Published on 12, July, 2020
Hello. I've always been employed but it has damaged my mental health and managers' responses have traumatised me. I now work two nights a week which is ideal because I work alone in a warehouse. I haven't had a meltdown in over six months - a miracle! BUT I can't live on this. I still live with my parents at 45 and they are very anxious about my future because I can't support myself. I'm not great at saving money and no longer earn much. The problem is that most people don't understand Autism and I look like I can work. I pass as neurotypical, if not a bit eccentric and anxious, until people have known me for over a year and see me fall apart. I feel invisible. How do I get help? what happens ten years from now when I am forced to move out? I don't want to have a relationship and prefer to be alone, away from people, so I don't know how I can live? I have a lot of anxiety about this. What do I do?
NAS88719 said: I've always been employed but it has damaged my mental health and managers' responses have traumatised me.
Trauma can be healed - probably not 100% but hopefully enough to get you functioning like you were before. A good therapist can help you with that.
As for what to do long term, what are your interests and hobbies - maybe we can suggest routes that can help you draw on these.
Lastly, what are the main issues of your autism in relation to work?
I like art and craft, animals, learning new things. My issues at work are interpersonal things, miscommunication, fear of tone of voice or being told off, formal meetings, ethical hypersensitivity and over-empathising, sensitivity to noise, bustle, fast-paced work and having to deal with too many colleagues, getting burnt out quickly, no emotional regulation - frequent panic attacks/meltdowns where I sob for an hour then go home exhausted, intense anxiety causing inability to communicate, think rationally or perform functions involving numbers.