I was diagnosed quite early in life. My mum was told I would never have friends, a spouse or get a good job. She knew that was rubbish. I remember I had a great sense of right and wrong.
Those traits stuck with me. I can get tunnel vision every now and then. It can be hard for me to keep pace with conversations. My interactions with others used to be like student and teacher. If someone was talking, I presumed the polite thing to do was to look at them and be quiet until they had finished. So much of natural conversation involves near interrupting each other. The report put in writing what my girlfriend and other disabled legal professionals had been saying.
We had confirmation that disabled and neurodivergent people in the law are struggling more than they need to be. But, for neurodivergent solicitors, the profession has improved.
My firm had almost an entire day on autism training, trying to understand what we should do to improve the experiences of autistic employees. I also have a desk facing a wall because it helps keep distractions out of the way. It's important to foster a psychologically safe environment. People have to feel safe. It's difficult if you encounter an employer unwilling to make adjustments. When I was looking for a training contract, most had rigid requirements.
But my firm were willing to look beyond that. During my training contract, I found a community. I realised the Law Society had a network for junior lawyers who were giving support and guidance. I joined an associated local group where I found people going through similar things to me.
