Let us in on your early life.

[Jax Humanhater]

Here's my story:

-I was born in a hospital in Downtown Atlanta, GA on 20 March 1990 at 08:15 Eastern Time.

-I moved to Mobile, Alabama with my family when I was 9 months of age.

-At 3 years of age, I was diagnosed with Aspergers' Syndrome. I don't remember having many friends in preschool.

-I got held back in Kindergarten because my development was behind the other children.

-When I moved to a new school, I was put in Special Education classes; the kids made fun of me because I was not at par with them.

-When I came to middle school, it was nearly the same scenario.

-When I was in high school, I felt a major change in me. I decided to turn a new leaf and I worked extremely hard to where my counselor recommended higher than normal classes. I was also making lots of new friends, too.

-When I transferred to a new high school in Ozark, Alabama, that is when my glory became sour. I always worked my hardest even when I was there, but, when I introduced myself and tried to interact with the children I went to school with, I was met with very cold reception. For example,

-I introduced myself to certain people in my classes. Some gave me their names, but, they weren't willing to keep the conversation going; frequently, I greeted certain people, ask them how they were doing, but, they were not willing to have my company

-When I was learning in class, the children would disrupt the class all the time, which, broke my concentration everyday.

-I was stressed because progressively up to 12th grade, I would fail to meet my expectations.

-One day during school lunch, because of the disruptive children and lack of acceptance from those people who shut me out of their life before I even said one word to them, I became so depressed that I threw down a chair, walked all the way to the front of the lunchroom, and said, "Damn you all!". My assistant principal, who is a close friend even to this day told me, "Tough moments don't last, but, tough people do."

-I graduated in the Top 30% of my high school class with a 3.0 out of 4.0 grade point average, but, I cried because if I wasn't so stressed out, I could have done so much better.

-Then, I started college, but, I wasn't 100% because of the traumatic experience from high school and my family stressing me out. I failed most of my classes.

-2nd semester of college, I was very fired up and ready to conquer despite stress from family. Then, I had some medicine changes that affected motivation and I failed college because of it.

-I went to community college but I lost interest because my family continued to stress me out. I dropped out and focused on IT certifications, two of three essential one I have already acquired.

Tell us about your life.

 

[Kevin Ascher]

I really liked reading your story and I am sorry for the pain you have gone through, Mohammed.
Don't let the haters get you down! ;-)
It's nice to read that you're moving on with your IT certifications, I am sure you deserve that!

 

[Scott Webber]

i will say a few things about me but i won't go into detail about it as it's quite personal and im not ready for it.

Im Dyslexis and i can lose my temper quite bad

i was bullied in school, but i started to stand up for myself after 3 years of it, i was involved in many fights because of it, some i won some i didn't, but i stood up for myself.

in the past i have almost commited suicide (that was a rough time)

i think of death and life on a daily basis, but i come accross as caring and fun (no homo)

 

[Liam Jenkins]

Those who have seen my depression video on youtube will know a lot already but here goes, ( I love how you can be so open here on a forum this community really is amazing)
I was bullied from the age of about 5, for just about everything I did, if they couldn't get to me they would pick on my brothers so I would react.
The bullying stopped when I was 16 and kinda the social rejection but my dad had a 3 year affair and he doesn't live with us anymore. A lot of mixed feelings about this still over a year on but I'm happy the way we are.
I was diagnosed with moderate depression last year also and went through some really rough phases. The only things keeping me going were commentating,my family and music. I was completely alone with no one to call a true friend at one point..
I'm a lot better now and try to focus everything I do on commentating and making something of myself so I can be an inspiration to others finding life hard! I'm very similar to Scott in the caring and fun aspect and yeah that's about it.

Thanks for reading
Liam

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

You guys are fantastic by only sharing this stuff online with us. Great step!

 

[Adrian Britton]

Depression is a bad thing to live with, it never leaves you, its never cured and no one really understands it, you or why you have it.

I, like many suffer from it as well, its like having a tone of bricks sat on your head at all times.
The best way I could ever explain what its like to suffer from this is.....

I can be having a great day, feeling happy and not worrying about anything, I can put my hand in my pocket and pull some coins out to count, and one can roll of my hand and drop to the floor, by the time the coin hits the ground, I can be depressed (no reason, no excuse, no cause) it just hits you like a steam train.
Its like, the world changes, a cloud of dark mist falls over everything, everyones facial expression changes. every thought turns dark or spitefull.
I loose respect for everything, hope becomes despair and life becomes pointless.
Anxiaty takes control and panic sets in. Its like every emotion in your body working overtime at full speed, untill you hit the wall.
Then im drained for days.

Racing sims is my escapism, I can spend hours on a track and not even know what im doing, lap after lap just merge into one final minute, one singular thought.

