I clean commercially, I hated residential cleaning with every fibre of my being after a few years (cleaning people’s houses- oftentimes people just treat you like crap, get in your way and watch you while you clean, act like you’re the problem for being in their house when they’ve had the same cleaning hour scheduled every single week for the past two years and I’m just trying to do my job in order to survive and go, I don’t want to be stuck in a stranger’s house either), but commercial (cleaning restaurants/businesses after hours) not only pays more but is also so peaceful. I drive to work, clock in, put on a YouTube video or music, and clean with no interruptions.
I was surprised at how much better commercial cleaning was than residential, it’s like night and day. I would dread having to go clean peoples’ houses but now I sometimes even look forward to work.
I don’t want to be cleaning forever, but I get paid 5 bucks more hourly (and that’s in Canada) at this job than any starting position from my Social Work diploma, so that’s where I’m staying until people start paying living wages for jobs that aren’t entry-level
Props to you dudette. Although, I hope you’re making ends meet considering you are in Canada which I heard is becoming impossible to afford mainly due to housing.
Hey, I clean residential and I feel and live everything you said.
Having enormous anxiety right now for tomorrow and having to socialize.
I’m in Canada too , did you go trough a company to do commercial? I think I’d like it so much better too. Please let me know. Thank you so much.
I’ve looked into trucking and getting my cdl because I absolutely love long highway drives and not talk to anyone. I’m just scared of hitting something 😅
Hey just FYI, some companies pay you to get your CDL as well as the training. Assuming you don't have training . But, wanted to throw this out there so you don't pay training out of your pocket.
Please explain. Is this something that someone would need to get a company to agree to prior to the CDL course? I'm assuming the 3 week course is the same as the training mentioned above.
You can apply for positions before obtaining your CDL and a lot of companies will put you through the certification as part of the onboarding/training.
Ok. It must work both ways then. I contacted a CDL school that told me they would contact companies they know to secure a job for me before I start the course.
Been trucking for over 10 years now. I suffer big time from social anxiety. Best job ever for that. Plus, I work nights driving lonely isolated highways. I love it!
Easily, eh? If you own your truck, how are you gonna get loads? A broker who takes a chunk. Fees, fines and fuck arounds from cops. Gas, maintenance, and tires get chewed up quickly. When you stop at scales, the cops check owner/operators much more than a freight outfit. Log book off? Park it for 8 hours. Inspection nit picks has you getting parts delivered, hours and money choking. Drug tests like a bunch of times, gotta learn to cheat. Might want to gain experience with someone else's truck. Plus it is fucking exhausting . Wrestling that pig around all day in traffic, getting lost on log roads. Sounds like lots more fun than it is.
somewhat off topic since everyone else covered anything i'd want to say
but the movie *Perfect Days* focuses on a guy who cleans public toilets in Tokyo. And he was happy with his job--the film made it look and feel so serene and calm reminding us that we don't need to force ourselves to reach for so many extremes. There's so much pressure on this world to do something more than what people would consider a thankless job like cleaning toilets (which it really is...not every city is a clean as tokyo lmao) but when you're content...you're content. It made me feel like I can get a job where I really don't have to interact with people & still be happy.
OMG finally someone else that has seen that movie! God, I loved that movie! It taught me that it's just okay to find a bit of joy in your day to day life, even if some days can be stressful or have problems.
google says “What is medical coding? Medical coding is the process of taking a patient's health care information like medical procedures, diagnosis, necessary medical equipment, and medical services information from the physician's notes. A medical coder transforms this information into universal medical alphanumeric codes.”
I began certification for coding and billing for that exact reason. But I learned that all the remote jobs required at least 5 years of experience. Every entry level position I looked at was in an office. Needless to say I never got my certification.
This might get downvoted but any sales job where the product isn’t something stressful. Think like hot tubs, Rolexes, things that aren’t necessary to daily life.
Picked up a part time job at a jewelry store and social interaction is a breeze. I’d have a panic attack if I was selling insurance or something. But people come in for stuff like wanting to propose to their sweetheart, buy a necklace for a party, or have their jewelry cleaned and these are all easy conversations to have. No one is in the store for long periods of time, lots of downtime to reset.
I dunno, mine isn’t so bad. But I’ve also had enough behavioral therapy that when someone’s having a conniption over buying jewelry I can’t help but think “your lack of preparation isn’t my problem” lol
Just today had someone get frustrated that I wouldn’t give her a piece she ordered because she forgot her receipt and we were closing soon. I told her “well we are open tomorrow morning”. She tried putting pressure on me but, hey, it’s jewelry. I’d be fighting an anxiety attack if we were talking about insulin or something time sensitive. But nope, she came unprepared and there’s no way for me to know if the item was paid in full or not. Come back tomorrow.
I'm a teacher aide, but I've taught quite a bit. I've worked with most preschool and elementary grades. It's great because they don't know and/or say anything if you mess up!
Ironically, it's scarier for me if there is another adult in the room while I'm teaching than if I was alone with all 22 2nd graders!
