Assistant? Caregiver? What are my options?
I'm doing pretty well at my job, and I expect to be financially comfortable for a while, but I'm still failing at every other part of my life. I have trouble with planning, organizing, and remembering to do things, but an even bigger problem is how I tend to feel stupid amounts of stress when faced with almost any task (autistic inertia or paralysis of will). So I was thinking about hiring some kind of assistant who could do some of that little stuff I should be able to do.
I'm not sure if I should try to get some kind of disability-related "non-medical caregiver," or if I should just make an ad for a part-timer off craigslist. Does anyone else have someone like this? How did you hire them? How much does it cost? If you tried different options, what are the pros and cons?
I'm not diagnosed with autism, but I've got an assessment with a neuropsychologist in July, and I'm expecting they'll either diagnose autism or something similar. I'm getting treatment for ADHD and depression too. I currently have a roommate but I'm moving on my own in two months. (I've lived on my own before, and it was... messy. Literally and figuritively.)
Just so we're on the same page, these are the sorts of things I'd want the assistant to do:
Light housekeeping: Take out the trash, sort and store the clean dishes, sort and store clean laundry, make sure I've got enough of whatever form of currency I need to do my laundry, throw away stuff like candy wrappers or paper plates I left lying around, maybe sweep the floor. No scrubbing or vaccuuming.
Routine errands: Check the mail, open and sort mail, scan important documents and receipts, request refill of my prescriptions (when possible), listen to my voicemails and make written messages, deliver my rent payment, keep a log of my tax-deductible expenses. Maybe do grocery shopping and put gas in my car if that doesn't cost me too much extra.
Non-routine stuff like... Notify the apartment office of maintenance issues, follow up with the office until the issue is legitimately fixed, make appointments (e.g. doctor, mechanic), add appointments to a digital calendar, gather up documents I'd need to do my taxes, otherwise help me deal with things that are too complicated for my easily taxed brain.
Thanks for any info you can provide!!
Cyllya, I can't advise on a caretaker, but if for whatever reason you have to live alone, I found making lists helpful. My lists even included things like having a shower, and what times I would have to be out of bed/leaving to go to work. Of course, this is less efficient than NTs who do these things on autopilot, but I found I'd at least be organised. I otherwise enjoy the quiet and space.
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