Hypermobility? What are your rules for your super flexible child?

[Anonymous]

Are you in the DC area? If so, check out acro pt in Columbia for physical therapy that won’t tell her to stop doing what she loves but will give you good advice to take care of her body while doing it. I don’t know if she does private in person coaching any more but Shelly Flex Athletics in Gaithersburg is run by a very hyper mobile person who experienced not training properly as a kid so is very passionate about doing better for her students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Make sure she does some kind of strength focused training and focuses on active instead of passive flexibility. It’s unlikely she’ll listen if you try to tell her not to show off — there are lots of situations/activities where flexibility is seen as a big benefit and if she enjoys it she’ll be drawn to that kind of thing so the key is to let her explore flexibility training in a way that’s sustainable for her body. And PP is right that her limits are different than yours so I would be less guided by how “gross” something looks but rather by the way she’s training in general.

-somewhat hyper flexible adult who trains with many hyperflexible people due to my hobbies

Thanks - both of these responses are helpful. She is a very active kid - a dancer, she plays a team sport, horseback rider, etc. I never hear popping sounds, but I can talk to her about paying attention to how her body feels when she does different moves. It’s the latest move that is really getting to me - where she puts her chin to the ground and bends her body backwards until her feet go in front of her face. I start imagining slipped discs. I don’t tell her it’s gross - but I do ask her not to do it in random places. Can you imagine, I had to interrupt her— she started doing her routine in the shoe store. Quite a performer.

Cool

[Anonymous]

No "W" sitting

No doing it for tricks.

Definitely find an informed PT to help you out. She is at more risk of injury for sports like basketball.

An OT might also be helpful for her to develop strength.