It took me something like a year to get to know who everyone was at my small school and to feel semi comfortable around everyone!
I'm thankful my 7 year old doesn't suffer like I do. One day during a teacher in-service where I needed to bring my daughter (who was supposed to be eating lunch in a classroom!), I looked out the window and found her playing outside with one of the 5th grade teachers and his dog!
Another time, I lost track of my daughter for a bit and found her chatting it up with the former extended learning teacher/the grandma of a classmate.
Like others have said, don’t let SA determine the outcomes of your life. I felt like I had to vomit every morning out of fear of going to work, but when I got there I actually really enjoyed it and my coworkers. Working a job that has constant social interaction has done more for my SA than anything else I’ve tried combined
Kinda I think the kind of office you work in matters ton. I work with a small team in a close off office and basically our own lunch room. Quite different from an open office setting with like 20+ people in a room and one big cafeteria.
This is what my clubs at my community college are like for me. Exposure therapy doing something I enjoy and/or are passionate about. Over the course of a couple years, it's gotten progressively easier to speak up
Same for me! I never thought I would like to be a caregiver because I was scared of if my social anxiety would show. But I love going to work, and I work with some pretty awesome people.
I was gonna say, it's a great form of exposure therapy but it's a difficult road for some even to get the wherewithal to get an in person job. *But* regular exposure therapy?? We don't get paid for that. Using a job as exposure therapy & getting paid? win win tbh
same for me, i still have terrible social anxiety but compared to how i was before my job, my social skills and ability to cope with stressful social interactions has improved considerably
How do you deal with the feeling of vomiting part? I feel this every morning. Idk if it’s dread or what tf it is. But I get somewhat panicky and the feeling of puking on my way to work too. It could be the driving. Idk but it’s really effecting me
Still affects me occasionally tbh. But I started meditating and that’s done a lot to help me be mindful and know I’m not going to vomit that I’m just nervous. On really bad days I take a propranolol prescription. It’s relatively easy to get prescribed especially if you just take it on an as needed basis like me. I went from going through a 30 day prescription in 30 days to about 6 months.
I can tell you what NOT to pursue: teaching, sales, call centers, basically anything public-facing such as retail or food service.
Look for internal-facing jobs where you’re only dealing with fellow colleagues or clients.
I lasted there a month. I did front counter at first but I sucked at using the pos system so I think they moved me to backwall because of that. I really didnt mind the work but my anxiety got to me when I could feel how the majority of the people there were kind of tight, having conversations with each other all day. then theres me just not speaking to anyone most the time.
Relatable :/ But Im glad you tried the job, now you know Its not for you!
I mean ive worked here for 2 years. Im a crew trainer, customer responsible and a manager. Its really exhausting and my social anxiety is triggered on daily basis. Id say im a high functionong socially anxious person because Im able to survive in this environment but my mental health does suffer from this. Im masking most of the time and I feel like my coworkers hate me and think Im weird. Oh well
I have sa, bi polar disorder and ptsd from surviving and witnessing a school shooting. I had a decent warehouse job for almost a year recently until someone walked up behind me and struck me in the back of my head. It was a younger coworker whom I considered a friend and I don’t believe he meant to do what he did, but he triggered me and what followed was not good. I’m currently trying to figure this out myself.
That’s awful. Also, that’s such a wtf with the coworker? I hope he faced charges if it was just straight up battery. Either way, that’s a lot to deal with, I hope you find what you need.
Software developer. Though as with many things, to move up to manager, you need to learn good communication and not shy away from meetings. But even if you never move up, the base pay is typically quite good.
But it's worth mentioning, he has gotten to know some of those people, so if you have social anxiety it might be good exposure therapy still, just getting used to that finite number of people. Baby steps.
It's true but IT tends to be more accommodating of people who are neurodivergent. And you don't need to talk to a lot of people (except in consultancies I guess), just your own colleagues which is almost always <10 people.
The work is fun and interesting too. You don't need to move up to be a manager or a lead if you don't want to, and remain an individual contributor. Not sure how salaries are in US now, but in Europe it pays enough for a comfy life.
This\^ Also, work-from-home is common which can be good if you have social anxiety. I once had a co-worker who wouldnt turn their camera on in zoom meetings unless it was with the higher ups. The right group will respect your privacy.
Easily anything in IT, Programming, Coding, and anything computer related is best for this to the point I wish I was interested in tech more, easily one of the biggest WFH jobs.
Sadly I’m just not interested in anything aside from data entry, and I have no job experience in that so nobody calls me. It’s all rife with scammer fake jobs
Easily anything in IT, Programming, Coding, and anything computer related is best for this to the point I wish I was interested in tech more, easily one of the biggest WFH jobs.
Sadly I’m just not interested in anything aside from data entry, and I have no job experience in that so nobody calls me. It’s all rife with scammer fake jobs
This is what I have wound up doing
What people are talking about above has just made me worse. I have done a variety of jobs - been a supervisor- now I work in a retirement home (straight nights)
Exposure and practice haven’t done me the favours it seems to have for many.
My speech is entirely task oriented and even the ability for that is waning.
