Those of you who work - what is your job?

I've struggled over the years, but I didn't understand why. I've worked retail, hospitality, support, office, over so many different industries. But would also end up burnt out and agitated. Now I understand what my needs are.

I work in Safety for a transport company. I have the structure and routine that I need, and my own office. I had half the light bulbs removed in my office, the office is situated at the end of the building and is usually quiet. When it does get loud, I shut my door. I often where ear plugs during the day as well. And I have flexibility that I can come in a bit late or leave early if it's a hard day.

My boss and coworkers don't necessarily know about my diagnosis but know at least that I have sensory issues.

They know sometimes i need to be in quiet, sometimes I still even wear a hat at my desk on those days where everything is too bright. They have seen me trying to breath and calm myself in front of my fan when i'm overstimulated or sitting in the bathroom with lights off. I always am holding some kind of toy or fidget thing (AuDHD). I struggle to understand sometimes and am open with that, I'm honest and say I don't understand, as I struggle a bit with language processing. When I'm writing what they are saying I tell them I get my words mixed up and ask them to wait or slow down.

People I work with know that this is how it is. I even have a joke little yellow a-frame sign that says "Caution - overstimulated - do not approach" that I occasionally put on my desk.

I do still get overwhelmed and burn out, but it's much more manageable.

Sometimes, we get lucky, and it all fits together - the right people who let you be without issue, supportive boss, environment you can control to adapt to what you need, and work that you are genuinely interested in and that suits your style.

I've had similar job as this one before that I couldn't stick to, but I didn't know then why I struggled, and I didn't have any accommodations.

I have the style of job that suits me with structure and routine, that I'm genuinely interested in, I have accommodations, and I have colleagues who don't seem to care to be honest. I don't know if they talk about me, but they don't at all give me any kind of hard time or obvious judgement, they work with what I need, without it being a big deal. Of course, there's times where it doesn't all line up, or there's meetings, or unexpected urgencies. Those days I go home exhausted. But they are the minority of days.

However - I'm 40 and this only just happened for in the last 2 years, there was a lot of struggles leading to this point.

I've struggled over the years, but I didn't understand why. I've worked retail, hospitality, support, office, over so many different industries. But would also end up burnt out and agitated. Now I understand what my needs are.

I work in Safety for a transport company. I have the structure and routine that I need, and my own office. I had half the light bulbs removed in my office, the office is situated at the end of the building and is usually quiet. When it does get loud, I shut my door. I often where ear plugs during the day as well. And I have flexibility that I can come in a bit late or leave early if it's a hard day.

My boss and coworkers don't necessarily know about my diagnosis but know at least that I have sensory issues.

They know sometimes i need to be in quiet, sometimes I still even wear a hat at my desk on those days where everything is too bright. They have seen me trying to breath and calm myself in front of my fan when i'm overstimulated or sitting in the bathroom with lights off. I always am holding some kind of toy or fidget thing (AuDHD). I struggle to understand sometimes and am open with that, I'm honest and say I don't understand, as I struggle a bit with language processing. When I'm writing what they are saying I tell them I get my words mixed up and ask them to wait or slow down.

People I work with know that this is how it is. I even have a joke little yellow a-frame sign that says "Caution - overstimulated - do not approach" that I occasionally put on my desk.

I do still get overwhelmed and burn out, but it's much more manageable.

Sometimes, we get lucky, and it all fits together - the right people who let you be without issue, supportive boss, environment you can control to adapt to what you need, and work that you are genuinely interested in and that suits your style.

I've had similar job as this one before that I couldn't stick to, but I didn't know then why I struggled, and I didn't have any accommodations.

I have the style of job that suits me with structure and routine, that I'm genuinely interested in, I have accommodations, and I have colleagues who don't seem to care to be honest. I don't know if they talk about me, but they don't at all give me any kind of hard time or obvious judgement, they work with what I need, without it being a big deal. Of course, there's times where it doesn't all line up, or there's meetings, or unexpected urgencies. Those days I go home exhausted. But they are the minority of days.

However - I'm 40 and this only just happened for in the last 2 years, there was a lot of struggles leading to this point.