Executive summary
Specialists at the 2026 Female Health Summit—including Dr. Sally Pezaro, Dr. Andrea Wood, and exercise physiologist Jacqui Main—shared detailed guidance for navigating pregnancy, birth, and pelvic health with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) or hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD). Separately, Dr. Richard Figler of Cleveland Clinic outlined how the brain heals after a concussion and why old myths like 'stay awake' or 'three strikes' don't hold up. Cardiologists on Dr. Suneel Dhand's channel and Dr. Mark Hyman explored how food quality, gut bacteria, and stress hormones shape metabolic and brain health more than a single lab number ever could.
Key takeaways
- If you have EDS or HSD and are pregnant, seeking a multidisciplinary, condition-informed care team can meaningfully support your care, per Dr. Sally Pezaro's research at the 2026 Female Health Summit.
- Cholesterol and blood pressure numbers tell only part of the story—insulin resistance, ApoB, and Lipoprotein(a) may offer a fuller picture worth discussing with your doctor.
- Small daily habits—morning light, a short walk, a polyphenol-rich snack, or a physiological sigh—can support gut, brain, and cardiovascular health without requiring a complete overhaul.
YOUR DAILY WELLNESS FOCUS
Good morning. Today's briefing threads together a theme that runs through nearly all of today's research: your body tends to respond best to personalized, informed care rather than one-size-fits-all rules. Whether you're navigating pregnancy with a connective tissue condition, thinking about your cholesterol numbers, or trying to shake off brain fog, understanding the 'why' behind your symptoms can help you feel more grounded, prepared, and confident in conversations with your care team.
KEY INSIGHTS FOR YOUR WELLBEING
According to Dr. Sally Pezaro, a midwife-researcher at Coventry University speaking at the 2026 Female Health Summit, hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) and hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD)—conditions affecting connective tissue and collagen—together affect roughly 1 in 500 people, yet show up in about 1 in 20 pregnancies. Despite this, she found that both patients and maternity staff often report low confidence managing these conditions during pregnancy. Her research, drawing on an international survey of 947 people and 1,338 pregnancies, found higher-than-typical rates of preeclampsia, preterm birth, and postpartum hemorrhage—though she was careful to note that every pregnancy is different, and vaginal birth is not automatically ruled out. A related condition, POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, marked by a heart rate rise of more than 30 beats per minute upon standing), affects up to 78% of females with hEDS, per research she cited, which can make it harder to tell POTS symptoms apart from ordinary pregnancy symptoms. This connective tissue theme carries into pelvic health. Dr. Andrea Wood, a pelvic health physical therapist also presenting at the summit, referenced a study of 1,303 women with EDS/HSD in which 60% reported stress urinary incontinence, 54% urgency incontinence, 24% fecal incontinence, 21% pelvic organ prolapse, and 50% some form of sexual dysfunction. She connected this back to the same root cause Dr. Pezaro described: when collagen support is inherently more lax, pelvic floor muscles can either weaken or become overly tight trying to compensate—which is why generic Kegel exercises can sometimes worsen symptoms rather than help. Encouragingly, general population research she cited suggests pelvic floor muscle training can make people 1.7 times more likely to see objective improvement, making physical therapy a reasonable first step before considering surgery. Exercise physiologist Jacqui Main added a practical layer, noting that the hormone relaxin—which rises in pregnancy to help the pelvis prepare for birth—also loosens joints throughout the body, while increased blood volume often (though not always) eases dysautonomia symptoms. Meanwhile, Lisa Hoskins, founder of the Endometriosis Health Hub, shared that endometriosis affects an estimated 1 in 7 people assigned female at birth and takes an average of 7 to 10 years to diagnose—a delay she connects to under-recognized overlap with EDS, POTS, and mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS). During a panel Q&A, Dr. Wood also pointed to a lesser-known digestive link: when the rectum doesn't fully empty due to prolapse, it can gradually slow colon motility, meaning tests like MRI defecography or anorectal manometry may be worth asking about if you have unexplained digestive symptoms alongside hypermobility. **Brain injury and the healing brain.** Shifting to a different kind of tissue resilience, Dr. Richard Figler of Cleveland Clinic explained on the Sports Essentials podcast that a concussion causes microscopic 'stretch injuries' among the brain's estimated 90 billion neurons, and that sleep plays an outsized healing role—your brain's waste-clearing 'glymphatic system' works about 90% more effectively during sleep than while awake. He debunked two long-standing myths: you don't need to keep someone with a concussion awake, and there's no fixed 'three concussion' limit that should end an athletic career. On prevention, he cited data showing mouthguards associated with a 28% decrease in hockey concussions, no-checking policies linked to a 68% decrease in youth hockey, and a Florida study finding a 74% increase in lacrosse concussions in states without helmet laws compared to Florida after its 2018 helmet mandate. **Metabolic and heart health.