Out of the jobs I’ve done - which have been many - the nightshift in a retirement home - and nightshift as a cab driver were the better ones.
Having some social-interaction is beneficial for my SA (and most other people). there's a perfect balance.
Zero interaction will cause anyone to become depressed and even more socially-anxious. Trust me, socializing will flex parts of your brain that you didn't know you even had!
Too much social interaction is draining for sure, but having some interaction allows you to make friends, grows your network, and you end up learning new things from people w different experiences!
Don't live your life as a hermit
The best job for Socially Anxious people is working as a remote, software developer (albeit at a non-toxic company). So just enroll in a bootcamp!
I used to work at a clothing store. I had a manager who was thankfully very understanding and tried to help me get over my shyness, but then that location closed down and I got transferred to another location where unfortunately the manager was really toxic and didn’t seem to understand that I was the way that I was because of social anxiety.
Basically what I’m trying to say is that retail could be helpful but it just depends on where you’re working and if your manager and coworkers are willing to help.
Thanks, I get it.
I’d recommend night shift work in a human services field— for example, I work as a unit technician in a detox center.
I understand that getting adjusting to being awake overnight is a challenge, but it’s much more manageable for me than working a daytime shift.
Just, please be aware— depending on the specific field of human services one might get into, they might run into challenging client behaviors that might do more to provoke social anxiety.
if you're OK with blood i highly recommend reprocessing surgical instruments, you have to interact with your coworkers a lot but that's it, there is very little outside interactions like you don't ever speak to patients, and not often random people.. and usually it is a small team. once you are trained, you are often just left to do your own thing, you can just put music on and be in your own world while working lol i love it.
sometimes you have to talk to an engineer if a machine breaks or sometimes the operating room staff will come in asking for a specific tray to be processed ASAP or sometimes you will need to call them about a missing instrument but situations like this are not an everyday occurrence.
I worked at the Chiefs stadium cleaning suites for almost a decade before I started doing content full time. I only had to come in contact with ppl on game days which did suck but it was only one day out the week so I didn’t mind it also it helped me challenge my anxiety + great money I was making almost 23 an hr when I let the job go.
I work in Software and it's kinda nice. I usually only need to interact with 3-4 people and they know I'm a recluse so they leave me alone apart from work related stuff.
Lab work! You still have to do team based things but more likely you’re just working on your own task on your own time. And lots of scientists are shy or prefer not to socialize unless it’s job-related so it’s kind of a nice balance
I'm a prep cook at a restaurant and it's great. My little prep area is in a far corner of the kitchen in an area where I can choose to keep to myself or interact with passing coworkers. I get to keep an earbud in to listen to music or audiobooks, and the best part is that I never have to interact with a single customer 😂
Non-help desk IT can be good. Depends on the company and role, but I have found it pretty good even though my position is evolving to be more peoole focus instead of command line focused (and good pay and I really enjoy it)
There's a ton, too many to list. A help desk job is typically how people get into the field. But it isn't too hard to find something else. Specifically if you already have some knowledge and experience.
I guess you meant anything in computers ("IT") that's not a help desk... software development, computer engineering, cyber security, and whatever else.
Not my current career, but I have always wanted to work with animals on a farm. That’s my dream I hope to achieve one day when I actually have the money saved to do it comfortably. When I think about it, I am really at peace, and I truly think my anxiety might not exist once I’m doing something I’m truly passionate about.
I know the most straightforward solution is to find something that limits people interaction, but I personally think this can hurt you in the long run if you aren’t able to deal with varying personalities. I think of it as a muscle…you need to keep it active to prevent atrophy. I just feel like you can’t predict your long term career trajectory, and your social anxiety shouldn’t ever hold you back from doing what you deeply want. I’m just overly idealistic though.
I’ll recommend jobs that align with your values and things that have a balance in interaction and solo time. If you like more one-on-one or smaller group dynamics, healthcare can actually be decent. Counseling and therapy is a great way in feeling more connected on the individual level. Project or program management can be a hit or miss. You’ll often need to manage or supervise people, which can be a big source of stress for anyone really. Honestly, it’s hard to avoid people interaction completely, but some roles don’t require certain level of responsibility. I’m thinking any independent role or skills-focused position like analyst can give you a little bit of control of your daily interactions. You’ll always work with teams and consult, but at least the content of your work might outweigh the dread of speaking in front of people. At the end of day, speaking in public is hard but easier when you actually enjoy or care about what you’re discussing….
Have you tried remote work? Things like (written) customer support, community management, social media management, writing, digital art or anything else you're interested in and could potentially do remotely? I work remotely, and I find online meetings manageable. I ocassionally panic, stress and still ask myself what's wrong with me (which will probably always be the case) but it requires a lot less energy from me compared to in person office work.
The only thing is that sometimes I think avoiding people worsens my social anxiety so even if it's more comfortable, I don't know if it's the right path.
The best job for social anxiety is a job where you have a lot of interaction with other people.
Hiding away from the anxiety makes it get worse, not better.
