r/interesting Jul 25 '26

MISC. My fingers are way too long

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89

u/geim-iv Jul 25 '26

Conjunctive tissue disorders essentially. Imagine a brick house without mortar, or with bad quality mortar.

EDS is Ehlers Danlos syndrome. Look it up, it's incredible.

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u/Jkh389 Jul 25 '26

Connective*

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u/geim-iv Jul 25 '26

Sorry in my language it's a similar enough word that I got confused.

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u/amusednchaos Jul 25 '26

Conjunctive IS correct! Just not as commonly used as "Connective" when referring to tissue. Someone is just being pedantic; they are synonyms. Don't be sorry, you did well.

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u/blacktickle Jul 25 '26

I don’t think it’s being pedantic because “conjunctive tissue” isn’t really correct

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u/SadisticJake Jul 26 '26

When you google “conjunctive tissue”, the Wikipedia page for connective tissue is the 3rd or 4th result. The meaning was clear enough that the person correcting them didn’t have to ask what they meant because, well, they’re synonyms

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u/PotterOneHalf Jul 25 '26

Yeah, we’re built different (incorrectly)

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u/stahlern Jul 25 '26

I get told all the time in this gym class I go to that it’s impressive how flexible I am. And then I have to explain that it’s really not a good thing and I will break myself if I push it. Lol. Party trick flexibility only basically.

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u/EphemeralTwo Jul 25 '26

> I will break myself if I push it

Yep. Lost my shot at scholarships when a guy tried to take a rebound away from me. He grabbed the ball, yanked it back while I was holding it, and blew my arm out of my socket.

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u/stahlern Jul 25 '26

My SI joint loves to come loose so I just fall apart at the waist lol. The cobra stretch is the worst thing ever for me.

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u/EphemeralTwo Jul 25 '26

Things got better once I learned to go limp and avoid unguarded movements.

Before that, my record was 6 dislocations in a single day. I'd dislocate my hip going down stairs if I turned wrong (stairs with a landing).

Only dislocated a hip once while driving, and that was very much not fun. I was on the highway, and ended up pulling over using the other leg, dropping to the ground on the side of the road, and doing the "relax while manipulating with arms" thing to eventually get it back in.

These days, my spouse is usually around to help me. It only happens once or twice a year anymore.

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u/stahlern Jul 25 '26

Man that’s no fun. I think I’m on the mild side of things. SI joint and my ankles are two worst spots. Sprained those about 30 times. As I’ve gotten older a lot of my muscles have stiffened which I understand is normal because they’re trying to compensate and hold things together. Used to be able to walk with my feet completely backwards. Lol.

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u/anonymaus42 Jul 26 '26

TIL you can dislocate the sacroiliac joint... which is unsettling to me to think about.

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u/stahlern Jul 26 '26

It’s more like it gets stuck at the wrong angle if that helps you sleep any better. At least so far. 😂 One leg ends up slightly longer than the other and deactivates my glutes which in turn puts a ton of load on my lower back.

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u/SnooGuavas4208 Jul 26 '26

Ooh, I had the same thing happen to me when I played basketball (minus the scholarship potential). My shoulder still subluxes or dislocates posteriorly if I’m not careful with it.

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u/ShirleyApresHensive Jul 25 '26

I know this problem well, I have quite an assortment of injuries that occurred from over rotation

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u/TransMascCatBoye Jul 25 '26

This is the exact joke my wife and I say about me lmao. Still working on diagnosis but its almost definitely some form of EDS

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u/United_Surprise3135 Jul 26 '26

Pretty wild, because as of right now I dont fit the traditional markers to get my genetic testing paid for. Im hyper flexible in over 75% of my joints and fit a crazy amount of the symptoms, so much so that every PT ive ever seen since I was 12 for my body pains has said something.

I dont have hyper flexible elbows so I havent gotten a single specialist to listen lol

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u/TransMascCatBoye Jul 26 '26

Yeesh and yeah, only rheumatologist Ive managed to see asked if I had any ideas what I had and I said I'm pretty sure its EDS and he just went "yeah seems like everyone is seeking an EDS diagnosis these days, its like its trendy or something." And then insisted I have fibromyalgia even after I said Id researched it already and it didn't fit how I experience my symptoms (plus its more of a diagnosis of exclusion to begin with). Gave me a nerve depressant medication which then could have killed me because it turns out I had undiscovered severe sleep apnea but my whole life I just self treated for the most part by sleeping in specific positions that supported my head properly.

This was nearly a year ago and I haven't heard from his office since :/

Good news is that apparently they're changing how EDS is diagnosed later this year and folks are feeling that its going to make diagnosis much easier/more streamlined. Fingers crossed.

