May is Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) awareness month, you can read an overview of EDS and its paired syndrome Hypermobility Spectrum Disorder here (insert link).  I am three months into a training program through the Ehlers Danlos Society’s ECHOs program. I have learned so much and feel humbled at what I was unaware of regarding the symptom pictures associated with these syndromes. It's more than bendy joints. 

You are seeing folks with these syndromes weekly in your practice and they often are not getting the care that they need and deserve. Increasing awareness around these syndromes in our field is particularly important to address the care gap. These folks do not receive the care they need when interfacing with the conventional medical system and so find their way into the holistic medical field. Without a more complete understanding of the syndromes and their variable presentations we run the risk of also not caring for them in the ways that they deserve.

Medicine, even natural or holistic medicine, is a field that despite what one might think, doesn’t reward unconventional and non-conforming viewpoints. When I began studying craniosacral therapy 25 years ago, I never would have imagined there would be a paradigmatic mainstream in the field but it appears that one has emerged. This fact contradicts my experience practicing, studying, reflecting on and teaching this work over the last 25 years.