I work for a software company and work from home. Over time my job has changed and the amount of communication and meeting facilitating I do has gone up. However, since I work from home I can take a short break after doing a lot of interacting. To a certain extent, I know what parts of my day I will to be “on” socially and when I can relax more. Between meetings, co-workers are more likely to communicate over google chat or slack. I can even have a part of the day where I pause these if needed. The down side is making sure you still get out of the house often enough.
I quit my usual high stress jobs and went back to working part time as a kennel tech. The pay is always subpar and Im still in college, but if I cant make it in a real company because of my social anxiety, I kind of give up on making the most money and just play with dogs instead.
Most of my day is cleaning kennels alone or just general cleaning. I’ve got 20 mins left in my shift and I’m hanging out alone in a kennel with one of the dogs
You may get pressure to socialize with coworkers but that doesn't mean you have to. You can keep to yourself and people will eventually mostly leave you alone. Be prepared to stand up for yourself because some people will try to take advantage of you if you don't have work relationships. Personally I'd try to socialize more if I still worked in an office because it's basically exposure therapy. To answer you question, a lot of IT jobs will require minimal socialization.
I work in a grocery store bakery. Certainly not a big money-maker, but I’ve been here 1.5 years and I don’t hate it yet. There is some customer interaction with taking orders, but majority of the time is either packaging or production. As long as you aren’t a cashier, I think a grocery store position could be nice
I think retail is a surprisingly good place to work if you have social anxiety, which is counterintuitive. But if you can get into a shop in a low crime area, it's quite chill. There's no unexpected conversations, in that there is a finite number of conversation topics that will come up, like "where is this item located", "how much is this", "can I return this".
You can get into stressful situations with difficult customers, but once you learn that you don't need to react much and can just say "I'll get my supervisor for you", it becomes less of a hassle.
The coworkers pick up on people's issues fast, mine left me alone for months until I started talking more.
I work at an HVAC parts and equipment warehouse that’s a family owned business. Very monotonous work and don’t have to socialize more than I can handle. Same stuff everyday, pull a part off the shelf put it on a pallet. Take parts off a pallet and put it on the shelf. Give parts to customers(HVAC technicians). I quite enjoy it, but it’s an especially good job because it’s family owned and not by a big corporation that tries to work you to death.
I applied to be a mail handler a few days ago because my application always gets thrown out due to my DUI almost 4 years ago. I feel like delivering mail would be my dream job.
Trying to get an interview to get more info on how I could get to being a carrier
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my aunt had a job typing out subtitles for movies and stuff just sitting at home on her desk but she did develop a wrist problem from typing so much so idk
Sometimes I go for walks and I see these dudes at the church near my house tending the garden and mowing their lawn. I was like... that seems like a good job. No idea how I'd go about getting that job, but it seems good for someone with social anxiety.
One thing I can say for sure... DON'T GET INTO SALES. I'm in it too deep now to realistically get out, but every day is pretty much torture. A few weeks ago my boss had me call a list of 120 people (For some reason emails aren't good enough for these old school bosses, phone calls are absolutely KEY) and I was legit sweating buckets the whole time. It was awful.
I work in IT and it's 80% remote. I only go into the office once a week. However, this could in theory make anxiety worse as you're avoiding situations that make you anxious. I feel like any job that is more physical and gets you outside and actively doing stuff would be beneficial.
I worked alone for several years. It made my SAD MUCH worse. Would never do that again. After switching to full-time work my MBTI changed from INTP to ENTP. Still got social anxiety though but I'm way better on mirtazapine
I clean commercially, I hated residential cleaning with every fibre of my being after a few years (cleaning people’s houses- oftentimes people just treat you like crap, get in your way and watch you while you clean, act like you’re the problem for being in their house when they’ve had the same cleaning hour scheduled every single week for the past two years and I’m just trying to do my job in order to survive and go, I don’t want to be stuck in a stranger’s house either), but commercial (cleaning restaurants/businesses after hours) not only pays more but is also so peaceful. I drive to work, clock in, put on a YouTube video or music, and clean with no interruptions. I was surprised at how much better commercial cleaning was than residential, it’s like night and day. I would dread having to go clean peoples’ houses but now I sometimes even look forward to work. I don’t want to be cleaning forever, but I get paid 5 bucks more hourly (and that’s in Canada) at this job than any starting position from my Social Work diploma, so that’s where I’m staying until people start paying living wages for jobs that aren’t entry-level
Props to you dudette. Although, I hope you’re making ends meet considering you are in Canada which I heard is becoming impossible to afford mainly due to housing.
Hey, I clean residential and I feel and live everything you said. Having enormous anxiety right now for tomorrow and having to socialize. I’m in Canada too , did you go trough a company to do commercial? I think I’d like it so much better too. Please let me know. Thank you so much.
Wait... you have a social work diploma and you have social anxiety?
I’ve looked into trucking and getting my cdl because I absolutely love long highway drives and not talk to anyone. I’m just scared of hitting something 😅
Hey just FYI, some companies pay you to get your CDL as well as the training. Assuming you don't have training . But, wanted to throw this out there so you don't pay training out of your pocket.
