People have been the hardest part of every job I've ever had. I don't know how to get around this.

[foliodoe]

The social challenges that come from being neurodivergent in a workplace full of neurotypical people makes it basically impossible for me to get through the workday. When I finally feel comfortable enough to unmask and be myself, people will inevitably start to wonder if I'm crazy or on drugs because of how extreme my personality can be - especially when compared with how I was while still masking.

I feel hopeless. I have a computer science degree and I'm afraid to enter the field at this point in my life. I don't know what to do. I'm not a stupid person. I can learn how to do jobs, I just need support and patience - which no employer ever seems to be willing to extend to me.

How have your experiences been in this realm? Thanks for reading!

 

[Rodafina]

I spent years trying to make it as a social worker, with an office, with other office people, but failed so many times.

I have since found a job that involves driving and delivering food for the elderly, and something about the nature of the job seems to attract a good amount of loners and neurodivergents. I look around now, and I am among my own people, although it took a great downward shift in pay to find my home.

 

[foliodoe]

I spent years trying to make it as a social worker, with an office, with other office people, but failed so many times.

I have since found a job that involves driving and delivering food for the elderly, and something about the nature of the job seems to attract a good amount of loners and neurodivergents. I look around now, and I am among my own people, although it took a great downward shift in pay to find my home.

That sounds lovely to me. It makes me glad to know you found something that makes you feel comfortable while earning a living for yourself. I have been happily working from home for a few years, even though it comes with its own challenges. I've tried being a teacher, a salesperson, an engineer, a lab tech - none of it seems to stick.

I've doing this tech support gig since 2018 and it's the longest I've lasted at any job. It constantly feels like it's too good to be true and I don't want to end up like my neurodivergent friends who have to mask all day working with the public...

 

[Progster]

Offices don't work for me - I just don't survive. I'm a private language tutor who worked in a school for a brief period - I didn't get on in that environment and didn't last long. I am now self-employed and find that a lot easier to manage.

 

[Luca]

I'm now self-employed too, after over a decade of being fired from a wide variety of jobs for miscommunications, or quitting as a result of coworkers bullying me, or being harassed by customers. Dealing with customers was always the hardest part, I always felt like having an anxiety attack with every single interaction because I didn't know if they were going to be mean or harass me. I have had some insanely terrifying encounters with entitled customers, and people who were caught stealing...

The job I have now requires very minimal interaction with other people, and when there is any, it's mainly through text messages.
I run a business training, grooming, walking, handling, and boarding dogs, and a dog daycare. I only have one additional employee, who I screened and hired myself (and we've become good friends.)
The most I ever have to interact with people is picking up and dropping off dogs, and texting the owners to coordinate scheduling things.
Most of the time I just go into the people's houses when they're not home and pick up and drop off the dogs. Occasionally I have to deal with a prolonged interaction with a dog owner but it's strictly business and just about the dogs, so I don't have to worry about real social interaction.
I'm also a licensed dog breeder with a small hobby kennel but you lose more money than you make with that job, and it has never been intended to be about earning money for me.

I make way more income being self-employed than I ever have at any other job, including being a professional dog trainer at an animal rescue, and being a supervisor in a retail store.

 

[GypsyMoth]

The social challenges that come from being neurodivergent in a workplace full of neurotypical people makes it basically impossible for me to get through the workday. When I finally feel comfortable enough to unmask and be myself, people will inevitably start to wonder if I'm crazy or on drugs because of how extreme my personality can be - especially when compared with how I was while still masking.

I feel hopeless. I have a computer science degree and I'm afraid to enter the field at this point in my life. I don't know what to do. I'm not a stupid person. I can learn how to do jobs, I just need support and patience - which no employer ever seems to be willing to extend to me.

How have your experiences been in this realm? Thanks for reading!

What if you found a work environment that is ND friendly? If you have a computer science degree that sounds tailor-made! A lot of ND's wind up in tech because tech needs to skills and abilities that come with autism.

I'm office support. I somehow ended up in an office doing support for teachers trained in early childhood development. They are fun, outgoing, and it is waaay not the typical office setting I have worked in before! Mostly they leave me alone -- it comes with the expectation of the sort of work I do. But one lady has started coming around and talking with me & she carries 95% of the conversation.

One of the biggest problems I have there is the noise level. I wear earplugs during the high-volume times when there are a lot of people talking all at once, but it kind of backfires on me when someone needs me. I always jump & it sort of sets me on edge for a time after that.

But curiously, as many of these teachers are trained for special needs, they also tend to have special needs in their own families. At least 3 of my co-workers have autism, one has a wife with autism, and a number have children with it as well. Plus, our workplace provides a corner where you can go and sit in silence. I haven't done that yet but I am rather impressed by the forward thinking.

I'm just sharing this to say, you really never know where you might find an ND-friendly work environment.

I don't believe in coincidences. I think it's the right place for me to be in at this time.

Hopefully, you will find the right place for you to be in during this time, too.

 

[Outdated]

I was a Printer for more than 20 years, a physical trade. As a highly skilled and highly valued tradesman I was treated very well. All the best tradesmen have a few funny quirks and I was seen as no different, I was seen as relatively normal.

