A Multidisciplinary Approach to Managing Ehlers-Danlos (Type III) - Hypermobility Syndrome: Working with the Chronic Complex Patient

by Isobel Knight, Rodney Grahame (Foreword)

The complex effects of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (Type 3, Hypermobility), or EDSIII, on a patientâ??s physical and mental wellbeing are extremely challenging for everyone involved, requiring a multidisciplinary care team and enormous dedication from the patient.

This book presents an overview of what it means to be a chronic complex patient, examining the wide range of physiological and psychological implications associated with EDSIII and other conditions such as endometriosis and fibromyalgia. It explores the exercise and rehabilitation work involved in managing the condition effectively, considering a diverse range of medical treatments and complementary approaches including physiotherapy, Bowen Technique and Feldenkrais Method(R). There are contributions and insights throughout from experts in the fields of physiotherapy, rheumatology and health psychology, all of whom have extensive experience of working with complex chronic patients. The author links her own symptoms and experiences to those of other EDSIII patients and discusses what recovery means and how she has been able to reach a point where she can successfully manage the condition.

This book will be essential reading for professionals working with EDSIII and other complex conditions including medical professionals, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, psychologists, counsellors and complementary therapists, and will be of interest to patients with EDSIII wanting to learn more about effective management of the condition.

Genres: Medical, Nonfiction

364 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 10, 2013

Reviews

[Jaclyn B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful, a look into Isobel’s personal experience in living and trying to treat EDSIII, it is a great resource to have for where to start in seeking treatment, and where you could pose questions to your doctor to try and get more pointed, accurate care. Living with EDS isn’t easy, and to maintain a better quality of life you definitely need to put work into it, but this is a great tool to help you along the way.

I’ve also found it incredibly helpful in helping family and friends (who are interested) better understand my condition, and what I’m going through. We all struggle, but we’re learning.

[Judy Garbo]

I think if this was positioned more as Isobel's story and less as a potential guide for managing EDS I'd be less profoundly disappointed in it's inability to give me anything useful. I admit I am absolutely biased against Maslow's hierarchy of needs so the fact that it gets referenced so often did not help. I find the pyramid infuriatingly useless with it's lack of any sort of empirical evidence, extreme cultural bias, obvious examples currently in this messed up world that it is just not true, not to mention his lack of crediting the Blackfoot people he built it out of. As a super basic guide, perhaps it would be helpful to someone who was just starting out but most of us who are approaching a diagnosis or finally have one have been battling the medical establishment for years and decades so, again, I wish it was positioned differently.

[Lisa Vance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full of information pertinent to both the patient and their physicians trying to manage the complex symptomology of a patient with connective tissue disorders (whether EDS III or other) and co-morbid conditions common to the condition. This book has proved to be a useful resource and I have routinely carried it to doctor's visits and discussed the unique guidance provided herein. Broken into sections based on body function, symptoms and conditions, this is one of my go-to books when seeing new doctors, visiting the ER or just dealing with the day-to-day issues of a chronic, degenerative, genetic condition.