[blackwhitered]

So I'm 18 and have had active schizoaffective disorder/schizophrenia for about 3 years now...

I basically have no work experience or community service because I was trying to focus on school freshman, sophomore, and the beginning of junior year. Halfway through junior year I was hospitalized for the first of many times...

Because of how my retarded school system worked, they refused to let me finish my junior year. I'm now in a different school system that managed to scrape together credits from previous years (I took very advanced classes) to get me enough credits to graduate provided I finish one English class...

I know nothing about how to get a job, credit, insurance, I don't have a license, etc. and basically don't know how to do anything by myself...

If anyone has any resources on how to get started, it would be very helpful...

[live2ski66]

First and most important, congratulations on your determination to finish HS, join the workforce and learn the essentials of living in a community. You are very brave and should be commended.
I don't know about Pittsburgh, I assume it would have similar government funded programs. We have Boulder County Mental Health Office. They have a ton of resources. Your Doc might be able to point you in the correct direction if you tell him what you would like to learn. The local college, and the school district have a number of non-credit classes on just about everything. You might also find information on the Internet.
Good luck and let us know how it is going.

[ladytiger]

check out your state gov's programs on youth and i found this out at age 24 that they can help youth find work. i think it's 18-23 or 21 they help them and put them in a work program. now, i don't know how it runs in other states and don't know how it runs in the state i live in. i wish i would have known that when i was in high school and out of high school starting college.

[blackwhitered]

Thanks for the advice.

The one thing that bothers me is that pretty much all the jobs I wanted as a kid and into high school are now things I can't do... Pilot is obviously out because of the psych issues, at one point I wanted to be a firefighter, but my ED makes the physical demands unrealistic... considered joining the army which is out... my last dream was to be in the CIA but I know I wouldn't get in and even if I did, it would just make me paranoid...

Now I've decided I want to study journalism or film so I can make documentaries. No idea how to get started or which schools to go to because I've had to change all my plans...

[Secretum]

I recently graduated from college, and almost everyone I've met here has changed his or her major at least once. Most people don't have any clue what they want to do when they are 18...and even if you commit to a career path, if you decide you don't like it you can always go back to school and get a different job. My mom has a friend who has had 3 careers!

My advice would be to go to college and take a bunch of general courses to explore your interests. A college degree is a way to get your foot in the door with many professions, even if what you studied has nothing to do with your job (a friend of a friend was a biology major, now works for an auto insurance company)! College can be expensive, but there are ways to make it affordable. You could always start out at a community college, where the cost is typically lower. If you are worried that your illness will make college hard, my personal experience was that high school was much more stressful than college. Also, most colleges offer services for students with disabilities. You might even be able to get a scholarship for your experiences with your illness.

[FourEyesAK]

Originally Posted by blackwhitered

Thanks for the advice.

The one thing that bothers me is that pretty much all the jobs I wanted as a kid and into high school are now things I can't do... Pilot is obviously out because of the psych issues, at one point I wanted to be a firefighter, but my ED makes the physical demands unrealistic... considered joining the army which is out... my last dream was to be in the CIA but I know I wouldn't get in and even if I did, it would just make me paranoid...

Now I've decided I want to study journalism or film so I can make documentaries. No idea how to get started or which schools to go to because I've had to change all my plans...

I'm 35 and I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up

One thing I have learned is that getting a college degree will open more doors for you. While I personally think college degrees are vastly overrated in comparison to experience, a lot of times no matter how much experience you have, a college degree is a foot in the door and more often a basic requirement for even entry level positions. That's why I'm back at college after 10 years trying to complete my BA in Economics.

Like Secretum said, you could look into local junior colleges and work towards an associates first and get that under your belt and decide if you want to transfer to a larger four-year school. Make an appointment with a college counselor. There should be a website with contact information for their advising and counseling departments. They can go over how it all works and help you get enrolled/admitted and suggest classes to get you started. Also, most colleges have services that are available for students who may be experiencing physical or mental challenges. My best friend is very bipolar and utilized her school's disability services office to assist her in staying on track. She successfully completed 2 bachelor's degrees. Yeah, it took her 7 years (she took a year off at one point), but it is such a great accomplishment for her, especially since she had several stints in the hospital, as well.

Good luck

[FourEyesAK]

Originally Posted by Secretum

I recently graduated from college, and almost everyone I've met here has changed his or her major at least once. Most people don't have any clue what they want to do when they are 18...and even if you commit to a career path, if you decide you don't like it you can always go back to school and get a different job. My mom has a friend who has had 3 careers!

My advice would be to go to college and take a bunch of general courses to explore your interests. A college degree is a way to get your foot in the door with many professions, even if what you studied has nothing to do with your job (a friend of a friend was a biology major, now works for an auto insurance company)! College can be expensive, but there are ways to make it affordable. You could always start out at a community college, where the cost is typically lower. If you are worried that your illness will make college hard, my personal experience was that high school was much more stressful than college. Also, most colleges offer services for students with disabilities. You might even be able to get a scholarship for your experiences with your illness.

That's the truth! My brother-in-law has a degree in biology and actually worked for the state fish and game department and now he's a wine salesman and has been for 15 years. My sister has a degree in finance and works in insurance/commercial bonds. A friend has a computer science degree and is now a photographer.

And when I started out in college (17 years ago - gah!) I was going for an Associate of Arts in Small Business, but the accounting classes were awful, so I switched my major to English, but then there was too much boring reading (don't me wrong, I love reading, but assigned reading isn't nearly as fun). Now I'm an economics major. I actually really enjoy it and I don't think I would have discovered that had I not gotten a job at a bank. I think if I had stronger math skills I really would have enjoyed the hard sciences, especially geology or astrophysics.