Support #myHSDchallenge and help me reach my goal to support research, educate medical professionals in HSD all over the globe to aid in early diagnosis and treatment !

I have joined the May Awareness Month Challenge to spread awareness and raise funds to support The Ehlers-Danlos Society by participating by sharing parts of my story to help others understand, detect signs of HSD that could be affecting your life of the life of someone you know. Please support me by donating to my fundraising page. Together, even a small amount can make a huge difference to the millions of us!

Here we go...MY STORY:

I have always been hypermobile and very agile but I always complained of feeling aches and pains as a child; we thought they were growing pains. After a cheerleading accident in my teens, all the symptoms that come along with HSD seemed to make matters worse. Symptoms of fatigue, joint and muscle pain, headaches, TMJ, GI upset, dislocations and subluxations, strains and tears (to name a few), all got worse and worse and no one seemed to have answers. All these lead to days that I could hardly cope with and days of darkness and desperation.

I tried to look for answers, I advocated for myself and looked to many medical modalities to aid all my symptoms. Its been a long and tiring road but I knew deep down inside that all these symptoms had to be related. Fast forward almost 2 decades after my cheerleading injury, after almost 2 decades of living with out answers, aches and pains, I finally have a proper diagnosis and treatment plan. This could not have happened without the support of my family and friends, my strong and on going Faith, the progressive Doctors and Health Professionals that I have searched for high and low, the EDS Society and the new Good Hope Clinic in Toronto that I fought to get into and that is supporting me in this life long journey.

This month, I am raising awareness and raising funds so others who do not have the strength to search, ask and stand up for themselves get the help they need. I believe I was put on this earth to Help Others. Please help me, help them!

The Ehlers-Danlos syndromes (EDS) are a group of heritable connective tissue disorders that produce a spectrum of complex problems across multiple systems of the body. Symptoms that are often seen across all types are hypermobile joints, (that can move farther than normal), stretchy skin, & fragile tissues. Each case is unique and severity may range dramatically, even within families.

The Ehlers-Danlos Society is a global community dedicated to saving & improving the lives of those affected by the Ehlers-Danlos syndromes, hypermobility spectrum disorders, & related conditions. Our goal is world-wide awareness and better quality of life for all who suffer from these conditions, regardless of geography.

Please support me as I overcome my challenges with HSD, help others learn signs and help me by participating in donating to the EDS Society.

Thank you so much,

Ruthie