** Two cardiologists featured on Dr. Suneel Dhand's channel argued that a single LDL number doesn't capture full cardiovascular risk—context like insulin resistance matters just as much. They pointed to Lipoprotein(a), a genetic marker present in about 20% of the population, and ApoB, a count of artery-damaging particles, as more informative additions to standard testing. Dr. Mark Hyman built on this insulin-resistance theme separately, noting that the Pima Indians, once a lean population, now see roughly 80% type 2 diabetes by age 30 after decades of dietary and environmental change—evidence, he argues, that genetics (which explained only about 9% of obesity cases and roughly 22 pounds of difference in one genome study he cited) can't fully explain today's obesity rates. He also referenced a ketogenic diet study attributed to Dr. David Ludwig showing 60% diabetes reversal and about 12% weight loss among participants. Separately, on Dr. Dhand's channel, a physician suggested that walking, sleep, stress reduction, and time-restricted eating over a two-week trial period might help some people with mildly elevated blood pressure, while stressing this reflects his personal opinion rather than a substitute for medical guidance. Cardiologist Dr. Michael Davidson also joined Peter Attia's podcast to discuss early LDL management and the APOE4 gene's role in Alzheimer's risk prevention—a conversation worth watching as more specifics emerge. **Gut, immune, and brain connections.** Dr. Hyman explored the gut-brain relationship in two other discussions, explaining that 60-70% of your immune system resides in your gut, and about 90% of the body's serotonin is produced there. He highlighted a bacteria called Akkermansia muciniphila, which normally makes up 1-5% of the gut microbiome and helps maintain the intestinal lining; one interventional study he cited found that supplementing it for three months improved insulin sensitivity and other metabolic markers in obese, insulin-resistant adults. He also discussed how ultra-processed foods, alcohol, artificial sweeteners, certain dairy proteins, and gluten can worsen brain fog in susceptible individuals, though he emphasized this varies significantly from person to person. Drawing on Dr. Jeffrey Bland's functional medicine framework, a related discussion described 'inflammaging'—chronic low-grade inflammation that accelerates with age—and suggested mild stressors like exercise, sauna, and brief fasting (a concept called hormesis) may help the immune system stay resilient. **Focus, stress, and cortisol.** Finally, neuroscientist Andrew Huberman, speaking on the Modern Wisdom podcast, offered a simple framing for daily energy: aim for a high-cortisol first hour of the day (via bright light and movement) and a low-cortisol last hour before bed (via dim light and winding down), which he links to better mood, focus, and sleep quality. He also described the 'physiological sigh'—two inhales followed by one long exhale—as a fast way to shift from a stressed to a calmer state.
ACTIONABLE STEPS FOR TODAY
1. **If you're pregnant or planning pregnancy with EDS/HSD, request a multidisciplinary care team.** Ask about early cervical length monitoring and an anesthesia plan discussed before labor begins, since Dr. Pezaro's research suggests local anesthetic may behave differently in connective tissue conditions. 2. **Notice pelvic floor symptoms (leaking, bulge sensation, incomplete emptying)?** Seek a pelvic health physical therapist familiar with EDS/HSD before trying generic Kegels—per Dr. Wood, your pelvic floor may need coordination and relaxation training as much as strengthening. 3. **Take any suspected head bump seriously today.** Dr. Figler's guidance—'when in doubt, sit them out'—applies to bumps big and small; prioritize normal sleep over forced wakefulness. 4. **Bookend your day with light.** Try a few minutes of natural light shortly after waking, and dim screens an hour before bed—Huberman's simple cortisol-timing habit that may support both daytime focus and nighttime rest. 5. **Add one polyphenol-rich food today.** Berries, green tea, or walnuts were mentioned by Dr. Hyman as foods that may support the gut bacteria Akkermansia muciniphila and gut lining health. 6. **If discussing cholesterol with your doctor, ask about ApoB and Lipoprotein(a)** alongside your standard LDL panel, for a fuller picture of cardiovascular risk. 7. **Take a short walk after a meal.** Multiple sources today—on blood pressure and insulin resistance alike—pointed to walking as a low-barrier way to support metabolic health. 8. **Try the physiological sigh next time you feel stressed:** two inhales through the nose, one long exhale. It's a brief reset you can use anywhere, anytime.
A NOTE ON SAFETY
This briefing is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for personalized medical advice. Please consult your healthcare provider before making changes to your diet, exercise routine, medications, or pregnancy care plan. Seek urgent medical care for: a head injury where the person can't be woken or stay awake, fever lasting more than two days after a procedure, sudden heavy bleeding, chest pain, or signs of infection (fever, rapid heart rate, confusion) after surgery. If you have EDS/HSD and are pregnant, discuss your anesthesia and wound-care plan with your team in advance. Never stop or adjust a prescribed statin, blood pressure medication, or dysautonomia medication without your provider's guidance. If you notice new or worsening joint pain, a pelvic bulge sensation, or persistent brain fog, these are worth discussing with your doctor rather than self-diagnosing.
Sources
- Dr. Sally Pezaro / The Ehlers-Danlos Society
- Dr. Andrea Wood / The Ehlers-Danlos Society
- Jacqui Main / The Ehlers-Danlos Society
- Leesa Hoskins / The Ehlers-Danlos Society
- Female Health Summit Panel Q&A / The Ehlers-Danlos Society
- Dr. Richard Figler / Cleveland Clinic (Sports Essentials podcast)
- Dr. Suneel Dhand channel
- Mark Hyman, MD
- Andrew Huberman / Chris Williamson (Modern Wisdom podcast)
- Peter Attia MD (Dr. Michael Davidson)