Alright. So let me share something a bit personal, which I may have alluded or mentioned in passing before. I want to talk about mental health for a bit.
It’s been somewhat of a rough few years, not so much that I noticed at the time, but in hindsight. It started with a child that was unhappy in school. Grade 1 in 2020, so COVID that year. I thought that explains some of it, but 4 years later, we involved a child psychologist, and it turns out I have a kid that is Neurodiverse. That’s the nice name we use nowadays, formerly we used Aspbergers. Also, now we know this is part of the Autism spectrum.
That opened a whole big can of worms for me, because part of the reason I couldn’t help my own child, is because I thought that these things she was experiencing is just how life is. It was like that for me, I always thought it is like that for everyone (if you see where I am going with this… good).
Soon afterwards, there was a death in our extended family. Someone about my age. Cancer. At this point, I found that some people behave quite a bit differently to how I would have expected. Personally, I would think that if something like that happens, you put your differences aside, you pick up a phone, and you call your friend/family member. I found out that apparently, the way I think people should act… is just not as agreed upon as I apparently thought. It was a huge shock to me in some ways. Again, if you see the parallels… that’s exactly where I am going with this.
That was the point where I went to see a psychologist myself, where I did the RITVO (adult Autism test), and lo and behold, as suspected for some time now, I too am neurodiverse. Very high functioning, but it is right there.
This explains, to a very great extent, why I struggle with relationships. I actually AM weird. As Sheldon says in Big bang theory (movie/tv references is apparently an aspie thing too), “My mother had me tested”… except I had to do it myself in my case.
So, where am I going with this? Well, it turns out that certain occupations have higher numbers of these neuro-diverse people. Doctors, for example. It takes a special kind of person to spend that many years behind books in order to do that job. That’s why doctors are almost always introverts with really terrible bedside manner. Thankfully, that’s not what you pay them for.
Engineers as well. Every one who dabbles in solar power and software and these things where a lot of what you do is a picture in your head that other people just cannot see. Accept that you are not entirely normal, and that it is a good thing. Sit down, and realise you don’t see the world as others do.
Another thing that came out of this: I realised my family, my own direct ancestors in other words, can be quite critical. This is the tool they use to communicate care. Which is weird, because it comes across very negative, and it is certainly not an optimal way of doing it. But it helps to recognise that sometimes criticism is an invitation to be better.
It also helps to accept that sometimes, the person leveling the criticism, for all their disguised care, is just plain wrong as well.
Now, I am told that telling personal stories that are vaguely related to the point is also an aspie thing.
In any case. When you deal with a field where strong opinions run amuck, take care of your mental well-being. If you can, avoid Australian electricians. They are the worst.
Edit: The above post probably looks a bit out of place here, but several posts were removed because a personal spat broke out. This was an attempt to make people realise that what seems obviously “correct” to you might not be.