Aeolienne 165 Report post Posted December 14, 2014 I was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome in 2001, aged 26 - too late to claim perks at university such as a free laptop etc. I'd been moved to seek a diagnosis after being fired from my first proper job after just five weeks for "not fitting in". By the time the diagnosis was official, I had got another job within the scientific civil service. I'm from London originally, but worked in Bracknell, Berkshire, for a couple of years and then relocated with my employer to Exeter. In May 2009 I was dismissed on the grounds of underperformance. After a year on the dole I got offered a job with an environmental consultancy in Skipton, North Yorkshire. Not my preferred choice of location by a long chalk - I'd much rather have moved to Bristol - but it was the only offer I'd received so I moved up north. Then a week before Christmas 2010 I was fired for not having "delivered the right level of technical input". It's anyone's guess how differently things might have turned out if I'd had the right support in place from day one, but my efforts to tap into local sources of support were frustratingly slow to bring results, and being without broadband for the first two months of my job didn't help. To make things worse, after losing my job in Skipton I only then discovered that I was ineligible for means-tested benefits because of owning a flat I didn't live in (back in Exeter). So eventually I decided to cut my losses and move in with my parents in London. That was supposed to be a temporary measure, but it's lasted over three years with no end in sight. Since then I have worked for four months with a smart metering dotcom in Cambridge, two months with an oil company and six months with an investment bank (the latter two were special placements in London arranged by NAS Prospects with scant regard for my actual career aspirations). My hobbies and interests include reading, environmental issues, Baroque music, recorder playing, hillwalking, cycling, outdoor swimming and visiting art exhibitions. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RiRi 8,139 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 Welcome to the forum. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brokenOne 511 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 Hello and welcome. Although i cant say i know what you are going through on a personal level i will say i know what its like in the aspect of having AS and trying to do things and employers not knowing the struggle that going on inside. You're not alone on this form. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tylermc 4,991 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 Hi and wellcome too the forum you will really enjoy it here it's awesome 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nintendo2 382 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 (edited) Hello and welcome to the forum. I hope you will really like it on here and I would love to go to London. It seems like a really amazing city. Edited December 15, 2014 by Nintendo2 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thegingerone 971 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 Hello 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aeolienne 165 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 Hello and welcome to the forum. I hope you will really like it on here and I would love to go to London. It seems like a really amazing city. TBH I think it's a bit over-rated - even now, having spent so long away from the capital, I'm struck by how expensive and scruffy it is. That's why I wanted to get out as soon as possible (eccentric I know). 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
No Longer Here 1,769 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 I'm with you. I would never live in London. Way too busy amd dirty for me. Much rather live here in Bucks and commute in for gigs 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aeolienne 165 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 Buckinghamshire isn't exactly cheap either. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nesf 9,343 Report post Posted December 15, 2014 Hi, welcome to the forum 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