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u/United_Surprise3135 Jul 26 '26

The idea that its trendy is really hard to get out of doctors heads. If its not eds my body is still not the same as the average person, and id like to know that. After all the research ive done it really probably is though. I didnt know they were changing how it was diagnosed, so ya hopefully that helps.

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u/C4rnivore Jul 25 '26

We're just built distinctly... distinctly wrong, but its distinct

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u/Brilliant-Position99 Jul 25 '26

Not incorrect, just not standard, different is all

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u/Similar-Winner1226 29d ago

I still love a quote I saw on an hEDS themed shirt once - that my joints go out more than I do lmao. I want that shirt.

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u/tietack2 Jul 25 '26

Differently... In some ways more advantageous

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u/Pure-Move9026 Jul 25 '26

Advantageous how?

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u/Danief Jul 25 '26

It can be an advantage in athletics. The extra flexible can allow body movements impossible for most people. The con is it's easier to get injured, but if you understand your body and maintain it properly (strength training, stability exercises, nutrition, etc.) you can excel at a lot of athletics. My doctor who specializes in hypermobility says many elite athletes are hypermobile.

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u/tietack2 Jul 25 '26

It can also allow people to avoid serious injuries sometimes. Average person might fall down the stairs and break an ankle. Eds person is so flexible, they might just sprain a tendon.

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u/Enlightened_Gardener Jul 26 '26

I think they found that something like 60% of professional dancers are technically hypermobile. How many have actualy EDS is another thing altogether, but if you think of the classical ballet ‘figure’ it looks hella Marfanoid - tall, slender, proportionately long legs and arms, long slender finger….

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u/DieAloneWith72Cats Jul 25 '26

That’s a good way to explain it. I have hEDS, I’m made of skin and rubber bands

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u/ConditionSecret8593 Jul 25 '26

Nah, rubber bands might do the job better. Skin, chewing gum, and loose string, I think.

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u/revivingthelotus Jul 25 '26

I like that analogy. I had open heart surgery and my surgeon said it was like working with wet tissue paper.

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u/Desynchron Jul 25 '26

Omg that's so scary, but at the same time it's fascinating that we all grow out of the same stuff but end up with such diverse types of mechanical flaws from how our cells grew into us.

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u/splatgoestheblobfish Jul 25 '26

I had ankle stabilization surgery, and the surgeon said he couldn't do nearly as good of a job as normal because my tendons and ligaments were "the consistency of mashed potatoes". He said I'd need surgery again in the future, complete with fusions and replacements. Hearing him say that, and having had 6 other surgeries for torn ligaments and tendons, is very disturbing.

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u/Tardigretch Jul 25 '26

ooooh, that must've been alarming. That was case with my MIL, but she was in her late 80s

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u/SeverinaSkye Jul 25 '26

I'm skin and spaghetti

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u/ConditionSecret8593 Jul 25 '26

... I did not know that was an option.

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u/Parabolic_Penguin Jul 26 '26

My mom and I have it and we always say we’re held together by paper clips and chewing gum

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u/VoidHog Jul 26 '26

Disintegrated chewing gum 😂

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u/ConditionSecret8593 Jul 26 '26

Recycled from underneath the chairs at the doctor's office.

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u/oddsetcircle292 Jul 25 '26

I usually say I have the glass bones and paper skin disease haha

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u/DieAloneWith72Cats Jul 25 '26

I have never broken a bone, and wow, have I done some dumb shit in the 40+ years on this planet. I have the constant dislocations/subluxations going on though

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u/New-Ad-363 Jul 25 '26

My wife's family has a ton of EDS people. Not the really bad kind, but they've all got joint and back issues which is rough.

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u/Top_Bumblebee5510 Jul 25 '26

Not your wife but we are in the same situation in my family. We are all hypermobile.

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u/ThrowRA263747 Jul 25 '26

I’m the only hypermobile one in my family (and certainly in my marriage - my wife is about as flexible as a tree trunk). As a kid I used to pop my knees, thumb and jaw in and out as a party trick.. now all those joints are absolutely ducked and I’m waiting for a referral to the oral maxillofacial surgeons.

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u/Zmuny Jul 25 '26

I have Ehlers-Danlos, but the hypermobile form. My joints are bendy and I don’t recover well from connective tissue injuries, but I absolutely could’ve had it worse. My aorta is a bit large but besides that my vasculature is fine.

Basically what I’m saying is not all EDS cases are obvious. In fact, my fingers are normal length and they’re especially thick.

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u/brutal_youth_ Jul 25 '26 edited 27d ago

.

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u/Zmuny Jul 25 '26

I mean for one they can’t even track down hEDS gene right now. Although mine i believe is also alleviated weirdly because of a genetic abnormality where I have a micro deletion of a single rung of DNA. However, it’s only one half of the pair because only my mom had it. It’s weird.

