A quick hello

Hello,

Never really quite sure what to say on these sorts of things, but here goes.

I'm a 43 year old autistic guy, although until maybe 10 years ago I wasn't diagnosed. I have masked heavily throughout my life but its becoming increasingly exhausting. I've been going through a really rough time recently with my mental health. I have suffered with depression for pretty much my whole life - PDD and MDD.

I have reached out for support and am on a waiting list for NHS Talking Therapies, something which I'm dreading. Talking about myself in person is something I find very difficult, to the point of literally not being able to speak. The person who did my assessment was kind enough to let me do the assessment off camera and by typing, which was a massive help. I've also had an appointment with a mental health practitioner at my GP surgery. For that, I had to type out everything beforehand and give it to him to read.

Anyway, both the talking therapies person and the MHP mentioned this place, so here I am.

The biggest challenge I'm facing at the moment is work. I really need to find a new job as my current one is killing me physically and mentally. I currently feel really burned out and shut down and when I'm not at work I pretty much sit quietly in the corner, which is really unfair on my partner. I really need something to change and and am exploring pretty much every suggestion I've been given so far.

Anyway, that's me. Thanks for reading!