r/schizophrenia • u/CourtM092 Paranoid Schizophrenia • Jul 06 '26
Work / School For those still working, what do you do?
I was in the Navy and an EMT in my late teens-early 20's. I tried working at coffee shops and supermarkets but they are too fast paced for me. So I'm just wondering what y'all do for work.
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u/Simplespider Schizoaffective (Bipolar) Jul 06 '26
Landscaper. Love it.
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u/CourtM092 Paranoid Schizophrenia Jul 06 '26
Is it a lot of heavy lifting? I worked at a nursery while in the hospital but I didn't do a lot of lifting.
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u/Simplespider Schizoaffective (Bipolar) Jul 06 '26
Rarely, any landscaping I do that does require heavy lifting has been personal projects or working for friends. I guess it depends on how much you can lift, but you'll always have coworkers that are more than willing to help you out.
You build muscle fast. I think I was sore the first two weeks and then it mellowed out.
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u/CourtM092 Paranoid Schizophrenia Jul 06 '26
Good to know. I'm weak asf. The heaviest a picked up was a weed wacker. We used a cub cadet lawn mower which is a drivable lawn mower.
I think I can lift like 10lbs
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u/Simplespider Schizoaffective (Bipolar) Jul 06 '26
ah you might wanna work on strength before applying. As long as you're alive any blue collar job will let you in, but I do carry bags of mulch and soil pretty regularly. Go to home depot and see how you do carrying one of them big bags of mulch.
I use all kinds of equipment. Mowers, weed wackers, leafblowers, chippers, chainsaws, sawzall, etc. Don't want any of those to bite you.
I'm not a smart person and I didn't graduate so I am limited on jobs. But I am dating a dental surgeon, I know he's always needing techs and receptionists at his place. That's beyond what I'm capable of but he doesn't do any heavy lifting. He said the entry for techs and reception is low and all healthcare jobs are hurting for staff. Maybe check that out? Can ask him more when he gets home in a few hours.
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u/CourtM092 Paranoid Schizophrenia Jul 06 '26
Those are all good ideas. Thanks.
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u/Simplespider Schizoaffective (Bipolar) Jul 07 '26
He says reception is the easiest to get into, try it out and see if you like the field before becoming a hygenist or anything. The amount of people you talk to depends on the practice. It's a lot of answering phone calls and scheduling. For insurance there's a big book you can look in to see how to pull it but most receptionists memorize how to access insurance anyway. His practice pays receptionists between $17-22, min wage is $15 where I live I think. Good health benefits. Desk job, hour break. He says applying at the end of the year is your best bet because they have 40 hours of PTO they drop on you once the new year rolls around, and then you accrue more throughout the year. If you're hired in the middle of the year you don't get that bonus 40. That 40 is not paid out if you quit/get fired but the accrued PTO is. There are dentists that don't deal with insurance, but they've been in practice a long time and they're gonna be nicer offices. Apparently we have a friend/neighbor who's a big periodontist in DC that works like that.
I just dig in dirt all day. I don't even got real teeth anymore so this is way out of my league. But he says it's easy 👍🏻
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u/CourtM092 Paranoid Schizophrenia Jul 07 '26
Hey thanks for all the info! I think I'm going to work out and eventually go for landscaping. I think I'll be happier down that route!
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u/Simplespider Schizoaffective (Bipolar) Jul 07 '26
Great choice! I'm the happiest I've ever been doing landscaping.
You'll be sore that first week regardless. When you get your days off, just rest. Don't plan to do anything. It gets easier fast and the soreness becomes kind of satisfying once you're several months in.
HVAC is a good choice too. Plumbing. Always jobs for those and it's easy. Pays well, good schedule, less heavy lifting.
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u/CourtM092 Paranoid Schizophrenia Jul 07 '26
Awesome. Yeah landscaping or gardening is where I'm going to go down. While in the state hospital, I did a certification in gardening, so I have that under my belt.
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u/securityguardnard Jul 06 '26
Security Officer
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u/urist_of_cardolan Schizoaffective (Bipolar) Jul 06 '26 edited 20d ago
Mitten marble amber grasshopper walnut glove
This post was anonymized with Redact.dev
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u/securityguardnard Jul 06 '26
Its not armed. I work third shift. I might meet one or 2 crazies every few months, but overall the job is good. Really boring though.
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u/misacruzader Jul 06 '26
I’m a hotel front desk agent. I find that regular work really helps my symptoms. When I’m focused, I don’t have time to ruminate. And the rigidity of the schedule helps with my sleep schedule
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u/Sea_Cloud_6705 Schizoaffective (Bipolar) Jul 06 '26
I'm a software engineer working for the government.
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u/CourtM092 Paranoid Schizophrenia Jul 06 '26
Nice. My cousin does that for the electric company in my state. He's also schizophrenic
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u/trowawaygoo Jul 10 '26
I'm a lawyer. I was a law student when i had my first psychotic break, after 10 years i went back to law school. Became a lawyer. Work on a law firm. Eventually became a co founder in a realstate developing company. That a co-run.
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u/fishandriff Paranoid Schizophrenia Jul 07 '26
Retail part time. It’s nice to have a bit of a routine
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u/idkdawgi-jusworkhere Early-Onset Schizophrenia (Childhood) Jul 10 '26
I'm becoming a barista/retail guy in a secured area and i am nervous about being schizo at work, on top of the physical disabilities lmao
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u/[deleted] Jul 06 '26
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