Hey All,

I was just wondering if anyone has gone through job after job, because of your ADD. Have you quit or gotten fired within the probation period of a new job?

I had not been working for almost two years and finally found a job that in theory I could do as I have done it before. But in my first week, I was having panic attacks and I couldn't keep my mind focused on various tasks. I had to leave the job, because I would be no good to them.

I was curious if many people here have had a history of going from job to job through getting fired or quitting due to ADD or anything else (anxiety, etc.) I would greatly appreciate hearing any stories from people here.

Welcome to the forums!

Have you quit or gotten fired within the probation period of a new job?

I have quit really yucky jobs during the probationary period but I don’t believe I have been fired, a long time.

I don’t stick it out in jobs for 20 years but wish I could. My average is probably 1.5 years and I normally have another job before I quit because I gotta pay bills, buy food and such.

Join the club. Sorry to hear you're having a tough time. I, too, have had a rough time with jobs because of my ADD. I've been out of college for 10 years now. I've had 6 jobs and in all of them I've quit or almost gotten fired. Most of them I was bored so terribly with them I had no motivation to get up in the morning and so I would find reasons not to go to work, often calling out "sick." I also made careless mistakes at one of them that reuired a lot of accounting-type work. At my last job I became overwhelmed with new responsibilities added to my plate and I quit suddenly. I've been out of work since then (March) and our finances are suffering terribly because of it. I will have to return to some sort of job in November and I'm already panicking about it. So, you're not alone. Good luck.

I have problems with authority that I attribute to ADD.

I can connect it to every job I’ve lost : /

supervisor says something that strikes a nerve and I react impulsively.

Recently at my current job I was having some trouble performing a task I had just learned, when my boss commented on it for the 3rd time I dropped what I was doing, stared him in the eyes and said “I just suck at it that’s all ". He took over and finished the project, never fired me or mentioned it again.

Close call though...

I've had 7 jobs in 8 years. I'll be starting job 8 a week from Monday. Worst yet - I was fired from every single one. It has been the same story at every one. I'd be doing really good, getting bonuses good reviews and performance awards. Then a few weeks later, bam, I'm let go due to "It's not working out." I just don't understand what is going on. It's just to weird that it is the exact same senario at every single job.

I've been very fortunate in that i've never been fired from a job. However, the longest I've managed to stay at any one of them is about 6 years for the longest, 4 for the next longest, and so on down the line to the job I held for four days until I couldn't bear to even drive to the place. Now, after almost 15 years home with kids, doing a bunch of different things to keep myself busy or pick up a few dollars here and there, I'm going to become a substitute teacher. It might well drive me nuts, but I certainly don't expect to become bored any time soon!

Bekahboo,

When you felt overwhelmed at your last job and quit - in hindsight do you feel like if you just stopped for a while and took a deep breath, you could have done the job or did you forsee that this job wasn't going to work for you.

For me, I quit my last job as I stated in my first post because being out of work for two years - my mind just wasn't there and I just had panic attacks to the point of almost crying. Imagine not using your legs for two years and then having to run a marathon. My brain was like that and add to that the ADD/anxiety.

I don't know if this is a typical ADD thing, but generally speaking - I usually do amazing when I start a new job with my boss telling me how great I am and they hope that I will be there for the long term. Then after a few months, they are ready to fire me. One boss told me that things started out awsome and then I just seemed to "shut down".

Was your experience with losing jobs or quitting even when you were on medication? It would be nice to know that once I do get on some form of medication - I will be able to maintain my performance level and hold down my job.

Thanks for your feedback.

When you felt overwhelmed at your last job and quit - in hindsight do you feel like if you just stopped for a while and took a deep breath, you could have done the job or did you forsee that this job wasn't going to work for you.
Was your experience with losing jobs or quitting even when you were on medication?
Wow, those are good questions. Let's see....

Job #1. I worked in a library and the supervisor was nutty. She micromanaged so badly and I resisted her every inch of the way. I had panic attacks about going to work. I was bored most of the time with nothing to do. Found excuses to either not go to work or not work when I got there. Was late to work many days and received reprimands.

Job #2. Library work again. Very bored with my work. Called out "sick" way too many times. No motivation to do my work when I was there.

Job #3. Kept busy as a secretary but hated the job and started butting heads with my supervisor. Within 3 days things became so tense I just blew my gasket and walked in after lunch and quit. Not a wise move.

Job #4. Very bored in library work again. Called out sick too many days. was making careless errors and getting in big trouble for it. This time I was doing accounting type work for the library and I just couldn't catch my mistakes. Had another extreme micro-manager who I despised and I began having bad panic attacks about my work and about having to interact with her. Found another library job I thought would be better but....

Job #5. This supervisor wasn't a micromanager but she was a b&*ch. I was also trying to juggle graduate school and full time work. Bad idea! She had not tact and one day one of her criticisms sent me over the edge. We had a conference with HR and I got mad and quit. Again. That's when I had a nervous breakdown and had to go into the hospital for a few nights.

Job #6 & 7. Retail Management. Enjoyed the work but again, I resisted authority. On Job #7 I kept making mistakes and my boss was a perfectionist who did nothing but criticize me. I hated him and obsessed about how much I hated him. Somehow I kept going, panic attacks and all, and got promoted but within a week after being promoted I became so overwhelmed with the pressure I was putting on myself and the pressure my boss was putting on me I began having severe panic attacks. I freaked out and had to quit. Then and there.

In hindsight I don't know if I would have done things differently because during all of these jobs I didn't know I had ADD! I was on medication for depression and anxiety but not for the real root of the problem. I suppose if I had taken a step back and taken a deep breath on jobs #3 and #7 I could've kept them. But finding a way to tell someone I needed a mental health break wasn't easy. I don't know what my next work experience will be like with medication. I can only hope it will be better!!!

Bekahboo,

Wow, the examples you gave sounded very familiar. I have had many of the same experiences in the past - but people just thought that I was lazy and that I would rather stay at home and do nothing. Bad work ethic so to speak.

I have to say that I can't do a job that I don't like. Meaning if I don't have some remote interest in the job, I will ultimately get fired for lack of performance. Like they say, everyone hates their job - but for me, I have to like my job to some degree to keep it. Otherwise, I am going for lunch and not coming back (which I have done a few times).

I don't mean to sound sexist or whatever, but I have learned that I can't work for women with my ADD condition - which is a pretty bold statement. But in my experiences - I get along great with men bosses, but it's the women bosses that want to fire me. I think it is because women are more organized and have more attention to detail over men, so they notice my careless mistakes right away and the men didn't. I was able to fly under the radar with the men, but the women were there to point out my every mistake.

Seems like you have had some similar female boss problems from your examples. But I know what you mean with the panic attacks and hating the job.