My Pain Was Visible On A Scan- Finally Feel Vindicated

This is an update to the post I made yesterday about my knee randomly becoming really painful.

Obviously, with hypermobility of the joints, we are more prone to overuse injuries and general wear and tear. In my case, because my knees are really hypermobile, I think my pain is more along the lines of “overuse.”

Well, I couldn’t bend my knee for over 2 weeks and my family kept dismissing the pain. I finally phoned the GP yesterday and went in for an ultrasound.

The GP got to the part of my knee which was sore, and he asked, “Is this where it’s sore?” I replied, “Yes, that’s exactly where it hurts.” He said, “I can see that, there’s a pocket of blackness.” Afterwards, he told me that there is a build up of fluid behind my kneecap and in surrounding tissue. He talked about steroid injections, but said I’m too young (I’m only 23). He was saying that I was too young for gout or arthritis, but to use ice compresses, elevate the leg, take anti-inflammatories and rest.

He said, “You did well,” because he had to bend and flex my sore leg in so many different ways. Having a doctor acknowledge that I did well because of my pain, evidenced by the ultrasound, is just so validating. Having my mother, who doubted me, in the room (to actually see the fluid build up and inflammation) is a kind of vindication that has made me feel so relieved.

I suppose I’m also glad that nobody can say, “It’s in your head.” Pain is VALID regardless of whether it shows up on a scan or not. And obviously, I don’t want there to be anything wrong- but I felt like crying with relief because I was finally believed.

It’s so sad though that we need something to show up on a scan to be believed.

Should just add that the diagnosis was bursitis- usually nothing serious even if debilitating. I also wanted to post this because when we think of pain in EDS, we think of joint dislocations and subluxations- but there are so many more associated problems