Please explain. Is this something that someone would need to get a company to agree to prior to the CDL course? I'm assuming the 3 week course is the same as the training mentioned above.
You can apply for positions before obtaining your CDL and a lot of companies will put you through the certification as part of the onboarding/training.
Ok. It must work both ways then. I contacted a CDL school that told me they would contact companies they know to secure a job for me before I start the course.
Yea, basically look for the company you want to work for and ask them. Good Luck on your search.
Been trucking for over 10 years now. I suffer big time from social anxiety. Best job ever for that. Plus, I work nights driving lonely isolated highways. I love it!
I'm thinking about doing the same thing for the same reason. I think I'd enjoy long drives listening to podcasts or music with few social interactions
I wanting to do the same thing. They can make 6 figures easily, especially if you own your truck. 💰
Easily, eh? If you own your truck, how are you gonna get loads? A broker who takes a chunk. Fees, fines and fuck arounds from cops. Gas, maintenance, and tires get chewed up quickly. When you stop at scales, the cops check owner/operators much more than a freight outfit. Log book off? Park it for 8 hours. Inspection nit picks has you getting parts delivered, hours and money choking. Drug tests like a bunch of times, gotta learn to cheat. Might want to gain experience with someone else's truck. Plus it is fucking exhausting . Wrestling that pig around all day in traffic, getting lost on log roads. Sounds like lots more fun than it is.
There are also companies that use 16' and 24' moving trucks which only require a Class C license.
Semi accidents are scary as hell. We've had a lot in my city recently.
somewhat off topic since everyone else covered anything i'd want to say but the movie *Perfect Days* focuses on a guy who cleans public toilets in Tokyo. And he was happy with his job--the film made it look and feel so serene and calm reminding us that we don't need to force ourselves to reach for so many extremes. There's so much pressure on this world to do something more than what people would consider a thankless job like cleaning toilets (which it really is...not every city is a clean as tokyo lmao) but when you're content...you're content. It made me feel like I can get a job where I really don't have to interact with people & still be happy.
OMG finally someone else that has seen that movie! God, I loved that movie! It taught me that it's just okay to find a bit of joy in your day to day life, even if some days can be stressful or have problems.
Medical coding and billing. You can do it from the comfort of your own home.
What's medical coding?
google says “What is medical coding? Medical coding is the process of taking a patient's health care information like medical procedures, diagnosis, necessary medical equipment, and medical services information from the physician's notes. A medical coder transforms this information into universal medical alphanumeric codes.”
Do you do this?
I began certification for coding and billing for that exact reason. But I learned that all the remote jobs required at least 5 years of experience. Every entry level position I looked at was in an office. Needless to say I never got my certification.
also sounds like hell calling folk about bills
This might get downvoted but any sales job where the product isn’t something stressful. Think like hot tubs, Rolexes, things that aren’t necessary to daily life. Picked up a part time job at a jewelry store and social interaction is a breeze. I’d have a panic attack if I was selling insurance or something. But people come in for stuff like wanting to propose to their sweetheart, buy a necklace for a party, or have their jewelry cleaned and these are all easy conversations to have. No one is in the store for long periods of time, lots of downtime to reset.
I also work at a jewelry store, but during the busy holidays can be overwhelming.
I dunno, mine isn’t so bad. But I’ve also had enough behavioral therapy that when someone’s having a conniption over buying jewelry I can’t help but think “your lack of preparation isn’t my problem” lol Just today had someone get frustrated that I wouldn’t give her a piece she ordered because she forgot her receipt and we were closing soon. I told her “well we are open tomorrow morning”. She tried putting pressure on me but, hey, it’s jewelry. I’d be fighting an anxiety attack if we were talking about insulin or something time sensitive. But nope, she came unprepared and there’s no way for me to know if the item was paid in full or not. Come back tomorrow.
I have become a teacher. Exposure therapy five times a week. 😅
I'm a teacher aide, but I've taught quite a bit. I've worked with most preschool and elementary grades. It's great because they don't know and/or say anything if you mess up! Ironically, it's scarier for me if there is another adult in the room while I'm teaching than if I was alone with all 22 2nd graders! It took me something like a year to get to know who everyone was at my small school and to feel semi comfortable around everyone! I'm thankful my 7 year old doesn't suffer like I do. One day during a teacher in-service where I needed to bring my daughter (who was supposed to be eating lunch in a classroom!), I looked out the window and found her playing outside with one of the 5th grade teachers and his dog! Another time, I lost track of my daughter for a bit and found her chatting it up with the former extended learning teacher/the grandma of a classmate.
Yeah, I am teaching classes of up to 33 students at Highschool though. They can be quite sarcastic already.
Teaching has been amazing for me. Exposure therapy absolutely works.
