Careers for NVLD

Post Reply New Topic

Hello, I'm new to the forum and diagnosed with Nonverbal Learning Disorder. I've been unemployed over 1 year. I have an MA in counseling and several past jobs in counseling & human services, but I've had countless problems at these jobs with trouble reading nonverbal cues and getting along with coworkers. I have alot of problems with the constant unpredictability and crises at those jobs too. Traditional autism spectrum careers like IT and engineering do not work for me because of my visual spatial impairments. I also get overwhelmed by jobs with a lot of receptionist type duties and am too slow to be something like a cashier and too awkward to be a janitor. I might be ok at predictable behind the scenes office work but those jobs never call me back. Employers seem to see me as overqualified and ill suited to anything but counseling and maybe tutoring from my resume.

I need some sort of job that is predictable, somewhat slow paced, and is good for someone with good writing and verbal skills but has minimal interaction with the public. If anyone has suggestions, please help. I hate having to rely on others financially.

Perhaps editor? Or online teacher?

Hi,

I am so glad you posted as I am in a similar situation. I would encourage you to work with a trusted career counselor and/or with vocational rehabilitation to change careers. I think, good people can help you with the decision.

For example, I am going from software testing (very unstructured) to Medical coding. I think it will have a little more structure.I work with a counselor who has NVLD and her own counseling practice. She found a way to make it work.

That being said, I think I would caution you and me from trying to find the perfect work place. Work is work and the NVLD spans more than career. Perhaps the bigger question is how to achieve and maintain independence, with a career being a sub-component of this. This means the day to day and life skills that are important, like attention and organization. I would work with a coach on life skills, not only to be financially independent, but also to
have a life and to address other aspects you may not be considering.


Shellsy

Ugh, your experience in counseling sounds like my experience as a speech pathologist. I do NOT recommend that career for someone with NLD. Any of those types of jobs - counselor, speech pathologist, occupational therapist, etc seem to be bad ideas for people with NLD. I've read a lot of personal stories suggesting that anyway. Not that people with NLD can't sometimes succeed in those careers (as in the case of Shellsy's employer), but it seems like most people with NLD finds those jobs challenging.

You said no IT because of visual-spatial difficulties, but what about web application programming? That depends on verbal and logic skills, not visual-spatial skills. I have found that working for a company maintaining existing applications is the way to go, because it tends to be slow-paced with relaxed deadlines, and generally no crises. Working in a company on creating new sites for customers would be much more stressful I think.

Shellsy- I hope medical coding works out for you. I had considered that when I was changing careers.

It really sucks have to take NLD into account so much with a career, but it is amazing how much it can affect you depending on your job environment and the nature of your work. If you don't want to feel like a failure over and over again (been there, done that), you need to find a job that plays to your strengths and minimizes your weaknesses. Good luck!

Thank you for your thoughtful posts. I've signed up for vocational rehab and am waiting for an assigned counselor. I'll certainly keep web application programming and medical coding in mind. Another person suggested policy writing to me who I talked to recently. I'd love to also get a private coach or counselor too who understands NVLD and the spectrum but my options are pretty limited without any real income.

I am self diagnosed with NVLD, and after struggling for years to be successful at jobs I was no good at, I now make an enjoyable living as a proofreader, mostly of grocery packaging. The downside is that you likely will need to be in a large city to work as a full time proofreader, although it is also possible to work remotely as a freelancer.

What I like about the job is that it suits my talents, has low stress, and suits my need to mostly work alone.

What do you mean by too awkward to be a janitor?...

Too physically awkward. I'm quite clumsy and have poor coordination.

I know of a university professor who has NVLD and she loves her job.

Ha ha, yes, I can see how that would be a problem. I once had a job where I had to push patients around in wheelchairs. Those poor patients...

The other good thing about being in a technical career like programming is that people expect you to be a bit weird! No eye contact? No problem!

I agree on all counts.
It's definitely been a good move for me (it'll be a year for me this fall), and my coworkers don't understand anything tech, so I get passes on social issues for working magic for them.

Yes- THIS. As long as you work the magic to fix their applications, they don't care if you are socially awkward.

Oh, yeah, I spent my whole life being awkward, and making people's eye glaze over when I talk to them... at least now I have a valid reason.

(btw, love your sig line. I go by the name Wanderer on my professional forums, and quote tolkein in my signature.)

Thanks! It is sadly very true for me... I am no Ranger, and wandering is an important strategy for me when I get lost even in familiar places. Especially in circular offices- you may not know where something is, but if you keep wandering around, eventually you will find it. That's how I find the supply closet and the mail area at work. Wanderer is a great username for an NLDer!

Re: eyes glazing over- I swear, I try to give short, non-technical explanations, and I always think I have succeeded until I hear people talking about how they get lost when I am explaining things. At least they seem to write it off as an IT thing.

Nex year I'm going to start college for History major as I always wanted to.
Now I'm IT Engineer but I hate this job - for me it's just wasting lifetime, 10 hrs per day. I've never been fond of software, bug fixing, developing, testing and so on while sittilg in front of laptop screen.
I'm sill not sure about career but one thing is for sure - I'd never work in IT anymore.