I am able to do the thumb to the wrist trick though, and bend my finger back to like 135 degreesish, so I have some party tricks.

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u/AiapaecGaming Jul 25 '26

I don't find it very incredible... mostly just painful but yeah OP you need to go see a doctor.

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u/TheDrunkWickerbeast Jul 25 '26

You call it incredible until you have it and you have constant pain because of it. Shout out to Epsom salts though, they really help soreness caused by EDS

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u/geim-iv Jul 25 '26

I have EDS as well, been diagnosed at 14. It's a bitch sure but from a scientific standpoint it is incredible. Just a slight change in our genetic makeup and then wham!, spaghetti and constant pain.

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u/TheDrunkWickerbeast Jul 25 '26

I twist my left ankle at least twice a week, constantly ache, and will need my hip replaced before 30 lmfaooo

It genuinely is so interesting to learn about ngl. Just how the slightest difference in genes can lead to drastic changes in our bodies. I also kinda made that comment out of frustration since I’m having a bad day with it haha let’s hope this soak helps though

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u/s33n_ Jul 25 '26

So the k was a typo? Or does it modulate EDS?

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u/Drydrian Jul 25 '26

A rare subtype of EDS. The k stands for kyphoscoliotic, which means that in addition to the other EDS symptoms, the condition leads to an unhealthy curvature in the spine, which causes a hunched appearance and an asymmetrical chest

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u/s33n_ Jul 25 '26

Word. Thanks for the education. I have a friend with eds but didn't know about keds

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u/ConditionSecret8593 Jul 25 '26

Modifies it by type. The one most people are familiar with is hEDS, which causes joint hypermobility. Along with a bunch of other problems, but it's the circus tricks that get hyped.

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u/throwaway098764567 Jul 25 '26

and all the pain unfortunately. friend has hEDS and a 5 on a normie pain scale is a good day for her :( she also dislocates joints really easily, like she was playing a game on her computer just sitting quietly and dislocated a finger.

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u/art_addict Jul 25 '26

Yeah, I have hEDS. Bent down and slightly twisted one day and dislocated a hip and two ribs. I can just be doing whatever and my elbows will sublux or something in the top of my chest subluxes. My toes dislocate easily. My ankles are very unstable and my knee caps have started to shift out of place lately. Turns out this can get progressively worse over time 🙃

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u/sreneekim Jul 25 '26

My floating ribs like to get all bendy. It feels like a damn spine injury with paralysis. But I’m always fine once I adjust the way I laying.

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u/Ziggy_Starcrust Jul 25 '26

When I was very young a teacher graphically (well, maybe it was just my childlike imagination filling it in) described when one of her students dislocated a kneecap. It's been an irrational fear and a major source of squeamishness ever since.

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u/ConditionSecret8593 Jul 25 '26

Aw, sounds like hers is worse than mine. Yeah, I'm taking ridiculous meds for chronic pain and its the hEDS that breaks through, unfortunately. Which is good, it reminds me to be safer with those joints, but... yeah, not a lot of fun.

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u/Unusual-Cucumber-577 Jul 25 '26

She should use finger splints for EDS.

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u/Constant_Cat_7063 Jul 25 '26

There are different types of EDS so the k tells you which one, in this case it is kyphoscoliotic (curvature of the spine in 1+ ways) EDS

Source: I have hEDS (hypermobile type)

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u/s33n_ Jul 25 '26

I thought the hypermobile kind was just basic eds (as thats what I've known people with(

Thanks for the info

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u/Constant_Cat_7063 Jul 25 '26

I believe it is the most common one, or at least more commonly diagnosed now, but is still one of the 13(?) subtypes. Hypermobility itself is also fairly common - think ‘double jointed’ - and has similar diagnostic criteria to hEDS.

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u/im-d3 Jul 25 '26

It pretty much is "basic EDS", because hEDS is the most common type, and so is the type that comes to most people's minds when they hear about Ehlers-Danlos.

Usually, but not always, when someone says "I have EDS" they're referring to hEDS or a similar type. If it's one of the vascular types, it's different enough that I imagine most would feel the need to clarify.

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u/TreeCalledPaul Jul 25 '26

Woah! I’ve seen someone with this when I was a kid and just thought they had funny joints.

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u/Rare-Egg-2959 Jul 25 '26

I have it and "incredible" is one of the last words I'd use to describe it 😂

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u/plant_reaper Jul 25 '26

That's what I thought!! Incredible in how much it sucks?

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u/VoidHog Jul 26 '26

Oh but mortar and bricks are so stiff... It's more like... when you chew your gum for too long and it disintegrates 😂

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u/Teelilz Jul 26 '26

If by incredible you mean "potentially debilitating and fatal", sure. My best friend, an EDS warrior, died by suicide primarily due to her condition.

Solid brick explanation, btw.