How does your physical therapy program help manage EDS and Hypermobility?

Our treatment begins with a comprehensive evaluation, including assessments for common co-occurring conditions like POTS. We use manual therapy for tissue restrictions and a low-impact stability program based on the Muldowney Protocol. We provide proper cueing for muscle activation, education on joint protection and normal movement ranges, and a slow, successful progression tailored to your specific quality-of-life goals.

What is Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS)?

EDS is a group of hereditary disorders affecting connective tissues—the 'glue' that supports skin, joints, and blood vessels. When this tissue is too elastic, it leads to systemic instability, frequent dislocations, chronic pain, and associated autonomic issues like POTS.

What is Joint Hypermobility (HSD)?

Joint hypermobility means your joints move beyond the normal range. For those with Hypermobility Spectrum Disorder (HSD), this causes significant pain and fatigue because the muscles must work constantly to stabilize the skeleton in place of lax ligaments.

What are the common symptoms of EDS?

Common symptoms often include easy bruising, stretchy or fragile skin, and chronic fatigue. Because the connective tissue is systemically lax, joints move beyond the normal range, leading to frequent pain and a feeling of instability despite looking healthy on the outside.

What is the Muldowney Protocol?

The Muldowney Protocol is a specialized, progressive strengthening program designed specifically for hypermobile skeletons. It prioritizes stabilizing the SI joint and spine first, using slow and controlled progressions to build the necessary support your joints lack without causing further injury.

Why do dancers and gymnasts have such bendy bodies and pain?

Dancers and gymnasts are often naturally hypermobile, which is an advantage in their sports. However, pushing joints to extreme ranges without proper muscular support leads to chronic fatigue and joint wear. We teach these athletes 'safe flexibility' and how to protect their joints while maintaining performance.

Why don't I get better following endometriosis surgery?

Surgery removes the endo lesions, but it doesn't fix the underlying hypermobility of the pelvic connective tissue. If your pelvic ring remains unstable, you'll experience a 'failed recovery' with continued pain. Specialized physical therapy addresses this structural instability, which is often the missing piece after excision surgery.

How does Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) help with joint stability?

BFR allows us to trigger significant muscle growth using very light resistance. This is critical for hypermobile patients because it builds the support needed for joint stability without the dangerous mechanical stress or high injury risk associated with heavy lifting.

What is Pelvic Congestion and how does it relate to POTS?

Pelvic Venous Congestion (PVCS) occurs when blood pools in the pelvis due to lax vein walls. This pooling is a major trigger for POTS (racing heart/dizziness). We provide post-stent rehab to retrain the pelvic floor and core to manage circulation and resolve autonomic symptoms.

Do I need a diagnosis of EDS to start physical therapy?

No. Many patients are referred for generic 'low back pain' before we identify hypermobility as the driver. We treat the functional instability we find during our comprehensive evaluation, focusing on stability and joint protection to improve your quality of life immediately.

Joint Hypermobility | Ehlers-Danlos | Muldowney Protocol | Physical Therapy | Orange County | Irvine | Lake Forest | Costa Mesa | Dance

joint hypermobiity eds bendy bodies progressive physical therapy irvine lake forest orange county

At Progressive Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation our physical therapists blend their expertise with empathy in the realm of joint hypermobility and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS). As specialists in this field, we pride ourselves on offering personalized care tailored to each individual. Understanding the complexities of managing these complicated conditions is key to the rehabilitation process. We are proud of our success in helping our patients by bringing a wealth of experience to the table and are dedicated to enhancing their quality of life.

Understanding Joint Hypermobility

Joint hypermobility is when the joints move more than what is considered “normal.” If you’ve ever been called “bendy,” “double-jointed,” or just very flexible, you may be hypermobile. Hypermobility can be harmless and is sometimes a natural characteristic of a person’s body. However, if it is related to pain, injuries, or health issues, it may be determined that there is a Hypermobility Syndrome, Hypermobility Spectrum Disorder, or Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS).

Connective tissue disorders, including EDS, are caused by genetic changes that impact the structure of connective tissues including tendons, ligaments, bones, skin, internal organs, and blood vessels. These genetic changes may cause joint sprains, subluxations or dislocations, where a joint “pops out of place.” Frequent muscle and joint pains may be related to the instability of the joints. Impaired proprioception is also common, which means it is more difficult to tell where the limbs are in space, contributing to feelings of clumsiness and discoordination. This decrease in body awareness also contributes to an increase risk of injury and difficulty engaging muscles properly, which makes strengthening challenging. In addition to musculoskeletal symptoms, you may notice other signs and symptoms like stretchy skin, easy bruising, headaches, migraines, light-headedness, dizziness, fatigue, numbness and tingling, digestive issues, vision problems, and anxiety.

EDS Joint Hypermobility Bendy Body progressive physical therapy irvine lake forest orange county

We Can Help

Joint and muscle pain (Sacroiliac/pelvis, ribs, back, neck, hips, knees feet, shoulders, elbows, wrists, and hands)
Joint instability
Headaches
Dizziness
Numbness and tingling
Postural abnormalities
Weakness
Feeling uneven when walking
Balance deficits

How We Treat Hypermobility Differently

Traditional physical therapy interventions are often too intense for patients with hypermobility conditions. Physical therapists who are not familiar with these diagnoses may use manual therapy techniques that are too aggressive or do not address specific tissue restrictions, and they may prescribe strengthening exercises that overstress tissues. Our physical therapists at Progressive Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation understand the needs of the hypermobile patient and provide a customized combination of manual therapy and stability exercises that works with your body, not against it. The personalized approach taken by our physical therapists allows treatments to be tailored to each person’s unique needs for long-term improvement.

si joint therapy hypermobility eds Ehlers Danlos dancers progressive physical therapy orange county costa mesa newport beach irvine

Our sessions include:

Comprehensive evaluation
Assess for other common conditions, such as POTS
Manual therapy to address specific tissue restriction
Low-impact, low-intensity joint stability program based on the Muldowney Protocol
Proper cueing to achieve correct muscle activation
Education and cues for normal movement and joint ranges
Education on the nature of your condition
Education to reduce stress to your joints
Slow progression for successful outcomes
Working towards your specific goals

Our Unique Approach

We are proud of our success in helping patients with hypermobility, including those who have failed physical therapy elsewhere or who feel hopeless. We enhance the patient’s understanding of their condition and improve their quality of life.