"Life is just a game, some play it well, some cheat, some master it and some struggle with it, but we all play it and we all have to put up with it"

Chin up guys, and remember, smile in the face of ignorance, because ignorance cant smile back at you.

All of our lives can be good or can be bad, our stories can be nice or can be sad, but in the end its just a game.



Bill Hicks
Life is just a ride

 

[Simon Bacon]

4 years ago I was diagnosed with PTSD and depression and spent a year resisting the doctors wishes for me to go onto medication and set about finding another route. About 6 months after that my whole world imploded - work life, family, personal life. I got referred to counselling and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and was there 8 months.

Looking back it was the best thing that could have happened as it allowed me to confront the root cause of what I was feeling and learn to deal with it without going onto medication, which would have had implications for my job and life outside of work.

Although it is a very slow process I now think I'm back to where I was probably 5 or 6 years ago (if that makes any sense.) I still have feelings of depression occasionally but I can deal with them now and feel okay again within minutes instead of the weeks I felt down before CBT.

I found some people still attach a stigma to depression but, as I was told during counselling, everyone is only one small push away from it and don't even know.

 

[Alberto Casado]

I don't want to kill the thread, but I would like to warn everybody that nowadays your name can be googled when you apply for a job and this is an open forum where most part is using their real name.

The number of Simon Bacons in the world is large enough to not worry, but perhaps Mohammed with the birth place and date is really making things too easy. Keep it in mind.

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

So you are saying what the guys openly discuss will damage their job applications in the future?

There is nothing wrong said and if an employer would use this hobby forum as a reference to hire people I wouldn't even want to work for them in the first place.

Think you have been scared off a bit too much by all the internet horror stories mate.

 

[Scott Webber]

I don't want to kill the thread, but I would like to warn everybody that nowadays your name can be googled when you apply for a job and this is an open forum where most part is using their real name.

The number of Simon Bacons in the world is large enough to not worry, but perhaps Mohammed with the birth place and date is really making things too easy. Keep it in mind.

honestly it doesn't bother me, if my post bothers my employer then screw him i wouldn't want to work for some1 like that, not only that but i work for myself, so i can't scare myself away from a job

 

[Alberto Casado]

So you are saying what the guys openly discuss will damage their job applications in the future?

I'm saying it can, not that it will.

There is nothing wrong said and if an employer would use this hobby forum as a reference to hire people I wouldn't even want to work for them in the first place.

In my not so long (but not null) experience, the final employer knows and cares nothing about it. But to land a job in a medium/big company you need to pass first the human resources hurdle. Those usually don't know much IT, or aeronautic engineering or whatever is what you do, and they have to select between hundreds of people with similar qualifications. So they will base their decision on minutiae and if they land on Aspergers or depression or bad stress handling, they hardly need more.

Nothing wrong is said. But would you say some of these things in a job interview?

Think you have been scared off a bit too much by all the internet horror stories mate.

Sometimes they do happen (you should know well what happens when an innocent invitation in FB gets a bit too public... ), and people keep forgetting about the reach, remanence and openness of anything you disclose on internet.

I'm fine if people go on with it. If they calculate the risk to be negligible, good. As long as it is a calculated risk, not an ignored one.


Edit: most part of the people here come from countries where (so far) you had many job opportunities, so yeah, if in my job they do this or that, screw them. I will share something from my early life: I don't come from one of those countries. Right now in my country of birth the youth unemployment is over 50%. We are just not used to that sort of 'screwing luxuries' when it comes to earning money.

 

[Adrian Britton]

Alberto Casado
I understand what your saying mate, but on one hand if I was to apply for a job, I would declare everything any way (its a sackable offence in the uk if you lie on an application for work) Plus I have nothing to hide about my state of mind or mental health.

If an employer refuses to employ me because of the above mentioned, then it would be classed as discrimination and a breach of equal rights and opportunity.

Plus would any of you want to really work for someone who goes snooping around on the net to try and find dirt on people before he employs you.

 

[Liam Jenkins]

If my future employer won't employ me because I have had a past which has made me who I am today and something I can look back on and be proud that I got through/going through then I wouldn't want to work for them It doesn't change who I am as a person

 

[Ken Hunter]

I am an employer myself....and the last thing i will think of is to google someone's history. I will ask for a personal CV, from which i will make my decision.

I too will tell such an employer to shove his job up sideways.

 

[Craig Hume]

Big up for sharing your stories guys. Must admit, its not something i can do, and thats a reflection of myself and not you guys.

PS: if my boss is reading this, stop surfing forums and go back to work

 

[William Levesque]

Right here goes:

Boring, then boring, then more boring.

And then simracing, which is good, but then more boring as more boringness comes, so yeah, boring.

Although yesterday was AWESOME, metal concert (Epica, Insomnium, Alestorm, System Divide and Blackguard)