Athletes with EDS | Finding Your Range Podcast Episode 13

Please meet two exceptional people who are using their passion for climbing to manage their EDS pain and symptoms – both physical and emotional. Welcome Yasmin and Anoushe.

Yasmin is 26 years old and is from London. She is currently a Trainee Educational and Child Psychologist, which involves completing a 3 year doctorate. Yasmin was diagnosed with hEDS last year after she experienced rapid deterioration of her health, most likely due to the Coronavirus Lockdown. In her spare time during the last 6 years, Yasmin has become an avid rock climber, and she really feels like this ‘held her together’- literally in terms of her joints/EDS and also mentally. Yasmin began to notice that, as a plus-size paraclimber, she was somewhat of an anomaly at climbing centres and in outdoor spaces. She is therefore particularly passionate about promoting diversity and inclusion in the climbing and outdoor industries, and does this in her roles on the teams of All In Beta and United We Climb, two organisations dedicated to the aforementioned cause.

Anoushé is 33, British and Luxembourgish and currently living and working in London as a civil servant after having grown up in Luxembourg and studied in different countries. Anoushé was diagnosed with hEDS 4 years ago after experiencing different symptoms throughout her life. She was also born missing her right arm below the elbow and is a cancer survivor. Anoushé was a competitive swimmer and martial artist until the age of 15 when her joints became too loose. She was advised to stop and that led to a 10 year deconditioning with 9 surgeries and culminating with cancer. Anoushé started climbing to recondition her body after cancer treatment but only took it up as a regular hobby 5 years ago and has been competing nationally since then. Climbing for Anoushé isn’t just a mental escape from her hectic and over-medicalised life but the movement patterns help put her joints back in place and strengthened her so she has a much better quality of life. She also met her husband while competing. Being visibly disabled and having invisible health conditions as well as having Pakistani heritage and wearing a headscarf, Anoushé has experienced plenty of barriers in life, be they self-limiting beliefs, the perception of others or how society is designed in an inequitable way. Anoushé is passionate about reducing all those barriers, in particular for access to sport and calling out things as they are. She’s an Ambassador for LimbPower, EDS UK, Patron for Grit & Rock, co-founder of Paraclimbing London and also a team member of United We Climb. Anoushé is currently recovering from major abdominal surgery and is struggling to walk after a very difficult and medically complicated 2020.

The information provided in this video is not designed to replace medical advice or be used as a replacement. Please ask your medical practitioner if you have particular queries on your health.