Condition guides
These conditions are managed by different specialists who rarely talk to each other — but the overlaps belong to one body. Each guide covers what the condition is, how it's currently treated, and what the newest research says, with sources you can hand to a clinician.
Map view
Anatomy
Start with the normal pelvis, then see examples of where endometriosis can be found — from surface implants and ovarian endometriomas to deeper disease and adhesions. Compare these with adenomyosis in the uterine muscle and polyps in the uterine cavity.
The uterus sits between the bladder and rectum. The ovaries lie on either side, near the fallopian tubes. The ureters carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder. A thin lining, the peritoneum, covers many pelvic surfaces.
Endometriosis involves endometrial-like tissue outside the uterine lining. It can affect different surfaces and organs; a normal-looking diagram does not rule out endometriosis in a person.
Brain & mind
These are schematic, group-level pictures of network coupling — not a scan of any one brain. Switch profiles, compare against a neurotypical average, and see how the same regions get recruited differently.
A network graph, not a deficit chart
A conceptual view of how key brain networks tend to couple — solid = well-linked, dashed = quieter coupling. Flip between the pattern and a neurotypical average.
task network loosely coupled · default mode stays loud
Conceptual, not an imaging result. Group-level neuroimaging describes averages across many people — never a diagnostic test for one person — and the same wiring underwrites real strengths: creativity, hyperfocus, fast pattern-finding, empathy.
The three types of ADHD
ADHD isn't one thing. The DSM-5 calls them presentations — same condition, different mix. Here's the wiring emphasis behind each.
default mode drifts in · attention network under-engaged
Predominantly Inattentive
The quiet, internal presentation. The fronto-parietal attention network under-engages while the default mode keeps drifting in — so focus slips, details get missed, and the mind wanders mid-task. Little to no visible hyperactivity, which is exactly why it gets missed in girls and women and often isn't caught until adulthood.
Conceptual, not an imaging result. These are the network emphases most often described for each presentation — group-level averages, highly individual, and not a diagnostic test.
ADHD — myths vs. facts
The stories that make people with ADHD feel broken, next to what the research actually says.
Myth
ADHD isn't real — it's just laziness or lack of willpower.
Fact
ADHD is a well-validated neurodevelopmental condition with measurable differences in brain networks and one of the strongest genetic bases in psychiatry. It's a wiring difference in self-regulation, not a character flaw.
Myth
People with ADHD just can't focus.
Fact
It's dysregulated attention, not absent attention. The same brain that can't start a boring task can hyperfocus for hours on something interesting — the difficulty is steering attention on demand.
Myth
Only hyperactive little boys have ADHD.
Fact
Girls and women often have the inattentive presentation — quiet, internal, easy to miss — so they're diagnosed far later, frequently not until adulthood.
Myth
You grow out of it.
Fact
Roughly half to two-thirds carry symptoms into adulthood. The visible hyperactivity often fades, but it turns inward — racing thoughts, restlessness, overwhelm.
Myth
ADHD meds are a crutch and turn you into a zombie.
Fact
Stimulants are among the most effective treatments in medicine. At the right dose they support function — flat or zombie-like usually means the dose or type needs adjusting, not that meds are wrong.
Myth
It's caused by bad parenting, screens, or sugar.
Fact
ADHD is highly heritable. Parenting, screens and sugar don't cause it — though environment and sleep absolutely shape how hard a day feels.
What happens during a panic attack
The alarm cascade, animated. It's your survival system firing — even when there's no real danger.
The steps light up in sequence — the cascade, on a loop.
Types of panic attacks
Tap a type to read more.
The anxiety family
How anxiety disorders are grouped (DSM-5).
Note: OCD and PTSD are related but are now their own DSM-5 categories, not "anxiety disorders."
Calm your alarm — coping tools
Two things that help re-engage your thinking brain when the alarm is loud. Practice them before you need them.
Press start and follow the circle.
Box breathing (4-4-4-4). In as the circle grows, hold, out as it shrinks, hold. Slows the heart and switches on your calm (parasympathetic) system.
