Hypermobility?

[Cotswolds25121]

Hi all, about three years ago I started having excruciating pain in my ribs. I would suddenly feel as if my ribs were crossing over.. is the only way I can describe it. Extremely painful and I would have to wait until it eased off and the pain would stop. In the past month I have started getting this again and have found that it is to do with hyper mobility, can anyone give me advice and inform me more about this please. Thanks in advance x

[Blue-52]

hi, have you been diagnosed with hyper mobility for this, as it’s extremely rare, and very hard to diagnose, quite a few of us get this pain, mainly due to costacondritis, a torn ligament, I get it a lot, hard to breathe and extremely painful, you have to rest it.

I would suggest you see your doctor about this, just to rule out any other problems. Don’t just put it down to hyper mobility. Good luck.

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to Blue-52]

Thanks for replying and so quickly. I haven’t been diagnosed with it but was wondering if I should make an appointment with gp. I googled it just to see what might be causing it but wondered if anyone was able, such as yourself to give me an idea of what I should do as I’ve heard others mention hyper mobility and it mentioned it when googling. I have just got over a chest infection and it did say it can happen if you have been coughing a lot too. So thanks for answering my post, and I shall try 🤞🫤and get an appointment to find out more xx

[Blue-52 in reply to Cotswolds25121]

You are very welcome, we try and help ourselves in so many ways, it’s very possible, if you have been coughing a lot, possibly costocondritis, it’s very common with fm peeps, but yes check with your gp, but even mri doesn’t seem to show for hypo mobility, not sure why.😉

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to Blue-52]

Thanks again for your insight, gp appointment here i come x

[Blue-52 in reply to Cotswolds25121]

Bless 🤗

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to Blue-52]

🤗X

[dinkic]

I am 63 and had balance problems all my life, after two recent bad falls and concerns about breaking bones etc was referred to a pyshio would has diagnosed hyper mobility and is now going me exercises to strengthen my lower limbs

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to dinkic]

Hi dinkic, I really appreciate you responding to my post, thank you. Strangely, I have had falls over the past 14 months, I’ve been fortunate that I haven’t broken or dislocated any thing and I’m also having dizzy spells (a lot) for the same amount of time, but I’ve told numerous gps and yet none of them are advising me or sending me for any kind of tests etc, which I’m finding very frustrating. I to am 63 so there’s obviously something that’s causing this🤷‍♀️the rib issue is a separate problem. I have a telephone consultation on Thursday so I shall mention the dizzy spells yet again 🤦‍♀️and also about the rib pain. Thank you once again xx

[dinkic in reply to Cotswolds25121]

hope yoo get help soon

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to dinkic]

Hi, telephone consultation went well as she was very helpful with the things I asked her but have got to have face to face appointment which thankfully she has booked me in for on 22nd April to discuss further as I explained that there were no appointments available online being made and when you call you’re about 35 in the queue 🙄plus it’s too much for me to walk up to the surgery after being at work all day. Thanks for your kind message xx take care

[Emaych61]

I’ve had pain in one area of the ribs before now; it came and went for a couple of years. It felt like the worst kind of stitch although I hadn’t been doing anything to warrant getting one. I never really got a suitable explanation other than there was definitely inflammation present. By that time I had a diagnosis of hypermobility syndrome so it was put down to that. I haven’t had it for a few years now - no idea why.

Yes, a painful chest can result from a lot of coughing. I also happen to have asthma and any chest infection is bad news in that department, and I’ve ended up with sore ribs from that too.

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to Emaych61]

Hi Emaych61, firstly thanks for being kind enough to respond to my post. It’s extremely painful isn’t it, with the ribs. I have a telephone consultation on Thursday so will tell the gp. Can I ask please, how did you get a diagnosis of hyper mobility? And was it through seeing a physiotherapist? I really am so tired of having different health issues but nobody ever seems interested at the drs to push for any tests to find the cause and so am just left in pain and have no reason as to why 🤦‍♀️🤷‍♀️obviously if I don’t get a diagnosis or explanation of any kind then I can’t get to the bottom of why I’m experiencing these problems, so frustrating and painful xx

[Emaych61 in reply to Cotswolds25121]

I went first to my GP and discussed it with her. Her immediate reaction “But you do ballet”. My response “Not for fourteen years” and then showed her what I could still do and demonstrated one or two things with my hands and fingers that could not be attributed to ballet at all. She then referred me and, to cut a long story short, I ended up seeing a geneticist who went through the tests, made notes and then sent her report to a unit which specialises in EDS (Ehlers Danlos Syndrome). They came back with an initial diagnosis of Benign Joint Hypermobility Syndrome, which is probably now known as Hypermobility Spectrum Disorder/EDS.

That was ten years ago. I think things have changed now, but even if they haven’t, just a warning: it took nearly a year to get that diagnosis back then via referrals to specialists, it will almost certainly take a lot longer than that now. A better option might be to see a Physiotherapist. They should be able to tell you if are demonstrating signs of hypermobility or whether it might be down to something else.

