Hi everyone, I'm a 24 year old with pretty severe social anxiety/social phobia and I tend to get panic attacks bad enough to make me physically ill (nausea, vomiting, etc). I've had two jobs before in the past; one working as a chiropractor's assistant that lasted all of a week and a half, and one working at a produce store that lasted for all of one day. Both were cases of being too much mental and physical strain (I also have asthma and back issues, yippee) for me to handle.

I've been wondering for such a long time what a good job for me would be, so I thought I'd ask to see if anyone here has social anxiety and has a job that they either like or don't mind doing too much / can deal with anxiety that goes with it.

As a bit more background information, I have had some college and took an online course and have a certificate to be a veterinary assistant (I love animals but I'm not sure if I could handle that job either). Phones are pretty much a no-go for me, but I think I might be able to overcome that if the interactions are fast and simple.

It sounds like some kind of clerical position would be ideal for you like record keeping, data entry, and doing quiet independent work at a desk in general.

I really hope that things get better for you. :)

Thank you , those do all sound ideal for me c:

I agree with Poppet, I think a desk job would fit very well. I suffer from anxiety myself and have always been worried about how it will affect my performance. Last year I had to work at an archive as part of my information sciences major. It was my first job and I was petrified, the day before I started I was so nervous I couldn't eat or sleep, and once I got there I couldn't find it in me to say more than a few sentences because my stomach curled up in a ball haha.

It turned out great though. I'd spend 8 hours a day just scanning all sorts of documents and stitching together maps in photoshop. On any given day I'd only speak to about the same three people so I didn't have to be on my guard all the time.

I've been asked how I can endure doing something so repetitive and tedious for so long, but for me it was very calming. My mind was focused on something else other than my fears, and hey, you don't need to worry about what paper, boxes and computers will think of you xD

Fingers crossed you find something that you'll feel comfortable with :)

Wow that sounds like a great job, so glad you have something you feel comfortable doing c: I'll have to look and see if there are any kinds of jobs like that around where I live c:

Thank you!

I can train you for my job :) Scripted phone protocol...push a button and give them to someone else... :) Then play on subeta to ease your stress.. :)

If I were to work at your office I think I'd want Ward's old job sorting mail and such in the back, I don't know if I could handle using the phone that much :P

Well my boyfriend and my sister's boyfriend have been dealing with severe social anxiety, depression, and in the latter's case schizophrenia, and they both have thrived in jobs that focus on physical work and minimal human interaction. Unfortunately most of those jobs have been cleaning/custodial related. They both got payed a decent liveable amount doing things like cleaning apartments, on-call carpet cleaning, and working night shift at chain grocery stores. My bf currently works in a factory where he spends most of his time printing things on metal and cutting metal and the only interaction he has is 1x1 with his boss when new orders come in. They like those jobs because it's a lot of quiet time where they can think, stay calm, listen to music or podcasts or audiobooks, and not be pressured into verbal or physical interaction. Downsides include late/irregular hours, the usual unpleasantness that comes with cleaning up after other humans, spending hours repeating the same motions over and over again, and the possibility of not finding a place that will pay you enough or provide benefits.

I definitely wouldn't recommended working at a call center or doing any kind of telemarketing if you have social anxiety. I worked as an alumni caller while I was in college and people can get very nasty about phone solicitation, because honestly everyone hates those kinds of calls.

Archival work like suggested sounds appropriate for you too.

One of my internships involved creating an Excel spreadsheet database and a calendar of events. I would go to an office and read and type information for hours on end while listening to music on my headphones.

How about working from home? You can try selling stuff online. Or write papers for students who'd rather pay someone to do their work. I have to admit that the latter's unethical though.

@ poppet Yeah, I'm thinking the same thing. I know most of the time people are frustrated with the company/their service etc., but they tend to take it out on the first person they talk to unfortunately, which is terrifying to me. I have enough stress in my life, lol.