I was also protected, if anyone in the workplace starts to bother the company's highest producers a clever businessman will remove the problem staff as quickly and efficiently as possible. Production is the bottom line in this type of environment, including consistency of quality and reliability, dependability.

No one cared that I often talked to myself more than I talked to other people, or that interfering with the way I do things would trigger a temper tantrum that left most people pale and shaking. This sort of behaviour is common amongst highly skilled tradesmen. Chefs and Printers were both notorious for this sort of behaviour.

With the advent of household computers came the death of my trade. Within a 5 year period more than 65% of the market just disappeared. Companies battled to be one of the few that remained, it became a very high pressure job and one that paid less and less.

So I decided to go out and try other things. This was a real shock to me, it wasn't until this time that I realised just how lucky and how protected I had been in a trade environment. The social aspects of office and sales environments were exactly the same as being a kid back in school again. I was completely unable to cope.

 

[Neonatal RRT]

The social challenges that come from being neurodivergent in a workplace full of neurotypical people makes it basically impossible for me to get through the workday. When I finally feel comfortable enough to unmask and be myself, people will inevitably start to wonder if I'm crazy or on drugs because of how extreme my personality can be - especially when compared with how I was while still masking.

I feel hopeless. I have a computer science degree and I'm afraid to enter the field at this point in my life. I don't know what to do. I'm not a stupid person. I can learn how to do jobs, I just need support and patience - which no employer ever seems to be willing to extend to me.

How have your experiences been in this realm? Thanks for reading!

We are always going to be a struggle with the social interaction aspect,...no matter the job. At some point,...you will have to deal with people.

With a computer science degree,...I think you may be in a better position than most when it comes to work. One,...there are a disproportionate amount of people who are "on the spectrum" who are also in the computer sciences. I would think that an employer in this field would be well-versed in "autism 101". Two, there are employers who actually seek out employees who are on the spectrum for these jobs,...less likely to be "social butterflies" wasting company time "flapping their lips" amongst each other,...and the ability to focus upon a task. The employer has the potential to get more work out us during a typical work shift. Three,...some computer science jobs come with the option to work from home.

Do not be afraid to enter the field. Go for it. You put in your time and study,...and likely at some significant financial cost. I know at our hospital,...we have hundreds of computer science people working for us. I am quite certain a fair percentage of them are on the spectrum. Frankly, there are a fair amount of autistics that are healthcare workers, themselves,...dealing with very stressful situations,...the public at their worst,...and with other members of the team. I think you may surprise yourself at what you can do.

Pace yourself. Take "mini breaks" throughout the day,...5 minutes in a bathroom, break room, locker room,...collect yourself,...then back at it. Keep water and a few healthy snacks handy. You will find ways to cope and get through things,...many of us do. Stay well rested,...generous amounts of sleep are critical during the work week.

 

[Aspychata]

My last job was a real lesson in bullies - co-workers/ bully club members. I was shocked that l was getting it at both ends. But truthfully, this is what you deal with in Florida. People fight for high paying jobs here and l was averaging 18-25 hourly. One shift, l almost made 200 dollars. So l put up with a lot, including a screaming cook that was sent home for a week for yelling at me. I never said anything about him. I guess somebody else busted him. Then he screwed up a majority of my food orders after that. My ND boss handed in her retirement, and l was happy to leave. She was a great boss and treated me very well. After that, l retired. Thought back on all the snarky co-workers l have dealt with and decided to stay home. So yes, working can be fraught with employees that aren't worth the measly paycheck.

 

[Owliet]

The social challenges that come from being neurodivergent in a workplace full of neurotypical people makes it basically impossible for me to get through the workday. When I finally feel comfortable enough to unmask and be myself, people will inevitably start to wonder if I'm crazy or on drugs because of how extreme my personality can be - especially when compared with how I was while still masking.

I feel hopeless. I have a computer science degree and I'm afraid to enter the field at this point in my life. I don't know what to do. I'm not a stupid person. I can learn how to do jobs, I just need support and patience - which no employer ever seems to be willing to extend to me.

How have your experiences been in this realm? Thanks for reading!

I finished a year long job in July. I enjoyed the work although it was stressful a lot of the times. It was made more difficult by being around specific people who made it difficult to feel comfortable in. It didnt help that I also had to deal with a bullying colleague (when I reported it, that’s what they called it) and I would have to deal with passive aggressive behavior that was super confusing, ridiculous childish behavior AND would have to deal with undermining comments. My job required me at times to work with interdisciplinary units and asking another colleague who was more of an expert in the area to help out was met with the bully as that I couldn’t do my job. I had a lot of comments directed that I was making another person do my job for me, which was then passed as a laugh….like it was a joke.

It took a lot for me to move down my walls and interact, and my colleagues weren’t really friends eithEr. This was a really bad experience, in contrast my temp job at the moment is a lot more positive, and I interact with colleagues on a low minimum but they don’t seem to be minded about it because I am only there in the mornings for a few hours. I will say morning greetings and be polite when asked questions (and they are okay enough for me to think they’re nice) but I am trying not to be too close and extend socially anymore. I have learned my lesson.