Invisible illnesses are hard for people to deal with for several reasons. The hardest one for others to understand is that they're invisible! There are no definite signs of inability. You don't look different on days that you feel horrible.
Many people assume that those with EDS are faking it because we don't look sick or because ability levels aren't a constant thing for us. We might be keeping up with you just fine for an hour or a day and then the next hour or day we might be just shy of comatose. It all depends on what the inner workings of our body want to do next.
On the outside nothing is wrong. We can pass all the usual medical tests with flying colors. In fact we're usually touted with being in better than average shape, especially as kids. We're extra flexible, we bounce right back from accidents that will put other people down and out, and we're generally stronger muscle wise. Our coordination is usually bad, but we're just written off as clumsy. We get told that it's all in our heads, that there is nothing wrong with us. The truth is something different.
The truth is that we might not be hurt by what hurts others, but what doesn't hurt others may be amazingly painful for us. Sometimes just breathing can be painful. And sitting down or getting back up can sometimes be a complicated process. Just because we look normal doesn't mean we are faking it or that we are okay. You can be in terrible pain and still smile because you've had worse pain. We don't look different on the outside but that doesn't mean that we are not broken.
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