u/PretendBlacksmith618

Curious if other people do this. I'm currently getting to know someone from work and I think we're getting along great. Our conversations are always fun, we work well together and always like to chat about the various things we have going on in and outside of work. I believe we're both neurodivergent and share a lot of the same habits/nuances. I feel very comfortable talking to this person and notice I don't have to overthink how to navigate conversations while we talk like I do with most people, and it leads me to wanting to talk to him a lot more. Recently we exchanged phone numbers, but now I'm afraid to utilize it. I always worry that they're going to see my text and think "ugh THIS person again". I hate to assume that anyone actually wants to talk to me even though nothing actually happens to that reinforce that belief. Is anyone else overly anxious about stuff like this? I always worry I'm just annoying and overbearing.

Hey everyone, I'm in a really troubled spot and looking for some advice. A little bit about me, I'm in my 30s(F) and I've heavily suspected for many years that I deal with autism although I am undiagnosed, even though I experience a great majority of the symptoms/traits. I've never been in a relationship nor have had any real feelings/ desire to be in one. I'm a very private person and spend most of my time alone.

Well in the last several months things changed when I began interacting with a certain individual at work. I think we really hit it off, and the more we worked together the more I started to develop strong feelings for him. The more I got to see of him I began to notice that he too seems to exhibit a lot of neurodivergent characteristics, similar to a lot of habits I do. I hate to assume anything, but a pattern is a pattern right? He has been nothing but supportive, kind, patient, and encouraging when I need it. He's constantly offering his help no matter how busy he seems to be, and looks for opportunities to help even if I don't necessarily see it in the moment. He's incredibly smart and lights up when he gets to talk about the things he finds interesting or his hobbies, and he listens instantly when I talk.

This is where I'm stuck. I can't get this guy out of my head. He's all I think about and I'm not really sure how to go about anything. I want to be able to just be honest with him and move on. I like to think he might feel similarly about me but realistically it just seems too good to be true. The Internet seems to think I'm experiencing limerence over him and that I'm just using him as a dopamine chase. This is really discouraging honestly. It makes me feel that because I may struggle with emotion/dopamine regulation that my feelings of love and affection aren't seen as genuine. That I can't pursue and explore feelings or engage in connection because I'm just "seeking a thrill" and my feelings are invalid.

I really care about this person, and I believe he cares about me too. Am I over complicating everything? How do you guys handle communicating feelings to people you care about?

...And it's the happiest I've felt in years. I'm 32, and I've never been in a relationship. Never been asked out, never flirted on as far as I know. I live alone and spend 80% of my time at work. Several months ago a coworker started showing up to my department and offering his help. I had seen him a couple times before this, chatted here and there, and these casual encounters continued while we began working together more steadily. I don't know what he said or did, but something just clicked one day. An "oh no" moment, a sinking in my chest as I realized something just changed. Suddenly I was nervous to be around him. I could barely look him in the face, his beautiful smile tied my stomach into knots. "Surely this will pass." Well, we talked more and more, learned more about each other, and nothing passed. Feelings got stronger, deeper, and massivly confusing. I would ricochet between feelings of certainty and disillusion. Obviously he likes me because he did this and helped me with that without me asking. Well no he was just being nice. But he didn't have to be nice, right?

I'm about 6 months into these feelings, and I'm afraid they're not going away anytime soon. This man is amazing. He's charming, kind, thoughtful, patient. The list goes on. Im beginning to see a more comfortable version of him lately. He is typically a quiet guy, usually keeping to himself, however Ive been getting to witness a beautifully silly personality peak through. A goofy playfulness that never fails to make me laugh. He always knows just what to say and seems to be always reading the current situation to see how I could use help. Simple little things like deciding I needed a mouse pad for my laptop, and then going to find me one even though I never asked. Taking it upon himself to proof read documents I write and giving constructive feedback. It just feels so good to feel that someone is obviously thinking about me. To ask me what I'm thinking about and genuinely being interested in the answer. When I talk his eyes are on me, looking at me like no one else around exists. His attention is addictive. Sometimes there's a brief pause in conversation where we're just looking at each other, smiling in wonderfully awkward silence. It truly feels just like the cliche of time standing still.

I don't think I can tell him. I love what we have now, and if I ruined our current working relationship by making him uncomfortable, well I don't know what I would do. The way I see it, if I'm lucky enough to get to call him my friend then I'll be more than happy with that. It just seems too hard to believe that someone like this would feel the same way about me as I do him. Too good to be true. But I want to believe. I want to believe that I'm capable of being loved. Who knows, maybe he'll surprise me. He's done nothing but surprise me so far, maybe I just need to be patient. I've waited this long, and if I have to wait just a bit longer knowing he's who I'm waiting for, then I've got all the time in the world.

I'm currently a welder working in custom fabrication of high purity vacuum components and superconductors. My job is to work with colabritive robots to develop automated weld processes to increase productivity in the weld shop. I didn't go to school for any of this and have had to learn how to use/program a robot on the job. I absolutely love it and would like to learn more about robotics and programming, possibly learn more about electrical and mechanical engineering. I feel like although I'm learning a lot from my coworkers, there's a massive void of information I'm missing.

My base education is limited. I didn't do well in school, especially math. Are there any core material classes I can take online that will help build up a solid foundation to work with? Is there such a thing as "beginner engineering" courses online? I don't mean to insult people who spend years of hard work on their degrees just for me to ask for a "shortcut" of sorts. I'm just so overwhelmed by options and quite honestly I don't know what exists to do research on. Any and all advice is greatly appreciated!