Will aspergers ruin my dreams?

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Hey, I am new to the this site and I was suggested by a friend to try it

I am from Ontario Canada

I have been diagnosed with AS when I was about 6 years old and I am 20 now and it did have an impact on my life for almost 20 years such as making friends, school issues and slight bullying issues. I am very high functioning AS has been not much of a problem 5 years ago and for some reason I really enjoy going out to nightclubs and being around people and socializiation is not really an issue for me.

I really enjoy things about law enforcement and other things such as weather/meteorology and conservation like nature and animals so those are my interests and would love a career in one of them but aspergers could ruin this for since it's on my health record and I have been told not to tell any employer about this as it will hurt my chances but they may want my record and it could my chance could be ruined. I have been told by my Father's girlfriend that the careers I want and by other people, "You will never get in" "Not worth the try" "Don't bother" etc...

My biggest careers

Meteorology - Meteorologist or climatologist

Law enforcement - Police officer, Corrections officer, Lawyer, Parole officer

Conservation - Conservation enforcement officer, Enviromental Enforcement officer such as MTO, Game Wardem, Park/Forest Ranger

Those are my dream careers and I thought of others such as a Doctor but my grades may be too low.

My father really wants me to get into the Military which I said my condition is pretty much a disqaulifing condition and I have contacted my recruiter and he told me it is worth the try as well as showing my medical records and I still have a chance but with limitations and this is the reserves and I do not plan to be an officer in the Canadian Forces but I will probably never get in anyway.

I have heard so much discrimination by pretty much everyone just because I have aspergers on my record even if do not really or display it at all like, "You are physically fit and mentally fit but since AS is there, never going to happen"

Is my dreams pretty much shot and for pretty much any job to make a living? Sorry for my english, I am French.

Greetings from a fellow Canadian.

What is it about having dreams that automatically makes other people try to make you give up on them even when they are not particularly unrealistic? And why should having AS be kept a secret, I'm no "closet Aspie" and if I feel someone needs to be aware of my disorder I will make them. We NEED to make society wake up and realize that we are not hopeless failures!

It's great to see another Canadian! Greetings to you as well !

I totally agree with you, I do not really mind at all talking to others about AS

People do have to understand about our disorders and I believe my family thinks that AS is a failure and they do not know much about it and are not aware of it. My mother only knows and she left for another man behind my father's and family's back and she did not know him at all and it as all from the internet back in Christmas 2009 which I forget to say. I do not want others to ruin my dream and you are right, my doctor knows 5 other doctors and one surgeon, a police officer who have AS but that police officer is limited on what he can do from his city police force but still better than nothing has the badge! My fathers girlfriend was a police officer but later suffered a leg injury and had to quit. I hope these jobs that I want can help me with AS even with limitations and not deny me at all

Oh, My Father's girlfriend is does not really like people with AS and she finds it totally outragous even for me just thinking about those jobs and gets EXTREMELY OFFENSIVE when I talk about these careers just saying...

Having Aspergers doesn't preclude you from any of the professions you listed, with the possible exception of the military. As long as you have the skills necessary to perform the job, you can do any of them! I don't think that employers can legally ask for your medical records, and even if they find out you have AS it is illegal to discriminate based upon that. The best thing you can do to prevent any sort of discrimination is to do your job well...if you are one of their most productive employees, they won't care about your AS in the least. I have AS as well and I'm starting my dream job as a biochemical engineer in about 2 months, so it certainly hasn't hindered me professionally in any way!

I have a friend with Asperger's who's a forest ranger.

No, AS does not block you from having dreams, and don't be afraid to dream differently either. I too am from Ontario, though I have moved to Saskatchewan.

It did slow me down a bit, but then the job I had that time was not such a great work environment. Symptomatic of this... when I was certqin that i had some sort of learning delay or disability, my employer said that 'people don't talk about this more Han try rally have to.' In a serious to e of voice. Ironically, it got me to a better place. I also had a friend who spoke out for me on my behalf when I did not know I had AS. When I told my current manager about the likelihood of having a learning disorder or something, she said 'there's all kinds of learning.'

In Saskatchewan, most areas are rural. So, I do not mention AS. There are not many services here for adults, and frankly, people would just not understand a manager with Asperger's. I can pass for NT as necessary, though I usually don't try to do this. If it became necessary, I would mention it. I am just another beautifully quirky individual in our constellation of diverse people.

