A woman who bruises so badly teachers thought she was being abused as a child has been diagnosed with a rare condition - which will slowly "turn her to stone".<br /><br />Lina Ahnberg, 21, was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) - a group of conditions that cause very flexible joints and stretchy and fragile skin - in October 2021.<br /><br />Lina said that she is often unable to move due to being physically exhausted and constant chronic pain.<br /><br />She claims her symptoms including bruising, baby-like skin and chronic pain were "dismissed" by health professionals since she was a child - and she was told they were down to stress. <br /><br />From a young age Lina would get bruising all over her body and experienced chronic joint pain - which was so severe during childhood, her teachers asked if everything was OK at home, wrongly thinking she was being abused. <br /><br />The most simple of tasks - like having a conversation or having a shower - tire Lina out so much that she will need to have a lie down.<br /><br />Lina, a student, from Uppsala, near Stockholm, Sweden, said: "During my whole life my symptoms got brushed off as something that would go away with time but instead it got worse and worse.<br /><br />"I can't remember a time where I haven't experienced pain - I have experienced a lot of back pain which is unusual for someone my age.<br /><br />"I experienced a lot of stomach cramps and nausea. I have soft baby-like skin, soft hair, stretch marks and thin skin.<br /><br />"I was relieved to finally have a diagnosis - even though there is no cure.<br /><br />"I found that a lot of doctors didn't know what EDS is and that if you present a list of symptoms they can be part of a bigger problem."<br /><br />Since she was in nursery Lina has presented EDS symptoms - including bruising and severe joint pain.<br /><br />She said: "From an early age I had bruises on my body to the point that my kindergarten teacher would ask my parents if everything was OK at home.<br /><br />"I can't remember a time when I haven't experienced chronic pain.<br /><br />"My stomach issues - pain and constipation - caused me to develop an eating disorder at eight years old and I then was diagnosed with anorexia which nearly took my life.<br /><br />"All this started with stomach cramps and nausea which was caused by EDS.<br /><br />"Even tough I am healthy now and recovered from my eating disorder I am still dealing with the stomach issues."<br /><br />Lina's symptoms worsened through her teenage years when she started developing other conditions caused by EDS such as inappropriate sinus tachycardia - a sinus heart rate inexplicably higher than one hundred beats per minute at rest.<br /><br />Lina said: "I think it's important for people to realise that EDS is way more than just being bendy and having stretchy skin.<br /><br />"EDS comes with a lot of comorbidities. Mine have impacted my life just as much as EDS itself.<br /><br />"There are so many misconceptions about EDS out there."<br /><br />Lina said that the simplest of tasks like showering or having a conversation can leave her exhausted and needing to take a break.<br /><br />In October 2023, Lina went to see a doctor at the Ultuna Health Centre in Uppsala, Sweden, with her medical folder containing her health history and EDS symptoms she had experienced.<br /><br />Lina said: "I had called into this doctor's office to say how I wanted to get a diagnosis for EDS.<br /><br />"I knew this doctor was willing to listen to people with these symptoms.<br /><br />"He evaluated my hyper-mobility and went through all the different criteria for EDS.<br /><br />"I was so relieved - I remember crying for days, not with sadness but I was relieved that after 21 years someone finally came and said it was real.<br /><br />"Of course, it is a hard truth to swallow, especially when you think about my anorexia, I was told I would never recover. <br /><br />"I had been severely ill, after five years with severe anorexia doctors told me I would never recover as they saw me as a hopeless case that was far too gone.<br /><br />"The hardest part of EDS isn't the illness it is all the different hospital appointments I have to have. I plan my weeks around my appointments.<br /><br />"Although there are treatments that focus on managing the symptoms - there is no cure."
