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Use this forum to discuss neurodiverse parenting.

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Use this forum to discuss neurodiverse parenting.

Neurodiverse Mumsnetters

Do you have bad posture? Do you sit funny on chairs.

55 replies

ofwarren · 13/02/2022 09:59

I'm 42 and the years of slouching and sitting weirdly are really catching up with me.
When sitting on an armchair or sofa I lean to the left, I have my feet folded up the side and on the seat and I tuck my hands down hard so my fingers touch my wrist.
I can sit in this position for hours.
It's like the sitting version of the foetal position.

I suffer with neck pain, wrist pain and a bulging disc because of this, yet I cannot stop. I just can't get comfortable sat any other way. It feels wrong and 'cold' for some reason.

Anyone else?

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SmallGreenStripes · 13/02/2022 10:03

Are you hyper mobile? I am and also ‘wedge’ myself in when sitting anywhere. Same in bed; I wedge my hands in tight to my chest and have to be completely wrapped.
Something that helped me a bit in bed and on the sofa was a weighted blanket. Helped me feel a bit wedged without it having to be my limbs, if you know what i mean!

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 10:07

I don't think I'm hypermobile, it's something that would be obvious wouldn't it?
I can't bend my joints in weird ways.
I may try my weighted blanket on the chair as I've never thought of doing that, so thanks for the suggestion.

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 10:08

You describe it well, I do 'wedge' myself. It's the only way I feel warm and comfortable.

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HerRoyalHappiness · 13/02/2022 10:11

Yep I have to be wedged in too. I'm hypermobile as well (EDS) and end up in some very odd positions. Weighted blanket definitely helps. I love mine. Considering buying another ti keep downstairs so I don't have to lug it up and down constantly

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SmallGreenStripes · 13/02/2022 10:15

Yes @HerRoyalHappiness they are not easy to lug about are they! I have a fleece one that I LOVE that is on my bed and I am considering getting one for downstairs too.
I believe hyper mobility and autism are connected sometimes. Which I think is interesting.

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Justilou1 · 13/02/2022 10:22

@ofwarren - sometimes hypermobility is a bit of a misnomer. People with “hypermobile” joints may not have obviously extensive ranges of movement, but do enough damage to the joints because they have just enough… This type of “hypermobility” is actually characterized by usually clicky, painful joints (often stiffer than they should be) that can be prone to ganglions as these people age, due to pockets (cysts) containing synovial fluid that has leaked from the damaged joints.

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 10:31

@justil0u1 Oh really, well that certainly describes me. Everything clicks and I can click my ankle joints up and down without moving my feet.
I honestly never knew. Thanks for this.

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SmallGreenStripes · 13/02/2022 10:56

When you are hyper mobile you often also have lower muscle tone. That’s why it feels more comfortable to be wedged than to rely on muscles to hold you in place. At least that’s what my physio told me! For me it feels like a combination of physical and emotional comfort to be ‘held’ in place by weighted blankets or wedged limbs!

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Bettybantz · 13/02/2022 10:59

There’s a strong link between hEDS and ND. I’m NT but sit funny - I remember at school I used to get tired sitting at my desk and had to put my arms right over. My posture is awful, neck pain etc.
Both my kids are ND.

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BertieBotts · 13/02/2022 11:08

I have low muscle tone (due to lack of fitness!) and am a bit overmobile but not sure if I meet the threshold for hypermobile.

I definitely sit weirdly, the normal way of sitting is so uncomfortable, I can't understand how people do it?

Do you also have very high pain sensitivity in your upper arms? It hurts if I poke my own arm I think this might be why I struggle with injections.

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SmallGreenStripes · 13/02/2022 11:12

Not my upper arms but my lower back is horribly sensitive. I can’t let anyone touch it at all. Local anaesthetic and anaesthesia generally also doesn’t work well on me.

My son is undiagnosed but has odd pain sensitivity too. He reacts massively to what would seem to me to be mild pain. Eg we have been sent to hospital twice for constipation that the docs thought might be acute appendicitis.

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HerRoyalHappiness · 13/02/2022 11:13

Anaesthetic doesn't work very well on me either. I always have to ask for extra because I can still feel whatever they're doing. The worst was having my wisdom teeth removed. They ignored me and left me in tears.

