Published on 12, July, 2020
This is my first time posting so I’m not sure if I’ve posted in the right category or not.
I live by myself and I have no friends whatsoever. I left home to start a new life but I haven’t integrated into the community because I have been severely agoraphobic for 2 years. To give you an idea, in that 2 years I have gone no further than about 3 minutes away from my home because it was necessary to take my dog to the vets and that exhausted me so much I had to go to bed afterwards. At the beginning of my agoraphobia I would hyperventilate and almost collapse, my vision would would start going and my ears would ring and I couldn’t control it. Very slowly, I have made enough progress to walk on the path around my house and I can go slightly further. That’s it. It has been a very slow journey.I do want to explain that before I was agoraphobic I did already have issues going out and would avoid it as much as possible because I didn’t have enough energy and would have meltdowns, but the experience of agoraphobia is something else and not to be confused with that. I developed agoraphobia after a traumatic event in relation to leaving my home, and I feel like it is unsafe to leave it.I have two mental health support workers currently helping me with my agoraphobia. The progress has been very slow and my health is also being investigated as I have trouble walking very far anyway which prevents me making much progress with my agoraphobia. I’m not saying I will do anything to myself, I won’t, this is just a turn of phrase but I am losing my will to live because I don’t have family or friends to speak to and the only interaction I get is with one of my anxiety workers, tutor, or employment support worker who is helping me build skills. They are all professionals and I won’t discredit them I can tell them anything but they’re not informal friends. I can interact on the internet but I don’t know how to meet anyone in person which is what I would prefer, we could sit and do crafts together or something like that. I’m fine not talking and just sitting in someone’s presence but I know that’s a bit weird. I asked my anxiety worker to help with it but they are worried about the safety aspect of me inviting someone I don’t know to my house which I understand but I am desperate.
social services have offered to put me on a list for a befriending service but again, they would be a random person, a professional.
can I have some advice on where to go on the internet specifically to ask for a friend to visit and be autistic together