dr...