Hi. My name is Chris. I've had Aspergers since at least grade school. I figured if I'm going to be a member of this site, I might as well open up about why I'm here.
In first grade, I was transferred to my school system's special education program. In those days, the older kids picked on me, and as I grew older, I started to find the younger kids too immature. Needless to say, it was a disaster.
One day, I was in occupational therapy. I remember I was working on my cursive, and the teacher said there was something wrong with my lower case z. I thought it looked fine, but rather than just ask what was wrong with it like I know to do these days, I exploded on her. That was the final straw, and I got transferred into a collaborative program that spring, where I stayed until graduation.
I hated being in that program. I perceived my schoolmates to be consistent idiots, and though I had close groups of friends in middle and high school, living in different towns made me reluctant to hang out with them outside of school. Both my parents worked during the day, and I didn't want to inconvenience them.
As mentioned, I never did return to normal school. For me, college was two years at ITT Technical Institute, and I only ever got as far as an Associate's Degree. That was over three and a half years ago, and I haven't had a job since.
In fact, I never had a job in high school. But when I started college, my mother opened a checking account for me. Having been frustrated with my job search, I reveled in my money and took every opportunity to spend it that I could, mostly eating out.
Eventually, I was cut off. I was convinced I needed money to function in society, and so (and I take absolutely no pride in this) I resorted to sneaking money from my parents. I always told myself I'd stop as soon as I had a job, and therefore my own income, but there was very little in my field that would take just an Associate's Degree (it was always Bachelor's required or preferred), and I struggled to find jobs that would be suitable for an Asperger's patient, so it kept going until today, when my mother threatened to call the police next time I stole from them.
So why did I join this site? Part of it is I wanted to ask around about jobs various Aspies have had (remember, this will be my first job). But ultimately, I want to learn to let go of my hatred for my diagnosis and try to use it to push me ahead instead of letting it hold me back. And I definitely want to learn what it is that drove me to steal money from my parents and made me keep doing it up until this point.
06 Jul 2014, 3:26 pm