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to Emaych61]

Oh wow, unusual story, you were a ballerina! It must be hard for you to have found yourself in this situation, I’m not being condescending when I say I am sorry to hear that. I only know how we all feel ending up with struggling to deal with chronic conditions so it must be difficult for you to have come to terms with. It should be a case that we have moved on in respect of diagnosis and treatment, sadly we have either it seems, gone backwards or haven’t made any progress in moving forwards at all. A sorry state of affairs. Thank you again for your input and advice. I shall try and remember to keep you posted once I’ve spoken to the gp tomorrow but I apologise in advance 🤦‍♀️brain fog and after a day at work, I’m pretty much done but please know that I’m grateful to you. I hope you have a peaceful evening, I feel an early night coming 😑🤗xx

[Emaych61 in reply to Cotswolds25121]

Well, not a ballerina as such, not even a professional dancer. I did do full time training for a couple of years with the intention of teaching (which I didn’t actually end up doing) but I was considered unusually flexible then. Most of the girls doing full time training with me were half my age (I was in my mid to late 30s) but I was a lot more supple than any of them. The Hypermobility has its down sides: I’ve had knees go out in class (twice), numerous turned ankles once I stopped the ballet and things weakened (my ankles could give way or turn on perfectly flat tarmac whilst I was wearing shoes with no heels) and then I went through the agony of Morton’s metatarsalgia which resulted in feeling as though I was walking on shards of broken glass. I now have to wear orthotic devices pretty much all the time I’m up and about (except when doing dance). Now, at 62, the only ballet I do is Silver Swans (for the over 55s).

You mention brain fog and pain. Out of interest have you been checked for thyroid issues?

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to Emaych61]

Still sounds impressive to me😊the condition you have mentioned, like walking on glass!! absolutely awful 😞 I was an athlete in my younger years, (now 63) and ran 800 meters, sometimes 15 hundred and cross country, my absolute favourite runs were road relays. I was the first girl to achieve the Basildon road relay record time 3 years on the go 😊something I still remain very proud of to this day 😁as usual, became a teenager and youth clubs and boys seemed much more fun 🤩 the brain fog and pain are fibro related. For example 😁I can’t remember if I mentioned in an earlier post that I’ve had an extremely hard physical day at work (I’m a carer) I understand that things are different and difficult for everyone and different reasons atm but knowing and expecting to have retired 3 years ago and be able to get my pension and be able to relax and breathe easier does not help one bit. I used to love my job and never thought for one moment that I would now feel the way I do. It definitely isn’t the lovely people I support but the fact that I should have been entitled to retire and have my money that I’ve paid in for all these years since I was 16 being withheld from us, when we are struggling daily to cope looking after others when we should be at the stage of being looked after ourselves. I’m sorry only for the fact that it makes me so angry and that it has completely changed the way I feel about having to get up each morning in pain and hating that I have to really struggle to walk up to work let alone have a long hard day ahead. I’m going to have a bath, maybe a bowl of soup (I don’t feel hungry, just very tired) and go to bed, ready to start over again tomorrow. I’m not always this miserable I promise 😊xx

[Emaych61 in reply to Cotswolds25121]

I feel for you - living with pain is not easy at the best of times and going through a lot of stress is only likely to make it worse!

Sometimes, particularly in a ballet class, I find myself thinking “I used to be able to do that” or “this used to be easy” when it no longer is. It’s tough, yes.

If you haven’t been checked for it I would recommend having a blood test to check for thyroid, if only to rule it out (though if you do have that done, they will be checking for something called TSH and because that is released in a circadian rhythm you really need to get the blood test done between 8.30 and 9.00am and on a fasting basis for the most reliable results; this last is a patient to patient tip, though I’ve yet to hear either from a GP). Likewise you might want to rule out Rheumatoid arthritis etc (if they haven’t done so already).

[MightyMouse1963 in reply to Emaych61]

I've got Graves Disease (overactive thyroid) and I've never had a fasting bloods to diagnose. My TSH is off the scale .

[Emaych61 in reply to MightyMouse1963]

It doesn’t appear in the guidelines for GPS but then I’ve never been told to go for an around 9am blood test by a GP either. I was given the tip about fasting from the Thyroid group on HealthUnlocked - apparently there is evidence to suggest that eating prior to a blood test to check TSH levels can suppress levels of TSH. If your TSH is “off the scale” it’s might not make a lot of difference as far as treatment is concerned (though there’s an argument that would say if it’s still off the scale and you’re on treatment perhaps you need to get your treatment reviewed). but for those who are between 5.5 and 10 it might make rather more.

I have, inadvertently, had a TSH test done after having breakfast and the result came back 4.95. Concerned that that might be viewed by GPs as “panic over, levels are dropping” I requested it be rechecked on a fasting basis at same time of day (well, maybe half an hour later but still close to 9am) which was done a couple of months later. The result from that one was 5.75 which to your average GP is the difference between being “normal” and “possible sub clinical hypothyroidism- keep an eye on this”. As I said, this is a patient to patient tip.

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to Emaych61]

Sorry, went off on a tangent as I usually do and forgot to say I’ve had a couple of blood tests over the years to test for thyroid but both came back negative x

[Ebony13]

There is another possibility cause called costochondritis. It is often found as a part of fibro.

[Cotswolds25121 in reply to Ebony13]

Hi Ebony13, thank you for replying to me, I really appreciate it. Yes someone else mentioned costochondritis and I have had a chest infection over the past couple of weeks so it could be that causing the pain. I have a telephone consultation tomorrow, as usual can’t even get an appointment online at the gps or through on the phone 🤦‍♀️for a face to face (I made the telephone appointment a couple of weeks ago thankfully) had an extremely hard and tiring day at work and finding it difficult and stressful as well 😔xx

[Cazza1963]

I had a awful flare a few yrs ago, and my ribs were in so much pain, i couldn't move at all in bed, i strugled to taje deep breaths, i didn't see the doctor over it, i thought it was something called Costochondritis, look it up and see if it's the same as you ate having. Xx