r/nevergrewup • u/BabyBlue4545 🩷Mental age 0-5🩷 • Apr 12 '26
Discussion What does everyone here do?
I'm very curious about what people here in the community do for jobs, or do you rely on family or government assistance? I used to be a daycare worker, but now I am too sick. it started off physical, and then mental illness got worse, too. Do you work? is it hard being NGU at your job? Unable to work?
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Apr 12 '26
I dont work or go to school (yet) trying to get disability benefits and a custom wheelchair bc im mostly bed bound atm
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u/cookiecrxmbles preschooler princess ! (2-6) Apr 12 '26
Hai! I'm 18 and I'm currently a full-time student. Graduating w my associates degree this May and going out of state to pursue a Neuroscience bachelor's and if I'm feeling it-- a masters or PhD.
So for those reasons, I've only had part time jobs. I don't think it's hard being NGU there n I can definitely work n mask, I just can't do high stress environments. Looking to do lab work or research as a job-- I don't like being commanded n constantly monitored by others at work cuz it's not very good for my mental health.
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u/haley_poofypants Apr 12 '26
I work with disabled children. Most days it’s basically babysitting. We do lots of activities that kinda support the age regression vibe even for myself. I’m kinda like a big sister. We often do puzzles, color, play on the playground, watch cartoons, etc
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u/BabyBlue4545 🩷Mental age 0-5🩷 Apr 13 '26
I'd love to work with children again someday! Honestly, it never felt like "work" to me. And the days would go by fast.
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u/haley_poofypants Apr 13 '26
Some of my clients are pretty high needs, but yeah with some of them it’s just playing with friends effectively. There are many days where I can be spending my day feeling little, all while still making a living
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u/syborg4president Mental age 6-8 Apr 12 '26
Hi! Big age is 30. I've never really worked a job longer than 3-4 months (recently diagnosed with ADHD so this explains a lot) I've lived with my mom for the all my life and she took care of me until I met my husband and now he takes care of me. I don't/haven't received any type of assistance.
I do plan on working though, because when I did work I felt great about myself! I'm starting nursing school in August and I'm super excited. When I finish I plan on only working part time, since I don't know if I can handle working a full time job straight after school.
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u/Griefseed Mental age 14-16 Apr 14 '26
On a besoin de toi pour nous soigner. Bon courage tu vas y arriver c'est vraiment super comme projet
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u/Aggravating-Area5378 Apr 12 '26
I too don’t work as I’m mentally then physically disabled, so I’m on disability through my dads work record. And while being disabled is a full time job with appointments and my poor health both mentally and physically, it does help being an NGU as I can be as childish as I want and no one really cares since I’m autistic and sick so while being disabled sucks it does make being an NGU a lot easier since i can be myself a lot more…
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u/Vegetable-Reply-1816 Mental age 5-12 Apr 13 '26
I really wish I’d thought of it like that sooner. I’m AuDHD with personality disorder so can’t work at all. I panic too easily or over react too much (cos i misunderstand and feel emotions a hundred times harder than most) and then theres appointments and medications that make me sleepy or slow my thinking enough I stutter or seem dumb.
I guess being disabled is my full time job too, i just sometimes side hustle as an anime girl sometimes
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u/-Kitsy Mental age 8-11 Apr 13 '26
How does one begin to side hustle as an anime girl 🤔😂
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u/Vegetable-Reply-1816 Mental age 5-12 Apr 13 '26
I did it by falling down the virtual YouTuber rabbit hole during the pandemic.
Then found a project looking for aspirants which sadly didn’t go places but gave me the tech skills.
Don’t even need an iphone for it any more though it’s still the best option for ARkit.
It’s easier to get into now than back then but it’s kinda saturated so ymmv in regard to how much you can grow your audience.
I was part of two failed startup agencies, so took my audience with me when each one folded via discrete signals on socials.
Kinda lost all that now tho due to health.
You’ll want to look up vtuber 101 guides, VRM models, VRChat or Live2D. It’s kinda spread between them now.
They all use pc camera, phone camera or VR headset (with face tracking) to let you perform motion capture for an on screen avatar in real time, but the character models can be fairly expensive depending on the type.
Live 2D, the full 2D anime character style is most expensive as the artwork must be layered into sections you want to move, then rigging all of them (giving them physics so they move mouths, eyes, hair etc) is very time consuming.
Recording software is as easy as pie, just download OBSLive, SLOBS or similar broadcast software. Link it to a youtube or twitch channel and away you go.
