Sunday, 28 June 2009
Samaritans
So I really did it, I've just been on to the "Samaritans", it is just getting me down so much I called them. The feeling of failure and underachievement is just hitting me so hard at the moment.
Wednesday, 17 June 2009
A year since my last temp job
So today a full year has elapsed since I even had a fortnight of temporary work. God how depressing does that sound, am I that worthless that no-one has wanted me for a whole year? It's the whole selling oneself thing isn't it, I'm so capable of work but lacking that one thing of "communication skills" and cannot sell myself. Hence the blog title.
Monday, 15 June 2009
Employee health questions on forms - case on BBC News
This story was on BBC News tonight about a council losing its High Court case against a former managing director after claiming she withheld a history of depressive illness.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/gloucestershire/8100126.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8100429.stm
An employment lawyer in the second article believed the issue at hand was that the questions asked of her were simply not specific enough. What was also of particular interest, was on the television report a doctor admitting many doctors advise people NOT to disclose conditions like depression. I've "got this T-shirt" too, though not to the same extent, as in my long temp employment with a public sector organisation I hadn't disclosed about having Asperger as I had sort of "pushed it to the back of mind" while muddling through employment, the medical form said "Do YOU CONSIDER YOURSELF to have a disability?" which while skimming through I didn't consciously think of myself as disabled just not very confident, and I was just doing data entry work as a lower tier temp. However, later this job got longer term and they tried pushing me into more responsibility "to develop my communication skills" and told me to improve in appraisals, I was out of my depth but felt if I said about Asperger now I'd be sacked for not saying it on the form, even though the wording was actually "Do You Consider Yourself". It certainly can be a close call for milder conditions, but the doctor on the television really struck the chord.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/gloucestershire/8100126.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8100429.stm
An employment lawyer in the second article believed the issue at hand was that the questions asked of her were simply not specific enough. What was also of particular interest, was on the television report a doctor admitting many doctors advise people NOT to disclose conditions like depression. I've "got this T-shirt" too, though not to the same extent, as in my long temp employment with a public sector organisation I hadn't disclosed about having Asperger as I had sort of "pushed it to the back of mind" while muddling through employment, the medical form said "Do YOU CONSIDER YOURSELF to have a disability?" which while skimming through I didn't consciously think of myself as disabled just not very confident, and I was just doing data entry work as a lower tier temp. However, later this job got longer term and they tried pushing me into more responsibility "to develop my communication skills" and told me to improve in appraisals, I was out of my depth but felt if I said about Asperger now I'd be sacked for not saying it on the form, even though the wording was actually "Do You Consider Yourself". It certainly can be a close call for milder conditions, but the doctor on the television really struck the chord.
Friday, 5 June 2009
System 'failing autistic adults' on BBC News
System 'failing autistic adults' - tell me something I didn't know!
Quoted "Around half of those with autism also have a learning disability, but for those who do not - those with high functioning autism, such as Asperger Syndrome - accessing support for housing, further education and employment can be particularly hard" the National Audit Office said. Interestingly they also noted there is still a lack of expertise at job centres, with only 200 of 500 disability advisors trained to help people with autism.
I've already posted a lot about the "Flexible Routeways" I was on, with no special "support" as in going between myself and employers, more like just trying to "coach" me towards the normal open market, where I feel no amount of such "coaching" is really going to change me.
Right at the end there's a conclusion from Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, an expert in autism at the University of Cambridge, saying even when people were diagnosed they were often left "isolated, unemployed, lonely, and at risk of developing potentially preventable secondary depression".
I've had many bad nights losing sleep lately, thinking of my neurotypical brother being so successful in his work while I'm not. I had another last night, waking up at 4am and have had to concede I won't go out tonight to the soul music dance I hoped to go to because the sleepless night means I'm too tired to cope with driving.
Quoted "Around half of those with autism also have a learning disability, but for those who do not - those with high functioning autism, such as Asperger Syndrome - accessing support for housing, further education and employment can be particularly hard" the National Audit Office said. Interestingly they also noted there is still a lack of expertise at job centres, with only 200 of 500 disability advisors trained to help people with autism.
I've already posted a lot about the "Flexible Routeways" I was on, with no special "support" as in going between myself and employers, more like just trying to "coach" me towards the normal open market, where I feel no amount of such "coaching" is really going to change me.
Right at the end there's a conclusion from Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, an expert in autism at the University of Cambridge, saying even when people were diagnosed they were often left "isolated, unemployed, lonely, and at risk of developing potentially preventable secondary depression".
I've had many bad nights losing sleep lately, thinking of my neurotypical brother being so successful in his work while I'm not. I had another last night, waking up at 4am and have had to concede I won't go out tonight to the soul music dance I hoped to go to because the sleepless night means I'm too tired to cope with driving.
Tuesday, 2 June 2009
Opinion Leader research
Opinion Leader is conducting in-depth research into the needs of adults with Autistic Spectrum Conditions (ASC), which will feed into the Government consultation on this issue, due to be completed later this year.
I've just started to register on this site as I hope to be able to have my say about the employment issue.
I've just started to register on this site as I hope to be able to have my say about the employment issue.
Monday, 1 June 2009
"Better, faster... and no office politics: the company with the autistic specialists" article
There was a link on this thread on ASD-Forum to this article in the
Independent newspaper about a company in Denmark. They are debating it on the forum in some depth, I haven't digested the whole page yet, will add some comments of my own when I have!
Anyway one comment which really struck out in the article itself was where founder Thorkil Sonne said "In any company, at least one to five per cent of all tasks would fit well with the skills of people with autism. This could apply to recognition patterns in the medical industry, to accounting, to banks? Unfortunately, there is such an emphasis on being a team player and social skills in the workplace that there is still this resistance. But why do we all have to be like that? There should be room for other kinds of behaviour."
Independent newspaper about a company in Denmark. They are debating it on the forum in some depth, I haven't digested the whole page yet, will add some comments of my own when I have!
Anyway one comment which really struck out in the article itself was where founder Thorkil Sonne said "In any company, at least one to five per cent of all tasks would fit well with the skills of people with autism. This could apply to recognition patterns in the medical industry, to accounting, to banks? Unfortunately, there is such an emphasis on being a team player and social skills in the workplace that there is still this resistance. But why do we all have to be like that? There should be room for other kinds of behaviour."
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