It strikes me, however, that in Ontario, there are far more resources and likely supportive legislations that just do not exist out here.

It can make the social aspects of life harder. What I have learned is that if you're good at what you do and demonstrate that in your field without stepping on anyone's toes (that's the tricky part) you can advance quickly and leave everyone else in your dust trail.

For example, I applied for a promotion at work a couple of months ago. I am more qualified than most everyone I work with, but I didn't get the position. Why? My boss was very honest and said that I had excellent qualifications but they hired someone else simply based on seniority. My company is one that likes to promote people one level at a time instead of putting them directly into positions they are qualified for. This is a stupid policy and extremely inefficient, but I have to play by those rules since I work there. So I became determined to move into that position ASAP. I did a lot of overtime, went above and beyond in my current job duties, and I was promoted. I'm up for another promotion already in the next month! And after that, the next promotion will be... the job I wanted in the first place! See, I played by their rules and blew them away. If you are patient and work hard, you can have whatever you want.

Give up any notions about "changing" how things are done at your company. You cannot do that and will get fired if you try. However, one day, if you keep moving up, you might end up in a position that will allow you to do so.

Play their stupid game - and use your logic skills to figure out how to do it better than anyone else.

Thank you to everyone here who replied with some amazing advice!

My family and some people I know worried me but they don't probably know much about AS. Everyone who helped me here made me more confident for college or university and before I thought I would be wasting time and money just to get rejected from careers but I think I have a chance !

I few other good friends told me to take a career in CBSA Customs and my college, Loyalist college (if you know what and where it is) has a course called Customs Border Services, not my biggest career choice but still something I would like. The biggest problem when I went on the Loyalist college website mention that they need a personal health history form but I am not sure what it is.

I am pretty happy to hear I do not really or not at all need to bring up my health records but it's still going to be a challenge having AS but I think I still can do it!

Absolutely... NOT! If anything, AS will H E L P you in any of those careers - well, with the work part, maybe not with the social parts of climbing the corporate ladder etc, that may take extra work.

Anything scientific is going to require a brain like ours to excel at. And you're obviously quite high functioning if you enjoy night club atmospheres. Myself, I only enjoy working in them (bartending in the past) but don't care for the social aspect of them much at all, ever.

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My biggest careers

Meteorology - Meteorologist or climatologist

It will be an advantage to have AS allow you to learn and research and be thorough with technical details.

Law enforcement - Police officer, Corrections officer, Lawyer, Parole officer

HUGE advantage. My older brother (undiagnosed AS) is in federal law enforcement here in Canada. I've read that many aspies choose law enforcement for the structure, rules, and sense of social justice. I've been asked many times over the last 10 years if I am a cop. I asked one girl why she thought that, she said it was partly the way I dressed by mostly the way I talked. It didn't make sense to me then. Now I realize it was my very formal AS vocabulary combined with the AS prosody of my speech. Since so many cops are aspies, diagnosed or self aware or not, some NT's associate the aspie voice & vocabulary with being a cop! It now all makes sense as to why I am always able to communicate with cops very comfortably w/o anxiety at all, too. Whether they know of their own AS or coworkers, my voice & vocabulary must be (at least subconsciously) familiar and comfortable to them just as theirs is to me. Also, many aspie traits of being very black and white with moral & ethical rights and wrong play very well into LEO careers and it makes perfect sense as to why so many aspies end up as LEO's. Not me, however, I could never be a cop - since I wouldn't swear to enforce ALL laws as I don't believe they're all just laws. I couldn't swear to enforce them all the just selectively enforce the ones I believed in as many cops do, but that's just me, to each their own.

Conservation - Conservation enforcement officer, Enviromental Enforcement officer such as MTO, Game Wardem, Park/Forest Ranger

Similar to cops with the huge advantage of being outdoors in nature, which is a very very calming & relaxing place to be for anyone - but especially us.

Those are my dream careers and I thought of others such as a Doctor but my grades may be too low.

Meh, not everyone will make it to that level of of education and such.. but low grades now doesn't mean you can't get higher ones later and then do it. I know med students and know that if it were my passion I could do it, maybe you could - don't sell yourself short if it's truly what you really really want. It's the ones that really really want to be doctors that become them. A med student friend of mine (also AS) who failed a class and may or may not return to med school later told me that about half the people there are there because their parents make them, the other half for $$$$$ careers, and the less than 1% that truly want to be doctors themselves regardless of their parents wishes or the income potential are the ones who make it & get a residency somewhere. Apparently only about half of med school grads then get jobs, so it's kinda high risk with the amount of student loan debt etc.

