A molecular framework for masking (research)

Autistic burnout isn’t just exhaustion—it’s a full-body stress response.

Chronic masking in Autism Spectrum Disorder—suppressing traits, decoding social rules, and performing neurotypical behavior—acts like toxic stress, pushing the nervous system past its limits.

At a biological level, burnout reflects allostatic overload:

• cortisol dysregulation (HPA axis)
• increased neuroinflammation (immune system)
• mitochondrial strain (cellular energy systems)

These systems feed into each other—affecting mood, cognition, and energy at the same time.

That’s why autistic burnout isn’t “just a bad week.”
It’s a loss of capacity, not motivation—and it can look like depression from the outside while feeling completely different internally.

Reducing masking isn’t a comfort—it’s protection.
Because the cost of chronic stress isn’t just mental.
It’s biological.

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Видео A molecular framework for masking (research) канала Adult Autism Assessment Center