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

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.

Parents
  • 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.

Reply
  • 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.

Children
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