We also recognize that the increased hypermobility has benefits and challenges in achieving positions and movements required for dance and gymnastics. Learn more by visiting our Dance Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation page. This specialized physical therapy treatment is offered exclusively in our Irvine clinic. We can be reached at (949) 750-8499.

We look forward to the opportunity to help you.

Combining the Muldowney Protocol with Our Clinical Expertise

Tamber’s Journey with EDS/Joint Hypermobility – A 4-Part Video Series

Meet Tamber, who has been on a 20-year-plus journey with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and joint hypermobility. Follow her inspiring journey in this powerful four-part video series. Learn how she found the right medical team, overcame pain, regained mobility, and now helps others navigate this complex condition. Watch now and discover why the most important message is: Never give up—things can get better!

Watch Tamber’s Videos on YouTube

Meet Our Irvine Specialists

Ann Ludolph, MPT, OCS

Specialties:

Ortho & Neuro Rehab
Vestibular Disorders & Concussion
Hypermobility & EDS
Musculoskeletal Pain
SI Joint Dysfunction
Balance, Gait & Posture

Ann, a southern California native, became interested in physical therapy following a soccer injury that landed her in the athletic training room in high school. She worked alongside the athletic trainers, performing taping techniques and exercises for a variety of athletes and injuries,

More About Ann

which sparked the love and passion of helping others recover from injuries and have positive influence in improving quality of life. In 2010, she graduated Cum Laude from California State University, Long Beach with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Kinesiology, Exercises Science. She continued on at CSULB, receiving her Master’s Degree in Physical Therapy in 2013. Furthering her education and skills in the treatment of neuromuscular issues, she completed an advanced concussion management course at the prestigious Shirley Ryan Ability Lab in Chicago. Ann has experience with coaching soccer which has assisted her in communicating with clients and improving movement patterns to reduce stress to painful joints. Ann enjoys playing soccer, rock climbing, hiking, traveling and eating.

Anna Reiser, DPT

Specialties:

Dance Injury Prevention & Rehab
Joint Hypermobility/EDS
Pelvic Floor Disorders
Sports Injuries & Orthopedics
Movement Disorders
SI Joint Dysfunction

A native of South Orange County and lifelong dancer, Anna earned a double major at UCI with a BS in biologic science and a BFA in dance performance, combining her passions for biology and dance. She completed her doctorate of physical therapy at the nationally ranked University of Northern Arizona.

More About Anna

While at NAU, Anna studied the connections between connective tissue disorders, hypermobility syndromes, and dance injuries for her capstone project, sparking an ongoing interest that she has carried into her current practice.

Anna attended Aliso Niguel High School and danced at the Maple Conservatory in Irvine. She continued her training and performing in the dance department at UC Irvine. For her senior thesis at she choreographed an original dance concert inspired by a class she took in neurobiology of learning and memory.

In her freshman year of high school, she developed an interest in biology and wanted to find a career to combine that with her love of dance. UCI, which has a highly regarded dance program, offered her that opportunity with a double major. She has always been fascinated by the movement of the human body and began learning more about physical therapy as an aide during college. After graduation, she knew for sure I wanted to be a PT to help people decrease their pain, learn more about their bodies, and return to doing the things they love.

She says her favorite discipline is ballet, but she has also been trained in modern, contemporary, jazz, tap, and musical theatre. A highlight of her training was attending the Radio City Rockettes summer intensive program in New York City. She continues to take dance classes when able. During her time in Flagstaff, obtaining her DPT she was able to teach dance classes and hopes to continue that effort with lectures and instructions on dance injury prevention and rehabilitation.

In addition to dance, Anna will provide treatments for orthopedic and sports injury rehab, chronic pain, SI joint dysfunction along with neurological rehab for movement disorders. With a teamwork approach to her patients, she feels it’s important to understand their goals in the rehab process and designing personalized treatment plans.

“I believe in listening to a patient’s story and treating them as a whole person, not just their impairment,” she said. “I see the patient and therapist as a team, working together to identify the problems and then finding creative solutions. It’s important for the patients to feel better and understand their pain and how they can take an active role in their recovery.”

Note: This video was shot with Moira Docherty, DPT, who has gone on hiatus from treating physical therapy patients. The information remains informative and relevant. Moira was a part of the Progressive PT family for many years and remains a close friend and resource.

We Succeed Where Others Fail

What We Do...

Listen to our patients

Conduct comprehensive evaluations

Design customized treatment plans

Relieve pain, restore motion and function in quickest timeframe possible

How We Do It...

Patient education is stressed

Individualized home exercise programs

Continuity of care with the same therapist

Evidence-based treatments that are effective & safe

The Process...

Hands-on manual therapy

Stretching and strengthening

Postural control & muscle balance

Restore flexibility and movement

A Better Healthcare Experience...

Established 2004/Privately owned

Licensed physical therapists with advanced degrees

Functional outcomes rank in the top 94% nationally

Passion for excellence. Compassion for people.

We are Here to Help.
Contact us Today!

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Costa Mesa/Newport Beach

949.631.0125

Irvine/Lake Forest

949.750.8499

Joint Hypermobility and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS)