Turning Down the Noise
hello,
[first i want to be clear that i have not been dxed AS. it is something that my therapist and i are looking into (especially in regards to obtaining an AS trained psychiatrist as a second step).]
i have three degrees and two certifications. i am employed professionally as a social worker and will be beginning a new job as a social work supervisor on october eighth. this job will pay me well, probably around fifty or fifty-five thousand dollars a year. i want to be clear: the jobs that i have had in utilization of my degrees and certifications have been very hard on me. my therapist and i talk a lot about 'turning down the noise' in order to increase my well-being, which is always low.
i held a retail job for eleven years and left only because the store closed. i worked in a warehouse and closed at night folding towels and such. it was so much clamer. i felt so much more at peace (not to say struggle has not been a common thread for me.) in 'turning down the noise' i am considering leaving my field and heading back into labor that is more soothing.
lastly, i do have a plan to go back to school next fall for editing as checking papers is one of these such tasks that 'turn down the noise' for me.
has anyone here left your professions when you realized that it was having a ill-effect on your well-being to a large extent? if so, did you feel like a failure or someone who 'couldnt do it?' are you happier now?
I've never left a job or profession because of that sort of thing, but I have been avoiding "promotion" for that exact reason.
I'm a successful software developer, but having been with the same company for 10 years now, they keep trying to push me in to management. They think that because I write software well, that I'll somehow be able to deal with managing other people well. This of course makes no sense whatsoever; but it's typical of how management in large companies think.
To me, there's nothing more loathsome than having to deal with organising other people - keeping track of their emotional state (stressed/overworked? cruising/underworked? etc) is nearly impossible for me let alone the other kinds of tasks I'd have to do.
So, I've been politely declining every offer except one (more on that in a second). In many cases, I've even turned down significant pay rises.
The one thing I did accept, and I'm starting to regret it, is taking on the position of "Software Development Supervisor". Essentially, I am still mainly doing software development (which I love); but I also have the responsibility of making sure the rest of the team are doing their jobs well - i.e. some simple management level stuff. I'm fortunate in that my team members know I have Asperger's, and also are very capable of working independently for extended periods; but it's still more than I really wanted to take on. I can handle it, but I definitely won't be taking on any more.
My advice to you: Leave, and go do something you enjoy. The extra money is not worth being unhappy for. It never is.
