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YOUNG, GIFTED & BRUMMIE
DANIELLE CHEETHAM
The Team England ParaCheer athlete and inspirational teaching assistant tells us how she learned to accept her rare condition and dream big again
hree years ago, a diagnosis of Ehlers Danlos something wasn’t right.” Despite ligaments being Syndrome (EDS) – a rare condition with tightened and reattached, Danielle’s shoulder started to multiple debilitating symptoms – could have sublux (drift) again. been the end of Danielle’s When Danielle’s mum read an sporting life. Competing on the article about someone with EDS world stage definitely wasn’t on she felt it described her daughter’s her radar, but thanks to her condition perfectly and the family plucky spirit, talent and the pushed for a referral to a top introduction of a new form of rheumatologist in Manchester. competitive cheerleading called There was a sense of relief. ParaCheer, Danielle did just Danielle recalled: “Everything that. All while holding down started to make sense. I was no the day job! longer someone with lots of From a dancing background things going wrong. I was an Danielle had always been active individual with Ehlers Danlos. I and competed on the dance could start educating myself and team at university to a high level developing coping mechanisms.” as well as cheerleading, but Danielle’s main EDS issues are having struggled with joint instability, chronic pain and inexplicable joint pain from a fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, Danielle overcoming adversity to compete on world stage young age, she opted for routine food intolerances, soft and fragile surgery on a shoulder in 2013. It skin, delicate veins, bruising easily was then the path to a diagnosis of EDS began. Danielle plus a number of others. Strong medication for the pain and explained: “The physio dealing with my rehab felt fatigue has its own issues, but Danielle has learned to listen
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56 birmingham living
may 2017