Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi, I hope your all well. I was diagnosed with Asperger's and selective mutism when I was 21, I am now 31. I have struggled my whole life socially, everyone put my difficulties down to shyness, so it was a relief in a way when I was diagnosed as it was an answer. But deep down I have always felt like I have never been able to fit in society, i have never been able to work due to my anxiety, which has been a huge void in my life. In a lot of ways I am very capable, I am kind, caring, thoughtful, understanding and a good listener. I feel like I'm stuck in the middle, as if my difficulties are not severe but they have just simply stopped me living the life I hoped for. Can anyone relate to me? Thank you so much for listening. It honestly means a lot to me
Hello Theresa77 I can definitely relate to what you are saying. I've always felt like an outsider really, and always thought that I was just shy until recently when I became aware that I'm probably at the mild end of the spectrum. I really sympathise re your anxiety stopping you from working. I left my job a couple of years back, and then realised after a while that it was actually the full extent of my social interaction, and even then I would very rarely go out to pubs etc with work colleagues - I used to dread things like that! Best wishes.