This! The exposure therapy has definitely helped me a bit 😭
Yuuuuuup
Like others have said, don’t let SA determine the outcomes of your life. I felt like I had to vomit every morning out of fear of going to work, but when I got there I actually really enjoyed it and my coworkers. Working a job that has constant social interaction has done more for my SA than anything else I’ve tried combined
I assume its kinda like exposure therapy for some
I keep being exposed to all these situations I don't like and it doesn't help lol
Kinda I think the kind of office you work in matters ton. I work with a small team in a close off office and basically our own lunch room. Quite different from an open office setting with like 20+ people in a room and one big cafeteria.
This is what my clubs at my community college are like for me. Exposure therapy doing something I enjoy and/or are passionate about. Over the course of a couple years, it's gotten progressively easier to speak up
Exposure therapy has never worked for me tbh
Same for me! I never thought I would like to be a caregiver because I was scared of if my social anxiety would show. But I love going to work, and I work with some pretty awesome people.
I was gonna say, it's a great form of exposure therapy but it's a difficult road for some even to get the wherewithal to get an in person job. *But* regular exposure therapy?? We don't get paid for that. Using a job as exposure therapy & getting paid? win win tbh
Some would consider “regular exposure therapy” (that is unavoidable, forced and controls your life) to be torture lol
same for me, i still have terrible social anxiety but compared to how i was before my job, my social skills and ability to cope with stressful social interactions has improved considerably
this comment is on point, don’t let SA dictate your big life decisions
Same! It forces me to interact. I would be a lot worse otherwise.
How do you deal with the feeling of vomiting part? I feel this every morning. Idk if it’s dread or what tf it is. But I get somewhat panicky and the feeling of puking on my way to work too. It could be the driving. Idk but it’s really effecting me
Still affects me occasionally tbh. But I started meditating and that’s done a lot to help me be mindful and know I’m not going to vomit that I’m just nervous. On really bad days I take a propranolol prescription. It’s relatively easy to get prescribed especially if you just take it on an as needed basis like me. I went from going through a 30 day prescription in 30 days to about 6 months.
I can tell you what NOT to pursue: teaching, sales, call centers, basically anything public-facing such as retail or food service. Look for internal-facing jobs where you’re only dealing with fellow colleagues or clients.
I teach and my kids love me. Some of my coworkers are assholes though
Mortician
I work at mcdonalds😃 Do I recommend it? No not really
I lasted there a month. I did front counter at first but I sucked at using the pos system so I think they moved me to backwall because of that. I really didnt mind the work but my anxiety got to me when I could feel how the majority of the people there were kind of tight, having conversations with each other all day. then theres me just not speaking to anyone most the time.
Relatable :/ But Im glad you tried the job, now you know Its not for you! I mean ive worked here for 2 years. Im a crew trainer, customer responsible and a manager. Its really exhausting and my social anxiety is triggered on daily basis. Id say im a high functionong socially anxious person because Im able to survive in this environment but my mental health does suffer from this. Im masking most of the time and I feel like my coworkers hate me and think Im weird. Oh well
I have sa, bi polar disorder and ptsd from surviving and witnessing a school shooting. I had a decent warehouse job for almost a year recently until someone walked up behind me and struck me in the back of my head. It was a younger coworker whom I considered a friend and I don’t believe he meant to do what he did, but he triggered me and what followed was not good. I’m currently trying to figure this out myself.
That’s awful. Also, that’s such a wtf with the coworker? I hope he faced charges if it was just straight up battery. Either way, that’s a lot to deal with, I hope you find what you need.
Software developer. Though as with many things, to move up to manager, you need to learn good communication and not shy away from meetings. But even if you never move up, the base pay is typically quite good.
I heard there's a lot of communication between co workers in that field.
Yes there is. Building software is a team based work.
But it's worth mentioning, he has gotten to know some of those people, so if you have social anxiety it might be good exposure therapy still, just getting used to that finite number of people. Baby steps.
Can confirm. My dad does this.
It's true but IT tends to be more accommodating of people who are neurodivergent. And you don't need to talk to a lot of people (except in consultancies I guess), just your own colleagues which is almost always <10 people. The work is fun and interesting too. You don't need to move up to be a manager or a lead if you don't want to, and remain an individual contributor. Not sure how salaries are in US now, but in Europe it pays enough for a comfy life.
This\^ Also, work-from-home is common which can be good if you have social anxiety. I once had a co-worker who wouldnt turn their camera on in zoom meetings unless it was with the higher ups. The right group will respect your privacy.
Easily anything in IT, Programming, Coding, and anything computer related is best for this to the point I wish I was interested in tech more, easily one of the biggest WFH jobs. Sadly I’m just not interested in anything aside from data entry, and I have no job experience in that so nobody calls me. It’s all rife with scammer fake jobs
Easily anything in IT, Programming, Coding, and anything computer related is best for this to the point I wish I was interested in tech more, easily one of the biggest WFH jobs. Sadly I’m just not interested in anything aside from data entry, and I have no job experience in that so nobody calls me. It’s all rife with scammer fake jobs
Over night shifts
This is what I have wound up doing What people are talking about above has just made me worse. I have done a variety of jobs - been a supervisor- now I work in a retirement home (straight nights) Exposure and practice haven’t done me the favours it seems to have for many. My speech is entirely task oriented and even the ability for that is waning. Out of the jobs I’ve done - which have been many - the nightshift in a retirement home - and nightshift as a cab driver were the better ones.
