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Lifelong cracking joints, aching and stiffness... could this have something to do with being autistic?

Creative26

Hello everyone.

I have over-pronounced [flat] feet which I understand is common within the autistic community. I have had these my whole life. I went for regular physiotherapy as a child but this treatment started to phase out during my adolescence. I only learned about its association with autism after my diagnosis a few years ago when researching the community. So this got me thinking about other lifelong ‘physical’ issues of mine. In this case, the cracking joints, aching and stiffness that I have experienced for as long as I can remember. I have always struggled with sports because of it, as well as daily tasks. Whilst it has not stopped me from having a go, I often feel that my performance is not all that it could be which can be disappointing. I have always found stairs painful and feel older than my years [I am currently in my twenties]. Now that I am a member of this forum, I wanted to take the opportunity to see if there is anyone else on here with similar problems. It could be that I am entitled to support that I am not getting at the moment because I have not explored it enough. If so, what is the name of the condition and should I see my general physician about it for an official diagnosis?

Something else to note: During my adolescence, I visited my general physician for a blood test as I thought it might be a calcium issue. I thought this because I stopped drinking milk from about age ten because I did not like the texture. I have always liked other diary products such as yogurt and cheese though, which I hoped would make up for the absence of plain milk. At the time, my results showed that my levels were normal. Yogurt and cheese have remained a staple part of my diet ever since; so I hope my levels are still normal [ten years on] and therefore not relevant in this post. But still, I thought it was worth mentioning regardless.

Thank you.

  • id say no, because this can be fixed pretty easily with stretches and correct training.
    with proper physical training you can fix any stiffness or cracking.

    your stiffness and cracking will likely get worse with age, and also likely get worse if you do fitness stuff or heavy lifting or manual labour without doing any decent amount of full body muscular stretching, especially trying to target stretch problem areas. you will always find new stretches that target places that are stiff that never thought you could stretch too. i recently found a really good one to stretch my chest that was tight and problematic and could really feel that one and it improved my breathing.

  • I experience this and I'm diagnosed as Autistic I'm not sure what this would be called I feel tense alot and feel an intense need to crack my joints to relieve it stairs are hard for me as well my legs get tired and I feel old as well it's horrible feeling 

  • Just shows what a wide spectrum autism covers. I am hypermobile, but at 60, have never had joint pain. I also have unusually high arches to my feet, to the extent that finding comfortable shoes is a problem.

  • I constantly have injuries, and muscle and joint pain.  Physios over the years have said I have hyper mobility in random joints, that I have absolutely no core strength or stability, and that I have no body awareness or basic stability control.  It doesn’t matter how much I try and work on these things it never improves.  

  • Yes I've always had similar joint issues I was actually born with a knee deformity and defects in both knees requiring major surgery.

    I have read somewhere online it is common for those with autism to have other physical conditions

    I have always had clicking in both knees getting up sitting down

    I would check with your gp everything out to check what it might be if you don't find an official diagnosis for it then it may be fibromyialgia

    best wishes let us know how you get on

    I also have benign muscle facination syndrome where my muscles randomly twitch in the body

  • in reply to Kitsune

    Yes, that is sort of what my post is about. But before I start to bother my general physician, I just wanted to make sure that I did some homework first. As I mentioned in my post, I visited my general physician when I was a teenager for a blood test - suspecting that it could be a calcium issue - but my results actually came back normal, so I dismissed the issue thereafter. I have been diagnosed with autism since this time though - shining a whole new light on my life - and therefore making me wonder if my joint issue could be connected to that instead. I am curious to know if anyone else on this forum is experiencing a similar issue, or knows about such an issue and whether it is an autistic thing or not.

  • in reply to Creative26

    Ok. Well that appears to rule out hyper mobility then. Have you thought of asking your GP to refer you for tests to try to determine the cause?

  • in reply to Kitsune

    Thank you for your response! I am not aware of hypermobility. Google defines it as ‘a condition that features joints that easily move beyond the normal range expected for that particular joint’. This does not sound like me. I am actually the opposite. Everything feels stiff and clunky; often lacking grace and skill in my movement and posture. As I mentioned in my post, I have always struggled with sports and daily tasks such as climbing stairs and feel older than my years. I am height and weight proportionate and have never ‘W’ sat in my life.

  • Hyper mobility is another condition that commonly co occurs with Autism. I’m hyper mobile and I have had cracking knees since I was little. I also started getting pain in my right knee and hip joint a couple of years ago but luckily losing weight has resolved this issue. I wonder if this might possibly be part of what is causing your cracking joints and pain. Do you do the W sit? I only ask as it’s extremely common in hyper mobile people.