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 11:15

@SmallGreenStripes

When you are hyper mobile you often also have lower muscle tone. That’s why it feels more comfortable to be wedged than to rely on muscles to hold you in place. At least that’s what my physio told me! For me it feels like a combination of physical and emotional comfort to be ‘held’ in place by weighted blankets or wedged limbs!

I've just been reading about it and I fulfil a lot of the criteria.

When pregnant I had awful pelvic girdle pain from very early on, with all 3.

All my children were born minutes after the waters breaking.

I suffer on and off with shoulder and neck issues

I got stretch marks all over in puberty even though I wasn't fat

I have horrendous digestive issues with acid reflux due to a loose valve, IBS and chronic gastritis

I have prolapse, both vaginal and rectal. Rectal one collapsed into vagina.

Slipped disc at bottom of spine

Pain in my feet every morning, querying plantar fasciitis.

Dreadful TMJ, my jaw clicks and the bone is now so damaged I have near permanent ear ache.

Skin sensitive and bruises easy. Even a slight poke with a finger hurts for ages.

I never even considered a mobility issue as I can't bend my fingers back

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SmallGreenStripes · 13/02/2022 11:15

Same - I could feel my c-section being sewn up! I said I could feel it and they said - no, you’re just feeling the pressure. Then I told them exactly what they were doing and what I could feel and the anaesthetist gave me a dose of morphine so whopping that I couldn’t hold DS for an hour!

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SmallGreenStripes · 13/02/2022 11:17

@ofwarren that sounds very much like Hypermobile EDS. Strong links with autism.

There doesn’t seem to be much that can be done about it so not sure whether it is helpful or not to know….

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 11:20

[quote SmallGreenStripes]@ofwarren that sounds very much like Hypermobile EDS. Strong links with autism.

There doesn’t seem to be much that can be done about it so not sure whether it is helpful or not to know….[/quote]
No it's very helpful. I'm one of those people who needs to know the reasons for things.
Thank you so much for your information, I never would have even considered it.

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HerRoyalHappiness · 13/02/2022 11:23

@ofwarren that definitely sounds like hEDS. No real support for it. Just treat the symptoms as they appear. I now walk with a frame because my clicky knees began dislocating and I'd just fall and I cant use crutches often because they put too much pressure on my wrists.

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 11:27

[quote HerRoyalHappiness]@ofwarren that definitely sounds like hEDS. No real support for it. Just treat the symptoms as they appear. I now walk with a frame because my clicky knees began dislocating and I'd just fall and I cant use crutches often because they put too much pressure on my wrists.[/quote]
Well it certainly explains why the many blood tests for arthritis the doctors have done have always come back negative.

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 11:30

@BertieBots My upper arms are the most pain sensitive area on my body when poked.
My kids will do it and then don't really believe me that it really hurts and literally throbs for ages afterwards.

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Cattitudes · 13/02/2022 11:31

Pilates (never yoga) and mctimoney chiropractor keep me active. Be careful the sort of exercise you do, things like walking, cycling and swimming are good. Running, contact sports need to be really careful with.

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RainbowZebraWarrior · 13/02/2022 11:42

hEDS and ND here too.

And yes to the way you describe tucking hands in. I've actually got pics of me sitting at around 4 years old with my hands like that. My friend commented that I still do that. I hadn't even noticed it was different. it's a little bit like T Rexing, which my DD does a lot as it's comfortable for her / makes her feel better.

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 11:42

I've just found this musingsofanaspie.com/2013/07/18/lost-in-space/
It looks like some of the wedging and sitting on limbs could be to do with interoception and proprioception. It would explain why the weighted blanket helps some people when sitting.

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ofwarren · 13/02/2022 11:45

@Cattitudes

Pilates (never yoga) and mctimoney chiropractor keep me active. Be careful the sort of exercise you do, things like walking, cycling and swimming are good. Running, contact sports need to be really careful with.

Does yoga stretch you too much?
I went to a chiropractor once and omg, never again. No joke, I couldn't move my neck or shoulders for 2 weeks. I was crying in pain.

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RainbowZebraWarrior · 13/02/2022 11:51

Yes, Yoga stretches hypermobile joints too far. Repeatedly. I did it for 15 years. Even though I was very careful to 'stay in range' It helped to completely fuck my joints in the end.

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RainbowZebraWarrior · 13/02/2022 11:52

Google Jeanie Di Bon for safe exercise for Hypermobility and / or EDS

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