My father really wants me to get into the Military

Similar to being in law enforcement, Aspies thrive with the regimented structure, rules, discipline, black and white way of doing things & following clearly communicated orders. It's also said to be a high aspie job because of it.
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In conclusion, do & become whatever you want to.

It sure seems to me that having Aspergers keeps you from being employed in a non-STEM field. The Aspies on the forum who brag about having a decent-paying job always work in STEM. Sorry, but that doesn't impress because those jobs are in such high demand that employers have to hire people with poor social skills. Show me an Aspy who works in a non-STEM field, and I'll be impressed and will admit that you're my better.

Hi Brandogs,

I'm an Englishman now living in Toronto and just found the site today.

My entire life, I have struggled with Aspergers, having to try and fit into social norms, being told I'm always wrong and that I would never accomplish my dreams because it's not what society is looking for. There is no reason in this world that you can't achieve the things you want to do and nobody has the right to tell you otherwise. The only person who will stop you doing what you want to do is you.

Law Enforcement - The rules, laws and structure make it an ideal occupation.
Meteorology - If it's a passion of yours, you will have no problem succeeding.
Conservation - If you are anything like me, the vast outdoors away from the crowds, being free with your own thoughts is also an ideal occupation.

As for the military, I can't answer for the Canadian Military but I served for 7 years in the British Army as Combat Medic. It was an ideal role for me because I was able to apply logic over emotion and really excelled in my military career. The only reason I left was after the birth of my eldest daughter. War was no place to be when trying to raise a child.

When I came to leave the army, I spoke to a careers adviser about my 2nd passion, working in IT. He told me that with my Aspergers, the best thing I could ever hope for there was working as a sales rep in a computer store. Showed how little he knew, my first interview and I explained to the interviewer that I had Aspergers. His response was to laugh and tell me that pretty much everybody who worked there did and I was hired on the spot.

10 years on, I'm now a systems and database developer/architect/administrator/programmer for one of the largest technology companies in North America.

What I'm trying to say is never be afraid to follow your dreams and never listen to others when they tell you Aspergers will hold you back. In some aspects it makes things a lot harder and some people are too ignorant to understand, but in others it will give you an advantage and a edge over everybody else that you will fly high.

I'm also in Ontario with an interest in military and policing. I can generally act pretty normal, although very introverted. The only reason I didn't get into the reserves (the Ontario Regiment in Oshawa) last September was because I couldn't get cleared medically in time (nearly non-existent asthma). Depending how mild you are, AS may not even affect you. I'm reapplying for next September and hope to get in.
I'm also in college taking Police Foundations, and am about to bridge into university for Criminology. Once done with that, if I don't do the Regular Force, I'll probably do security for 1-2 years before trying to join a policing service. Again, if you're as mild on the spectrum as I am, you should have no problem.

Great answers everybody!

Cammyy

My regiment is Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment and the only trade job there have is infantry soldier but the last time reserve forced served was back in 1939 to 1945 we were declared war on. I hope you get in the reserves as well!

I was told my my medical conditions on my medical history has prove disqaulifying if it prevents me from doing the job but my doctor will have to have his say as well. The information will be send to Ottawa and they have the final say which I have a feeling I probably won't get in not matter how mild or how Aspergers affects me and I don't believe it's waiverable. I don't really know the reservers standards so justs my thoughts.

If I fail the military, I have three courses in mind such as Social Service Worker, Protection, Security, Ivestigation or Customs Border Services. All these courses requires a medical but as many of you said it will help me in those careers, my college helps people with special needs which can help with future employment for those who have medical conditions that can affect it (Loyalist College)

It'll only ruin your dreams if you let it. I've decided there's nothing I cannot do and just that self-confidence is a huge booster.

The only area I do accept I would have limitations is production work because of some fine motor issues.

There are many more things than Aspergers that can close down your career paths:

1. I wanted to be a fighter pilot when i were younger, but i realised early that i would be too tall when i were 18 and i focused on other things instead.

2. There was this case earlier this year about a traindriver in Sweden who had driven trains - flawlessly - for 20 years when he got his diagnosis. The ministry of transportation said that he were unfit to drive trains, a court rejected the ministrys opinion and he is now reinstated as a train driver.

Aspergers will not hold you back from any careers, stupid adamant rules and prejudice from society will.