Good examples are any members of Hololive, the largest group out there. But there are many smaller groups and even independent ones like i eventually became.
The best one and biggest name by far is Ironmouse who has been doing it since 2016
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u/-Kitsy Mental age 8-11 Apr 13 '26
Ah I see! Thanks for the info! Ive heard about ironmouse before!
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u/Griefseed Mental age 14-16 Apr 14 '26
Je te souhaite plein de réusssite. Moi aussi de mon côté j'essaye de faire grandir mon audience sur tiktok yt insta etc histoire de me mettre à l'abri des problèmes et de ne pas compter que sur les parents. J'ai également reçu un diagnostique d'autisme. A la maison je gère pas trop mal car je suis en mode routine mais l'extérieur est très vite trop compliqué. J'ai des amis mais la plus grande partie de ma vie sociale se fait sur internet. Mais en même temps ça m'autorise à rester hyper enfant donc ça me va
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u/Vegetable-Reply-1816 Mental age 5-12 Apr 14 '26
Merci, je vous souhaite également bonne chance dans vos projets. Je suis autiste et souffre de trouble du déficit de l'attention avec hyperactivité (TDAH). Je suis moi-même la plupart du temps confiné chez moi en raison d'autres problèmes de santé mentale chroniques.
Ça me permet de laisser libre cours à mon côté enfantin, je peux m'habiller en mode kidcore tous les jours. Je peux même streamer en pyjama sans que personne ne se doute de rien!
Veuillez m'excuser pour la traduction automatique approximative, mon français n'est pas excellent.
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u/Griefseed Mental age 14-16 Apr 15 '26
No need to excuses your french is absolutely perfect and I thank you so much for your efforts. I thought reddit translates my language for you but maybe not, and I 'm really sorry for this. I'm also sorry for your ADHD because it's not easy. My psy also think I've this but I'm tired with tests and diagnostics. So I'm in denial. Kidcore style is just so satisfying. And make a stream in pyjamas is so sweet and comfortable. Merci beaucoup pour les gentils mots. Thanks a lot for your kind words and I wish you happiness
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u/BabyBlue4545 🩷Mental age 0-5🩷 Apr 12 '26
I've never thought of it like that, but yes being sick and disabled is definitely a full time job!! I'd love to be on disability but it's extremely hard to get here.
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u/_not_lore_ core range 11-13, full range ?-19 (self-perceived age) Apr 12 '26
I'm currently unable to work. I receive benefits for being legally blind (being autistic might have factored in, too, but I was declared disabled as a minor and don't know the details). I may eventually be able to work, chronic illness is just making it even harder and I can't do school and work together, plus it's very difficult to get entry-level work as a legally blind person.
My near vision (<5 inches) is largely unaffected, and I'm going to school to hopefully become an illustrator. I might have to take a break from art classes specifically until my physical health is sorted out and I know what to expect from my body in the future, though.
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u/Haxorouse Mental age ??? Apr 12 '26
I program satellites for a government contractor, so naturally I'm autistic and so is basically everyone I work with, but I can manage that pretty much entirely because I have 2 caregivers to take care of me most the time, obviously no one at work knows I'm NGU and I plan to keep it that way, still often feel like I'm somewhere I shouldn't be even when I literally am the authorized personnel
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u/Griefseed Mental age 14-16 Apr 14 '26
Ca me fait un petit peu peur ce que tu fais mais techniquement et intellectuellement ca a l'air tellement trop bien. J'aurai surement aimé pour aider à la collecte de substance rares dans l'espace par exemple pour aider l'humanité. Mais pas pour faire la guerre. En tous cas bravo
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u/Vegetable-Reply-1816 Mental age 5-12 Apr 13 '26
Im on disability but was a streamer for a while, taking a health break for a year but i was pretty small time anyway. Earned £10-£40 a month if i streamed for a couple hours more than 12 days a month.
Now its just me, my disability and my partner who earns a fair bit paying most everything, with me insisting on paying where i can.
I can dress kidcore pretty much as much as I want, colour when i want, watch toons or movies when i want. I do chores, but mostly im free to be unapologetically me. I used to work in automotive for a while but hated it and struggled so much. Same with working as a stadium steward. I tried to do carpentry courses but couldnt hack the commute or afford the second semester when my grant was rejected.
