u/MoonlightAndStar

Can’t wait for reading week!

I’m 19, autistic, and have other mental disorders. I have been in therapy for years but I of course can’t see my therapist every time I want to talk. I have friends in real life and a decent relationship with my family. I still feel like there’s so much stigma around using ChatGPT for emotional support.

Can it become a problem to rely on a chat bot for emotional support? I think so, but a lot of us are fairly normal people who completely understand we aren’t seeking support from another person.

Also what are the alternatives? There are so many thoughts I’d rather not bother my friends with and are not serious enough to contact a crisis line. Even when it is serious enough to contact a crisis line I get sick of waiting 30 minutes when I need to talk right then and there, just to be treated like a customer they’re trying to push through the system half the time. Sometimes their scripts are so robotic it’s not even like talking to a human.

People will judge no matter what, I just so happen to be on the progressive side of social media where everyone judges AI users. My honest opinion is if you have never experienced the flaws of crisis lines and have never worried about not having anywhere for your dark but not crisis level thoughts to go, you’re judging from a place of privilege.

All this to say, I sure do feel shame from time to time about using ChatGPT in this way but at the end of the day I know myself and my situation. I will always monitor for signs of dependence and signs it’s becoming unhealthy for me, but for now I’m going to continue to use it.

Please and thank you moderators. A mega thread would be appreciated if you are willing as well.

I feel too autistic and too normal at the same time which means I get limited support. My current workplace is a terrible fit for me but I’m quitting after my shift tomorrow and starting a new job next week. It’s just hard, they do not know about my diagnosis of course, but it sucks when you’re trying your best and it’s not good enough. It feels like the story of my life.

On another note, I need some reassurance that I’m not insane for bringing my beloved stuffed bunny to my psychologist appointment last week, although I only took her out near the end. I’m 19 and feel too old for this. My mom says it was kind of weird but my friend says it’s no big deal.

I’m tired of everything. Being sad, being anxious, feeling empty, no real excitement for anything. Constant comparisons of myself to others knowing I’ll never be able to have the life I want. I’m tired of worrying I’ll die alone and won’t be able to have kids, and I’m tired of worrying that I may never be able to work full time.

I’m 19 and in that stage of life where everyone starts to establish themselves but I’m lonely and not doing what I deem enough. I’m never proud of myself and I wish I had accomplishments. All I’ve done is the normal stuff, except for me it wasn’t as mundane and normal because of the extra challenges I’ve had. Few people in my life know about my diagnosis, I wish everyone just knew without me having to say anything. At the same time, that might change their opinions of me.

I am looking to travel next May and would like to do a Tokyo + Seoul trip (I have a specific tour company I’m planning with). It would be May 14-24 and the first half is in Tokyo. My only worry is the humidity in Tokyo. I am from Winnipeg, Canada, where our summers are 30+ degrees celsius and winters can be -30 degrees celsius or lower. Winters are dry and summers aren’t dry but aren’t humid either. All that being said, I’m not used to humidity, and I’m also autistic and sensitive to heat + sensory issues.

For example, NYC in August during a heatwave where it was 35 degree celsius and humid was nearly unbearable for me. I’m fine with being a bit uncomfortable, but July and August in Winnipeg can be hard for me, so I’m a bit worried about Tokyo in May. Not that this is relevant to Tokyo, but I’ve also been in a heat wave in Las Vegas and I’m not as sensitive to dry heat as I am wet heat. Does anyone with a low heat and humidity tolerance have any experience with Tokyo especially during that time of year? Or does anyone else have advice?

Thanks

I’ve got an internalized ableism problem, and honestly I struggle with being ableist to others but I don’t express it. I feel shame when I see people expressing the very symptoms that I feel I must mask to the point that it can be difficult to be around other autistic people. I feel like a horrible person and I feel worthless because I’m not doing what I think I should be doing. In my mind I’m not disabled enough for compassion. I compare myself to others around me and feel like a disappointment. I try to tell myself everyone takes their own path but I don’t truly believe it. I’m 19 so I’m also in the stage of life where getting settled and figuring my life out is difficult without autism and my other diagnoses. I just feel like I don’t fit in anywhere in life and everyone else knows more and is more ahead than me.

I’m out of practice, I’m 19, tried many sports as a child but was never good nor interested in any of them. My BMI puts me in the overweight category, however I was in the class 2 obesity category 4 years ago so I guess some improvement.

Anyway, I hate sweating because of sensory issues and I also have social anxiety disorder so I’m afraid of being judged. My coordination is also pretty bad. I have little experience and don’t know how to start exercising but I do want to. I was a severe toe walker and had achilles lengthening surgery when I was 8, but before then I would be fatigued easily and I feel like I missed out on some experiences because I had such poor balance and would get hurt easily despite my parents trying their best to have me in sports. I also have very thin arms and legs and an inverted triangle body type so I would like to make that less obvious. I do have PCOS too.

The sport I enjoyed the most is wall climbing but I’m overweight and weak which means I can’t really do it. How do you exercise? Any advice on how to get started or what to try? Also advice on how to minimize sensory overload would be appreciated. I’m not sensitive to lights at all and not that sensitive to loud noises either but am very sensitive to sweat and the feel of some sporting equipment.

I’ll admit I find rings uncomfortable, which may impact this opinion, but here we go.

Often the pressure is on the man to buy the engagement ring and propose in western cultures. This can both be a burden for the man and an unequal opportunity for the woman. I know that this used to be even more common than it is today, but it’s still a common standard.

Engagement rings are an investment, they aren’t cheap, and if you do get a cheap engagement ring, there’s stigma that comes along with it. Since most people already invest in wedding rings, I really don’t understand the point of engagement rings.

I already think we place too much importance on a wedding ring, like stigma around taking it off and such, but wedding rings have been around longer and in western cultures typically both parties have one (at least in modern times).

I simply believe having an engagement ring and a wedding ring is overdoing it, and it’s even worse if both are expensive. Spend that money on the life you plan to live with your partner, not for the symbolism of commitment in a piece of jewelry. I see no harm if both people really want to engage in the tradition of the man proposing with an engagement ring, but I don’t think it should be the standard.

Another solution is one ring that serves as both an engagement ring and a wedding ring.

I’ve been on Concerta for ADHD and Wellbutrin for depression for nearly 3 years, now my OCD is really severe so I recently started on Prozac. It’s a lot of meds, I feel broken. I’ve had a long medication journey, I was on Prozac on its own back when I was 13-14 (I’m 19 now). I’m so tired of this, I’m also autistic which doesn’t help.

First of all, they are so expensive, second of all, there’s too many horror stories out there. Think poop cruise and the current hantavirus cruise situation. And lastly, there are so many types of vacations you can take, what is even the point? I don’t want to feel trapped in the middle of the ocean ever. Yes, I am aware cruises can dock and there can be excursions, but I’d be so worried about not getting back in time I’d never be able to enjoy getting off for one.

If you’re stupid rich then whatever I guess, I still think it’s a waste of money. For everyone else, out of every vacation you can take, why a cruise? I’d much rather be able to go and explore whenever I please and not feel trapped on a giant moving entity in the middle of the ocean for days or even weeks. For the outrageous amount of money they cost and the level of risk I just don’t get it. Yes planes and other modes of transportation can be dangerous too, but the point of those modes of transportation is about the destination, not actively being on them. I may just be crazy for this last reason, but somehow being in a plane crash where everyone dies feels less dreadful than being on the poop cruise.

It’s still missing some details like attributes and instructors for many but the base schedule is out now.