After 11 months at a new job, my boss after several verbal reprimands, gave me a 30 day performance notice. I never disclosed that I had ADD but did go out for a month last spring due to depression. This is so crushing for me as it took me abt 5 years to get this job (I work in charitable giving - a very competitive field). This is my second firing in about 5 years. Im not on meds as I haven’t found any that help my inattentiveness. Would love any suggestions or words of support.
Tks!
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Fallgirl
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I am so sorry that you have experienced this. It must be very hard for you. I have been dismissed twice in one year due to underperformance. Like you, I didn't disclose my condition. I would not be able to give any advice, but all I can say is that you are not alone! I'm so glad I joined this online community I also have inattentive type ADHD. ❤️
Don’t beat yourself up at least you understand why you fail and it isn’t your fault. I prefer to think of these events as just data about what doesn’t work.
Go to your doctor and get a written letter that you are diagnosed with ADHD
Then get some accommadations. ADHD is actually covered under the ADA- Americans with disabilities act. Come up with a plan that will help. Your employer should comply as long as said accommadations won't cost the company alot of money.
There is JAN- Job Accommadation Network. Contact them and they can help you figure out good accommadations.
Work stuff is so hard for me too... I was terminated from one job in the past before I knew I had ADHD - and I have been having significant struggles with underperformance/inability to meet productivity expectations at my current job - and if it weren't for a merciful boss who believes in me and really wants to help me I would probably have been fired a long time ago from this job. It's been frustrating not to be able to measure up to her expectations and having to be called in the office to discuss my performance issues... It was my struggles at my current job that lead me to counseling (at my workplace's recommendation) and my counsellor was the one who recognized the ADHD - I had no clue that was what I was dealing with... so glad she could see it - it at least gave me validation and made me feel a bit better knowing it wasn't just a "character flaw" - good to know there was at least a reason/explanation for why I struggle... I did tell my boss about the ADHD and in my case I think that has been helpful. She had been trying to defend me to HR because she believed in me... but having a diagnosis gave her something to support her defense of me. (They asked her in the past "why is she (me) still here?".... ) My counsellor wrote an accommodation letter for me too. I feel like since the diagnosis my boss has been a bit more gentle with me and more understanding and more supportive than she already was. My job is still stressful because I just can't keep up the productivity level they want... I wish I could resolve it and get past the stress but I am also scared to try to find a different job for fear a different boss wouldn't be so patient and would fire me if I didn't get up to expectations in a short period of time.
I wish I had some encouraging suggestions but please know you are not alone. I hope you find a solution or accommodations that work for you.
hey Fallgirl- what are the areas of your job that u struggle with? executive function, emotional outburst/ interpersonal interactions, etc?
a doctors note asking for accommodations as some folks have mentioned is tricky.
an employer does not by law have to do alot of the things that would help us ADHD’ers. its annoying too. people with back issues due to being overweight can get stand up desks, people with migraines can get a certain amount of days off per month without being fired for attendance, etc etc…. but us ADHD’ers cant get the dress code to be changed for us due to sensory issues, we cant ask to be moved to a different cubicle bc a coworker chews ice all day n it grates on our nerves, we are not permitted to skip meetings n instead read the minutes , and we arent allowed to have a few emotional meltdowns when coworkers piss us off, and we cant ask for a fluid time to arrive at work with a 2 hour window…LOL LOL LOL…
but on a super serious note- what areas do u struggle with? i know u think this is your ideal job… but are you really sure that it fits you after all? cuz with ADHD, we hyper focus on stuff that interests us, n we do amazing at those things even when they require things like EF, organization, etc. maybe its not a you dropping the ball thing, maybe its more that the job doesnt fit ya ?❤️
ps: its unfortunate and devastating, but most of us ADHD’ers have been terminated from jobs. ive heard it be referred to as “ ADHD tax” - the price we pay for being wired different. 😢😱 ❤️
Love it the adhd tax 😆. I'm quite a high level tax payer thanks to thin skin. Ok I know. Not me. The others. Elephants and rhinos is who I'm paying tax for.
That is a good document - thanks for sharing! The link above didn't work work for me but I found the document on the resource list neurodivergentemabler.com/r... The "Workplace Adjustments for Executive Dysfunction" document can be found by clicking the 4th link on the resource list.
thanks Chickadee1 I was struggling to add the link 😂 my late mum used to call me Chickadee… I haven’t heard that since she was alive. So nice to come across another Chickadee! 🐥
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