Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi, this is my first post on here! But would just like to hear other people’s experiences with loneliness while being neurodivergent. I’ve found that after I received my diagnosis I have gradually started to unmask little by little and now the limits to what I can and cannot do without exhausting myself are becoming a bit clearer. Because of this I think I have inadvertently/accidentally isolated myself, I also feel as though the friends I had before do not necessarily understand the change. However, this could be due to my own anxieties about the matter, whether they are based in fact is another thing in itself. I would like more neurodivergent friends but now feel so separate from the social scene that I have no idea where to start or how to initiate a conversation without feeling horrifically anxious. What are all your experiences?
Having worked 30 years in supermarket retailing and coming from an Irish Catholic background as an older gay man, living 23 years in the U.K., I’ve always been trained and conditioned to like my own company and to live alone, which has stood me in good stead over the years, so it is a case of moderation and balance in all things - I’ve always been in customer facing roles and I try to come across as being quite classy in my interactions with other people, polite, respectful, dignified