Wow, now that definitely sounds like an awesome job to me :D

@ Mackenzi Glad they both found something they're okay with doing c: I honestly wish I could do more physical work like that sometimes, but I have pretty bad asthma and back/spine issues :c Late hours aren't an issue for me though, I'm a night owl as it is, haha c:

Haha, I did think about doing that, but I don't know too much about working from home unfortunately, nor the type of business I'd run. For a while I did make and sell my own jewelry on Etsy, but unfortunately that seems like more of a side job and doesn't produce a sustainable, livable income, though the work is /much/ more desirable for me (go figure, right? :c).

Ah sorry I missed reading that! :X That's a bummer. My asthma keeps me from hanging out too much at my bf's work so I shoulda thought of that.

Do you have any artistic skills? Even if it's screenprinting, or collage, simple things, you can sell things like laptop cases and phone cases and cards online really easily. It could be a good supplemental income.

Have you considered importing stuff to sell? That way, you won't be limited by what you can produce.

No worries there c: Yeah, kind of sucks and it makes me feel even more limited on job choices :c

Well, I do make my own jewelry as I was telling , and do sell stuff on Etsy, but unfortunately it doesn't make just a ton of money and it isn't very steady income :c

You know, I never thought about that :o I'll have to do some research on that, but it sounds like an interesting prospect c:

I actually found it extremely tedious, like a job I had one summer during high school that required my best friend and I to remove staples from packets of paper for $9 an hour in a large corporate office.

Maybe you could describe your preferences to a temp agency? From what I understand they hire out people to fill in for regular office employees who are out, and you can end up being officially hired depending on the circumstances.

I hope it works out for you! If budget is an issue, you can always start small, like iPhone cases on eBay. :)

Hm, at this point I think tedious might be good for me so long as I don't have to do anything physically demanding or worry about having to talk to a bunch of people x)

That does sounds like a good idea, I'll have to check into that c:

Thank you! I'm definitely going to have to start small, but it's a very interesting idea and I know someone personally who does something very similar, so I can ask them questions if I need to c:

I have social anxiety too and I actually just got a job a few months ago that I intend to keep for as long as they'll have me. This is going to sound very strange, but...I'm a receptionist. As in, I sit at the front desk of an assisted living place and greet people who come in, answer the phone, etc. Yeah. I know. But the thing is, this desk. It's L-shaped and it's got this...wall/partition that rises about a foot off the desktop so I'm kind of in my own little space. And my coworkers are awesome. They're all the nicest people and so willing to help. I am positive I finally got lucky with this job or it was divine intervention or something. I previously worked at a newspaper in the newsroom behind a desk with bitty little walls too and that was nice. I didn't have to talk to anyone there. I think it's all in finding out what works for you - for me it's that I need my own little 'safe space' at work. I really hope you find something that will work well for you. It's an amazing feeling finding something like this that's the right fit.

I'm so glad you found something you can do and like doing, and great that your co-workers are awesome c: I'm kind of like that too, I feel better if I have my own personal space, sort of like a safety zone. The job at the newspaper sounds nice also c: Thank you, hopefully I can find something as nice as well!

Definitely backing up the idea of clerical work. Data entry, proofreading, document generation. Mailroom work is good too, especially if you're just left to sort and package/stamp ingoing and outgoing. Usually the only folks you have to interact with is the courier and people coming and asking you for a specific kind of envelope. File clerk too; you just put back or pull out specific files for others all day. Both of these are especially good if you're keen on organization and alphabetizing.

Joining a temp agency is a great way to get a feel for things too, if you haven't joined one already. They put you into all kinds of jobs and situations that they feel you're suitable for. They interview you beforehand to see what your strengths and weaknesses are, and there's no shame in just saying your people skills aren't top shelf so long as you back it up with perks. Like, "I'm not super good with customer service, but I'm very organized, goal-oriented, can multitask and don't mind tedium."

From there, you'll get to see and experience all different kinds of work and offices and get a feel for them. If you find one you really like, you can usually approach their HR about taking you as a permanent hire, or just fine-tune your job search to focus on that position or field.

Good luck, !