5-4-3-2-1 grounding
Name each one, out loud or in your head — tap a dot as you go.
0 of 15 noticed
Pulls attention out of the spiral and back into the room — it gives the thinking brain something concrete to do.
Not sure how much of this applies to you? .
Self-check
Ten questions about symptoms that show up across this cluster — pelvic pain, joints, standing, reactivity, energy, and how the brain is involved. At the end you'll get a simple overlap level and the guides that match what you marked. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere, and no quiz can diagnose you.
0 of 10 answered
Ten questions, about two minutes. Answered straight from lived experience — there are no right answers, and "sometimes" is a real answer.
The cluster
endo, adenomyosis, chronic pelvic pain
A whole-body inflammatory condition, not just tissue in the wrong place. Excision and hormonal care are the foundation; the nervous system, gut, and immune picture explain why pain often outlives the lesion.
Central sensitization · bowel and bladder symptoms · fatigue
hEDS, HSD, connective tissue laxity
Lax connective tissue changes what movement should look like: stability, control and graded strength rather than more flexibility. Heavy bleeding and pelvic pain are common here too, and the two conditions amplify one another.
Joint pain and subluxation · poor proprioception · slow healing
POTS, orthostatic intolerance, mast cell activation
The autonomic nervous system loses its steadiness — heart rate, blood pressure, temperature and digestion stop self-regulating reliably. Recumbent exercise, salt and fluid strategies, and pacing are the mainstays alongside medical care.
Lightheadedness · flushing and reactivity · exercise intolerance
autism, ADHD, sensory processing differences
Interoception, sensory load and executive function shape everything about managing a chronic illness — noticing symptoms, keeping appointments, tolerating clinical environments, and sustaining a routine. Accommodations aren't optional extras here; they're what makes care possible.
Sensory overwhelm · interoceptive difficulty · demand and burnout cycles
ME/CFS, fibromyalgia, long-term pain
Where the danger-signalling system stays switched on and energy is a hard budget rather than a matter of willpower. Pacing and pain-neuroscience approaches sit here — and post-exertional malaise, where it exists, changes exercise advice entirely.
Post-exertional malaise · unrefreshing sleep · flare cycles
Why the cluster framing matters: a plan that only optimizes one condition usually costs another. Someone with hEDS and endometriosis needs stability work, not more flexibility. Someone with POTS and endometriosis needs recumbent and graded exertion, not just "exercise more." And someone autistic and chronically ill needs accommodations as treatment, not as extras.
What people are actually searching
The #1 hypermobility comorbidity search — with no authoritative source answering it
Yes, and it's the connection people search most. Joint hypermobility is significantly more common in ADHD and autistic people than in the general population — studies repeatedly find the overlap runs in both directions. Nobody fully knows why yet: the leading ideas involve connective tissue and brain development sharing genetic roots, plus interoception — sensing your own body — working differently in both. What matters practically: if you're hypermobile and neurodivergent, you are not a coincidence, you are a pattern, and your care should treat both together.
The library
Strength of evidence
Body system
Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome is a form of dysautonomia where standing up causes an excessive heart-rate rise (≥30 bpm, or ≥40 in teens) within 10 minutes, without a big drop in blood pressure. Symptoms include lightheadedness, palpitations, brain fog, fatigue, and the 'head rush' feeling on standing. Research now describes three overlapping subtypes — hyperadrenergic (high adrenaline drive), neuropathic (small-fiber nerve involvement), and hypovolemic (low blood volume) — and treatment works best when matched to the subtype.
POTS
10-minute stand test — heart rate over time
Diagnostic threshold: a sustained rise of ≥30 bpm (≥40 in ages 12–19) within 10 minutes of standing, without orthostatic hypotension, with symptoms for ≥3 months. A single reading isn't enough — the rise has to be sustained, and it should be measured after lying flat for at least 5–10 minutes. Illustrative values only.
How it's treated
Where the research is
Educational only, and not medical advice. Sources are linked so you can bring them into a conversation with your own care team.
