The bendy brain and body: Autism, pain, POTS and hypermobility

In this episode, Catherine talks to Dr Jessica Eccles, a consultant neurodevelopmental psychiatrist, researcher and public communicator whose work explores the connections between the brain and body.

Dr Eccles co-leads the world’s first neurodivergent brain–body clinic and is a leading voice in understanding the overlap between autism, hypermobility, Ehlers-Danlos syndromes, dysautonomia, pain and fatigue.

Together, Catherine and Dr Eccles discuss why many autistic people may also experience physical health differences such as flexible joints, chronic pain, dizziness, fainting, gut problems, allergies, fatigue and difficulties with temperature or standing for long periods.

Dr Eccles explains hypermobility using the image of connective tissue as the body’s ‘cling film’ - something found everywhere in the body, not just in the joints. When connective tissue is different, it can affect the joints, blood vessels, gut, skin and nervous system, which may help explain why some autistic and neurodivergent people experience a cluster of physical and emotional symptoms.

They also talk about the importance of not dismissing pain, fatigue or dizziness as ‘just anxiety’ or ‘just sensory sensitivity’. Instead, Dr Eccles encourages listeners to think about how the brain and body work together - and how better understanding can lead to better support, better self-advocacy and better care.

Key themes Catherine and Dr Eccles discuss:

- What hypermobility is and how it can show up

- What Ehlers-Danlos syndromes, or EDS, are

- Why all people with EDS are hypermobile, but not all hypermobile people have EDS

- The emerging research linking autism, ADHD, hypermobility and brain-body health

- Why autistic people may be more likely to experience chronic pain and fatigue

- How dizziness, fainting and feeling strange when standing may relate to autonomic dysfunction

- What POTS and orthostatic intolerance are

- Why symptoms can be mistaken for anxiety

- The role of interoception, alexithymia, sensory processing and masking

- Why some autistic people may mask physical pain and illness

- How schools and health professionals can better understand children who struggle with standing, walking, pain or fatigue

- Practical supports such as hydration, electrolytes, cooling strategies, compression garments and pacing

- How autistic and hypermobile people can begin to advocate for themselves in healthcare settings

- Why systemic change is needed in how services understand the overlap between neurodivergence and physical health

What’s on at Autism Central?

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Connect with Dr Jessica Eccles

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For further information on the topics discussed in this episode, listeners may want to explore resources from SEDSConnective, POTS UK, the EDS GP Toolkit, StopFainting.com and the Hypermobility Syndromes Association.

Connect with Catherine

Email: hellocatherineasta@gmail.com

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Books: Rediscovered and Still Living