- Beany Brain
- Posts
- Beany Brain #36: Allergic to Allergies, and New Words for Old Challenges
Beany Brain #36: Allergic to Allergies, and New Words for Old Challenges
Abigail Munday
April 09, 2025
Beany Brain: loving our jumping-bean brains!
Welcome to this issue of the Beany Brain! I hope today’s newsletter will bounce us up as we contemplate the upsides and challenges of being neurodivergent, a little beauty, some creativity, and just general yeehawesomeness.
Table of Contents
Photo by Abigail Munday
Autism and Allergies
I’ve had a theory for a couple years now, since my triple autism-ADHD-generalized anxiety disorder trifecta of diagnoses.
Actually, it’s probably been since I realized I’m an HSP (highly sensitive person). And that was a number of years ago after listening to lots of podcasts and doing lots of research.
Dr. Elaine Aron came up with the term HSP, and this is how Psychology Today explains it:
Highly Sensitive Person, or HSP, is a term coined by psychologist Elaine Aron. According to Aron’s theory, HSPs are a subset of the population who are high in a personality trait known as sensory-processing sensitivity, or SPS. Those with high levels of SPS display increased emotional sensitivity, stronger reactivity to both external and internal stimuli—pain, hunger, light, and noise—and a complex inner life.
My theory: If you’re highly sensitive with emotions and to clothing tags and spiritual things and horror movies and loud noises, it just makes sense that you’ll be highly sensitive to allergens as well.
Seems like there are some facts to back me up on this.
Allergy & Autism Network shares this data:
Researchers have used data from the U.S. National Health Interview Survey (1997 to 2016) to examine autism spectrum disorder and allergies.
One study using the data found an association between autism and common allergic conditions, including food allergy.
Another study using the same data focused on autism and food allergies. It found the following:
11.25% of children with ASD had a food allergy, compared to 4.25% of children without ASD who had a food allergy.
18.7% of children with ASD reported respiratory allergies, compared to 12% of children without ASD.
16.8% of children with ASD reported skin allergies, versus 9.8% of children without ASD.
There are no concrete reasons for this and research should be ongoing.
I hope research will be ongoing. (Scientific research in the US, hmmm, I don’t know how much of it will continue.)
In the meantime, I live with this on a daily basis.
Like Gretchen Rubin recommends in her podcast, Happier, I try to reframe.
I can often sense when there’s something off in a room, in someone’s emotions or situation. In the same way, I can often sense when something’s wrong with me; it’s just harder putting my finger on what it actually is (hello, interoception issues).
Food allergies mean that I make most things homemade and from scratch, so I get fresh and healthy meals.
And sometimes it’s too tricky to reframe and instead I mourn my allergies and what they mean for me: watching other people eat fancy creamy desserts, drooling over a block of sharp cheddar or blue cheese but not being able to indulge, passing over most items on a buffet, consuming rice-flour bread when I can get it but missing the big tender fluffiness or crunchiness of a fresh loaf of wheat bread, bypassing cats and not being able to stay in homes where felines live, no longer being able to wear perfume or be around it, having to buy the more expensive unscented and more natural body- and house-cleaning products, and I (usually) can’t have flowers in the house.
That’s not everything, but I guess it gives you a hint of what I deal with.
I don’t know if it’s an autism-allergies correlation or causation thing.
But I do know that sometimes I pray that I would be healed or that Jesus would come back sooner so I can enjoy some heavenly feasts without worry.
And Lord willing, I’m planning on being on the feast team because I absolutely love recipe development and trying out lots of new flavors.
Amen, Brother Ben, dig in.
New Language; Same Challenges
[My friend]: Just found a prayer request I'd written for you in 2002! ‘Pray against fear and irrational thoughts.’ How's that going?
Me: I think after years of therapy and prayer and research and finding out my brain is not neurotypical, I would now say that I deal with anxiety (instead of fear) and intrusive thoughts (instead of irrational thoughts). I feel a lot of relief knowing I can pinpoint and label what's going on, and I have a lot of tools to combat it. But yes, I still struggle. Thank you for your years of faithful friendship and prayers.
What a loyal and kind friend to keep checking on me after all these years. She’s a wonderful lady and is cleaning things out ready for a big move back to the States after decades in Japan.
Getting this message yesterday warmed the ol’ cockles of me wittle heart and also brought back dark memories from that time. I was really struggling mentally—I thought I was going insane and finally confided in this dear friend and in my husband.
They were both extremely supportive, putting my mind at ease and helping me to realize that I shouldn’t wait to share these sorts of things with trusted folks.
And as I said, after years of prayers, therapy, diagnoses, and research, I know that I am not insane, I am not malformed or a problem. I am not someone that people have to put up with. I am a treasured person. I am one of a kind, and God doesn’t expect me to be perfect in an imperfect world.
I look back to 2002 with gratitude to this friend in Japan, to a prayer counselor friend in the UK who prayed with me over the phone, and to my husband Stephen.
My brain works differently than a neurotypical person’s does. So does my spirit. I am uniquely Abigail and I can say now that I have a jumping beany-brain.
Sometimes it jumps with anxiety, sometimes with intrusive thoughts, and sometimes with magnificent joy over the sunlight lighting up a red tulip from behind.
Sometimes it jumps with anger over injustices.
Sometimes it jumps too much from a cup of coffee.
And sometimes it jumps with thankful bounces that I am alive in this puzzling world.
Photo by Abigail Munday
Yeehawesome!
Yeehawesome! is a happy-brain roundup in each issue of Beany Brain. What’s happening that’s good in brain land? What’s bringing me joy?
Walks in the UK! We’ve now been here 1 week and amazingly enough it’s been sunny every single day. It feels like a gift. My brain is calm(er) when I’m outside usually, and it’s been helpful to get us over jet lag and to get good exercise.
This song by the Drakensberg Boys Choir in South Africa. A South African friend shared this beautiful song, and shosholoza means "go forward" from the Zulu and Nguni languages (sung in the mines). My friend said they used to sing it on sports days when she was growing up.
An 11-year-old autistic boy with Tourette syndrome can perfectly imitate over 50 birds.
Beany Brownie Points and Extra Bonus Funniness
Wonderful Wednesday
Wonderful Wednesday was a day once a year in college when they would suddenly and surprisingly call off all classes and we’d play all day. The cafeteria provided special fun food and we’d do stuff outside like slip ‘n slides and jello wrestling in sumo suits. This segment of Beany Brain is dedicated to that memory of silliness and fun—no words, just a photo from the week that I’ve taken or found that reminds me to let the joy in. Since Beany Brain is published on Wednesday every week (at least, Wednesday in Japan), I hope you enjoy this Wonderful Wednesday.
Photo by Abigail Munday
Today’s Beany-full Summary:
There seems to be a correlation between autism and increased sensitivity to allergens.
It has helped me to be able to identify and name how my brain works. I might still struggle, but I know what it is and I have tools and support.
Go forth in Beany joy. What will help you feel yeehawesome this week?
Thank you for reading this installment of Beany Brain! You’re very welcome to hop on by any old time.
If you’re enjoying Beany Brain, please share with a friend or seventeen at www.beanybrain.com. Cheers big time!