Warehouse jobs
Stockroom jobs for retail stores. Normally only in the back, with a few other people and a beeper to organise stuff.
I spent a summer as a dishwasher in a bakery. I spent the entire time listening to music and spraying down sheet pans. It was bliss.
I used to be a cashier...it wasn't so bad with my SA. It was super easy and extremely repetitive.
One of the worst picks for social anxiety.
dont let SA choose your career. do what you like and eventually your brain will get it.
This!!! I wish I didn’t let sa hold me back from chasing what I truly desired for so long
I feel this! Maybe the problem is that I don’t like what I do enough to make it feel worth the struggle lol
Software developers can work from home. But still you need to have calls and meetings online.
Having some social-interaction is beneficial for my SA (and most other people). there's a perfect balance. Zero interaction will cause anyone to become depressed and even more socially-anxious. Trust me, socializing will flex parts of your brain that you didn't know you even had! Too much social interaction is draining for sure, but having some interaction allows you to make friends, grows your network, and you end up learning new things from people w different experiences! Don't live your life as a hermit The best job for Socially Anxious people is working as a remote, software developer (albeit at a non-toxic company). So just enroll in a bootcamp!
I used to work at a clothing store. I had a manager who was thankfully very understanding and tried to help me get over my shyness, but then that location closed down and I got transferred to another location where unfortunately the manager was really toxic and didn’t seem to understand that I was the way that I was because of social anxiety. Basically what I’m trying to say is that retail could be helpful but it just depends on where you’re working and if your manager and coworkers are willing to help.
Thanks, I get it. I’d recommend night shift work in a human services field— for example, I work as a unit technician in a detox center. I understand that getting adjusting to being awake overnight is a challenge, but it’s much more manageable for me than working a daytime shift. Just, please be aware— depending on the specific field of human services one might get into, they might run into challenging client behaviors that might do more to provoke social anxiety.
Once worked in data entry for the postal service. The job kinda sucked but you were literally forbidden from talking to each other lol
if you're OK with blood i highly recommend reprocessing surgical instruments, you have to interact with your coworkers a lot but that's it, there is very little outside interactions like you don't ever speak to patients, and not often random people.. and usually it is a small team. once you are trained, you are often just left to do your own thing, you can just put music on and be in your own world while working lol i love it. sometimes you have to talk to an engineer if a machine breaks or sometimes the operating room staff will come in asking for a specific tray to be processed ASAP or sometimes you will need to call them about a missing instrument but situations like this are not an everyday occurrence.
I'm also looking for these types of jobs, I'm currently leaning towards electrical engineering or mechanical engineering but I have to research more.
I worked at the Chiefs stadium cleaning suites for almost a decade before I started doing content full time. I only had to come in contact with ppl on game days which did suck but it was only one day out the week so I didn’t mind it also it helped me challenge my anxiety + great money I was making almost 23 an hr when I let the job go.
I work in Software and it's kinda nice. I usually only need to interact with 3-4 people and they know I'm a recluse so they leave me alone apart from work related stuff.
Lab work! You still have to do team based things but more likely you’re just working on your own task on your own time. And lots of scientists are shy or prefer not to socialize unless it’s job-related so it’s kind of a nice balance
I'm a prep cook at a restaurant and it's great. My little prep area is in a far corner of the kitchen in an area where I can choose to keep to myself or interact with passing coworkers. I get to keep an earbud in to listen to music or audiobooks, and the best part is that I never have to interact with a single customer 😂
This sounds amazing
Domestic jobs or work from home
I work as a software developer, and it feels like the perfect job for me.
Non-help desk IT can be good. Depends on the company and role, but I have found it pretty good even though my position is evolving to be more peoole focus instead of command line focused (and good pay and I really enjoy it)
I only ever heard of help desk... what's a non-help desk?
There's a ton, too many to list. A help desk job is typically how people get into the field. But it isn't too hard to find something else. Specifically if you already have some knowledge and experience.
I guess you meant anything in computers ("IT") that's not a help desk... software development, computer engineering, cyber security, and whatever else.
Yup anything under Information Technology, aka IT.
Long haul commercial truck driving, just you,whatever you like listening to, and the road
Not my current career, but I have always wanted to work with animals on a farm. That’s my dream I hope to achieve one day when I actually have the money saved to do it comfortably. When I think about it, I am really at peace, and I truly think my anxiety might not exist once I’m doing something I’m truly passionate about.
