The Hypermobility-Hypomobility Continuum

This book is for manual therapists working with people with hypermobility issues as well as parents of children with hypermobility as well as the individual who wants self-care ideas and things they can do themselves to feel and function better.

Some sections are more technical than others. If you are a lay person and something is confusing, perhaps discuss it with your physical therapist or massage therapist. They may be able to show you more clearly.

Kimberly Burnham teaches classes in person and on zoom for individuals or groups. She can be contacted at [email protected] or 860-221-8510. Kimberly has a practice in Spokane, Washington and works with clients in the Eastern, Washington and Northern Idaho area as well as travelling in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Asia to work with clients.

Suggestions for Using This Book

There are 16 chapters including sections with exercises in each chapter. My suggestion is that each week you read a section, try out the exercises, and self-treatment, or get together with a group and work on each other. There are visualizations, self-massage, and acupressure suggestions. There are self-treatment sections which you are welcome to try on yourself. There are also sections labeled "treatment ideas." Some of these are recommendations for getting treatment with a particular kind of manual therapist (e.g.) Integrative Manual Therapy (IMT)), acupressure and acupuncture, or Osteopathic Manual Therapy (OMT) but many of these sections can also be used by a person who wants to learn the treatment techniques for themselves and family or friends.
My idea is to practice in groups of three, two people treat one person for 40 minutes or so and then switch so that each person is treated for 40 minutes and treating for 80 minutes during a two-hour session. This can be repeated as often as you want (e.g.) three times a week or once a month. If you only have an hour a week, you can treat each person for 20 minutes.
If you would like to consult on any or all of the suggestions made in this book, please contact me, Kimberly Burnham at nervewhisperer at gmail.com or contact a local manual therapist, who may be able to answer your questions. Classes based on this book over Zoom or in person are available to larger groups.

Kimberly Burnham, Ph.D. (Integrative Medicine)
Spokane, WA and Portland, OR

This book focuses on Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and Hypermobility Spectrum Disorders (HSD). The techniques can also be used to help increase comfort and function in other kinds of connective tissue disorders and joint issues including Marfan Syndrome, Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI), Systemic Sclerosis (Scleroderma), Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA), Osteoarthritis (OA), Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), and Long COVID. While the manifestations and symptoms can be opposite, these techniques can also be useful for children with Down syndrome and other hypomobility issues. This approach helps put the connective tissue system back into balance and elicits better function and normal mobility.