BPD and Employment
As someone with BPD I struggle with employment. Regular "jobs" feel like exact replicas of high school, being forced to socialize with people I don't trust or feel comfortable around, dealing with cliques, gossip, politics, a$$ kissing, and inevitable retaliation or harassment...
and it drains me to the point where my work/life balance severely struggles, to the point where I can't even show up on time, my social battery is at 0, and all I have energy for is the task itself.
On the flip side though, I LOVE TO WORK! I love to create, build, and do tasks... I am a task master, and when I hyper focus on a project, I put my all into it (hence my huge pile of notebooks of writing about my special interests)
But, I struggle with turning all of that work into a product that can be packaged and sold and turned into a business which would actually help people. The very thing that would also help ME escape the high school workplace environment which creates so much shame and embarrassment.
People with BPD are neurodivergent individuals who actually do have a lot of value to offer the world. With our unique perspectives, passionate energy, hyperfixations/special interests, and untapped talents, we have the potential to free ourselves from the shackles of living a life that feels devoid of meaning if we can only get past that initial challenge of finishing our work and putting it out there.
When we alchemize our big emotions into a product or project, we can create something that can not only change others' lives, but our own life too. And we deserve to have a "piece of the pie" that other people eat from who have established themselves as a business owner and entrepreneur.
One thing we can't escape from is the fact that we need money. Trust me... I hate this late stage capitalism world we live in. But we can't escape it. So how do we work WITH it? Either way, they're BOTH hard. Getting a "regular" job is hard for us, starting a business is hard too. But one keeps you in shackles and the other has the potential for limitless freedom... I think I know which "hard" I would rather choose...
So I'm starting this group for anyone who relates and feels the same. Anyone with a passion, talent or knowledge that wants to escape the rat race and join me in challenging myself to finally put meaningful work out there, join my Facebook Group: BPD Business Babes & Bosses! We can support each other and celebrate our milestones, remember why we're doing it, and hold each other accountable.
Remember just because you may have certain struggles in areas of your life doesn't mean you're not still worthy of success and freedom. Literally if *anyone* can start a business and free themselves, why not you? Why not me?
Maybe I'm being incredibly petulant because I really am so sick and tired of constantly starting over from job to job and I'm doing this out of spite. Either way, whatever it takes. lol. I'm tired of survival mode with nothing to show and more workplace trauma that I honestly don't need in my life anymore.
Hope to see some of you guys there!