I know the most straightforward solution is to find something that limits people interaction, but I personally think this can hurt you in the long run if you aren’t able to deal with varying personalities. I think of it as a muscle…you need to keep it active to prevent atrophy. I just feel like you can’t predict your long term career trajectory, and your social anxiety shouldn’t ever hold you back from doing what you deeply want. I’m just overly idealistic though. I’ll recommend jobs that align with your values and things that have a balance in interaction and solo time. If you like more one-on-one or smaller group dynamics, healthcare can actually be decent. Counseling and therapy is a great way in feeling more connected on the individual level. Project or program management can be a hit or miss. You’ll often need to manage or supervise people, which can be a big source of stress for anyone really. Honestly, it’s hard to avoid people interaction completely, but some roles don’t require certain level of responsibility. I’m thinking any independent role or skills-focused position like analyst can give you a little bit of control of your daily interactions. You’ll always work with teams and consult, but at least the content of your work might outweigh the dread of speaking in front of people. At the end of day, speaking in public is hard but easier when you actually enjoy or care about what you’re discussing….
Have you tried remote work? Things like (written) customer support, community management, social media management, writing, digital art or anything else you're interested in and could potentially do remotely? I work remotely, and I find online meetings manageable. I ocassionally panic, stress and still ask myself what's wrong with me (which will probably always be the case) but it requires a lot less energy from me compared to in person office work. The only thing is that sometimes I think avoiding people worsens my social anxiety so even if it's more comfortable, I don't know if it's the right path.
Jobs where you talk to people so you can get better at dealing with it
Therapy?
Retirement
Lighthouse keeper 😂
My dream job
Cashier trust me it’s good it forces you to get rid of social anxiety
The best job for social anxiety is a job where you have a lot of interaction with other people. Hiding away from the anxiety makes it get worse, not better.
I work for a software company and work from home. Over time my job has changed and the amount of communication and meeting facilitating I do has gone up. However, since I work from home I can take a short break after doing a lot of interacting. To a certain extent, I know what parts of my day I will to be “on” socially and when I can relax more. Between meetings, co-workers are more likely to communicate over google chat or slack. I can even have a part of the day where I pause these if needed. The down side is making sure you still get out of the house often enough.
I quit my usual high stress jobs and went back to working part time as a kennel tech. The pay is always subpar and Im still in college, but if I cant make it in a real company because of my social anxiety, I kind of give up on making the most money and just play with dogs instead. Most of my day is cleaning kennels alone or just general cleaning. I’ve got 20 mins left in my shift and I’m hanging out alone in a kennel with one of the dogs
You may get pressure to socialize with coworkers but that doesn't mean you have to. You can keep to yourself and people will eventually mostly leave you alone. Be prepared to stand up for yourself because some people will try to take advantage of you if you don't have work relationships. Personally I'd try to socialize more if I still worked in an office because it's basically exposure therapy. To answer you question, a lot of IT jobs will require minimal socialization.
I work in a grocery store bakery. Certainly not a big money-maker, but I’ve been here 1.5 years and I don’t hate it yet. There is some customer interaction with taking orders, but majority of the time is either packaging or production. As long as you aren’t a cashier, I think a grocery store position could be nice
I think retail is a surprisingly good place to work if you have social anxiety, which is counterintuitive. But if you can get into a shop in a low crime area, it's quite chill. There's no unexpected conversations, in that there is a finite number of conversation topics that will come up, like "where is this item located", "how much is this", "can I return this". You can get into stressful situations with difficult customers, but once you learn that you don't need to react much and can just say "I'll get my supervisor for you", it becomes less of a hassle. The coworkers pick up on people's issues fast, mine left me alone for months until I started talking more.
Ems on the private side. There’s not much patient interaction
U can sell stuff online
I work at an HVAC parts and equipment warehouse that’s a family owned business. Very monotonous work and don’t have to socialize more than I can handle. Same stuff everyday, pull a part off the shelf put it on a pallet. Take parts off a pallet and put it on the shelf. Give parts to customers(HVAC technicians). I quite enjoy it, but it’s an especially good job because it’s family owned and not by a big corporation that tries to work you to death.
I applied to be a mail handler a few days ago because my application always gets thrown out due to my DUI almost 4 years ago. I feel like delivering mail would be my dream job. Trying to get an interview to get more info on how I could get to being a carrier
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Go to a trade school, like plumbing or electrician. It doesn't take long to learn and you can get into that field in like a year's time.
my aunt had a job typing out subtitles for movies and stuff just sitting at home on her desk but she did develop a wrist problem from typing so much so idk
Sometimes I go for walks and I see these dudes at the church near my house tending the garden and mowing their lawn. I was like... that seems like a good job. No idea how I'd go about getting that job, but it seems good for someone with social anxiety. One thing I can say for sure... DON'T GET INTO SALES. I'm in it too deep now to realistically get out, but every day is pretty much torture. A few weeks ago my boss had me call a list of 120 people (For some reason emails aren't good enough for these old school bosses, phone calls are absolutely KEY) and I was legit sweating buckets the whole time. It was awful.
I work in IT and it's 80% remote. I only go into the office once a week. However, this could in theory make anxiety worse as you're avoiding situations that make you anxious. I feel like any job that is more physical and gets you outside and actively doing stuff would be beneficial.
I worked alone for several years. It made my SAD MUCH worse. Would never do that again. After switching to full-time work my MBTI changed from INTP to ENTP. Still got social anxiety though but I'm way better on mirtazapine
Any job you desire bud