Seriously no wonder people abuse this stuff. I have gotten so much absolutely back breaking work done today and I’m not even slightly tired. I cleared the rest of the BS blizzard snow from the rest of my driveway (had only shoveled the sidewalk before), plus the curb all the way to the nearest storm drain. I rearanged my living room, reorganized my whole service van, I finally swapped in that new clothes dryer that has been sitting in the garage for a month, and all that is after a full day of physical work. I would have normally been tired 3 times over by now. I’m am resting right now not because I feel like I need to but because I don’t want to accidentally actually cripple myself by acting like I’m superman. If only this stuff didn’t completely destroy your body in the long term.
What kind of work did you do first and what do you do now
I used to work in IT, mostly around web hosting as a systems admin. It was all wonderfully fun and interesting technology turned to the most awfully mundane and soulless profit motive.
Now I work in disability support. I work with kids who are autistic to help develop skills and engage with the world. I also help their families and at home carers to get difficult things done which means every day is different. One day I am helping get kids ready for school, another I am replacing a door, another I help someone fix their TV and learn the new menus, another I help someone shower. It varies a lot but the part I like best is being strong for the kids.
They love vestibular stimulation and really need it sometimes so I get to pick them up, flip them over, spin them around, and use an excess of strength to do it safely and without hurting them. The kids literally shout my name when i arrive and run out to see me, so I’m clearly not doing a bad job, and kids a super honest so I would definitely know if I was.
I also help people with dealing with systems like our social security system and things like licenses and voting. For some of my clients they have real trouble navigating systems like that and because I am also autistic/ADHD I can understand their perspective viscerally and actually accept and support them where they are. I personally hate those systems, but I have worked with them enough to understand then now and can help others with them.
Thanks for sharing your story. Also part of the autism/AHDH team so I get that.
One day, maybe I’ll be a woodworker for a living.
Honestly, being a woodworker for yourself is fantastic fun. I would recommend learning about it on your own and not limiting yourself to woodworking only as a career. If you love it you can do it on your own terms and in your own time. If you make things people want you can sell them. If you make things you like you can keep them. The skills you develop are yours and you can benefit from improving them. Having someone else employ you means they take your labour and turn it into profit for them, so they end up reducing your autonomy and ability to explore while also extracting money from you.