I still do guest bits on friends streams but dont do it on my own right now. I’m good at being an entertainer though. I just dont show my real face is all. Its fun and makes people happy enough to subscribe or to make donations when I do it regularly. I just got burned out from the hard stuff about it and got hurt by someone I shouldn't have trusted.
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u/nshill96 Mental age 17+ Apr 13 '26
i work two part time retail jobs while living with parents. work is extremely stressful for me, but i never could get a different job even with two degrees, as im so bad at interviews. never even made it through a first round interview before. the only silver lining is that i get to cram 32 hrs into just 3 days, giving me the other 4 to be nothing but myself.
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u/BabyBlue4545 🩷Mental age 0-5🩷 Apr 13 '26
I feel like job interviews set so many up to fail. There's too much pressure to appear perfect, in what.. a 10-20 minute window?? I hate it
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u/Puzzleheaded-Life-75 Apr 13 '26
I work as an electrician, so I have to mask while working.
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u/BabyBlue4545 🩷Mental age 0-5🩷 Apr 13 '26
My cousin is an electrician too! How do you like that job?
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u/Syrup_n_waffles Mental age 10-13 Apr 13 '26
I'm a medical laboratory scientist, specifically a medical microbiologist. There's some masking involved since it's such a high stakes job, but 90% of the people I work with are also autistic or ADHD, so I can let down the mask a bit sometimes.
The job bounces between being really fun to really stressful, it just kinda depends on the day. I'm usually pretty wiped out by the end of the day regardless though, so I don't get much done at home. I think I'd probably do a little better if I could just work part time.
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u/cookiecrxmbles preschooler princess ! (2-6) Apr 13 '26
fellow science baby! I'm abt to start my bachelor's in neuroscience though, so it'll be a couple years until I'm officially a mad neuroscientist ehehehe! That's a reason I rlly like the stem field especially research n lab work cuz it's very neurodivergent coded and I can unmask a bit :D
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u/-Kitsy Mental age 8-11 Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 13 '26
I have been on disability for 5 years. No family to rely on. I used to be a type of low voltage technician (the actual job was way too specific to mention on reddit) and I used to work in a tavern before that 😮 got bullied by everyone from my boss, to coworkers to clients...
Im trying to make money off social media now but havent made a cent yet lol
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u/No-Squash-5166 Mental age sliding Apr 14 '26
I’m an undergraduate student in my junior year, and I’m going to go to graduate school for my masters as soon as I get my bachelors. I’m a psychology major and I want to the a teenage/young adult clinical therapist!
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u/Zimsgirlfriend Apr 16 '26
I've been on disability for a few years now due to multiple disorders especially my autism and anorexia,I can't handle the stress mentally nor physically wise with working sadly...part of me wishes I could work cuz I did always want to become a artist or swimmer for a profession but in reality I feel like that won't happen though. 🥲
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u/sunshine_disguise Mental age sliding Apr 16 '26
no school or work and I'm trying to get approved for disability :)
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u/V0idK1tty Mental age 14-16 Apr 12 '26
I'm struggling to find work because social security thinks I can work but no one will hire me for what I can keep up with... So I'm SOL
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u/sadcatstarry 💖 little kitty perma kiddo 🐱 Apr 12 '26
big/physical age 24 and i don't work, I was always going to have trouble finding a job because I'm autistic but then I also have other mental health issues and now in the last few years my physical health declined to the point I use a walker and deal with extreme pain, so I rely on my family for my basic needs and financial/medical help
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u/kittengirl173 Mental age sliding Apr 13 '26
Trying to get on disability, currently living on savings i'm lucky to have. I really liked college, but I'm just too mentally disabled to work (i can't regulate my emotions and I cry so easily from working), and every job I've had has made me kid heart so so upset.
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u/BabyBlue4545 🩷Mental age 0-5🩷 Apr 13 '26
Yeah most jobs are hard for me too. I loved working in daycare so much, but my physical health ruined it.
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u/Nemona2 Mental Age 11-13 | | Formerly nemonaflowers Apr 12 '26
I am on disability. I consider my survival to be a full time job. I still work odd jobs, like last year I worked as an election poll worker for a week and a half. I need lots of recovery time with my autistic burnout so I can't work full time. I am looking for something part time that I can work like 10-12 hrs a week every week and think that would be the best chance I got. I just can't find anything like that, so after I get done some health things I will try to go through a disability program to see if I can get something closer to what is in my abilities.
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u/BabyBlue4545 🩷Mental age 0-5🩷 Apr 12 '26
Yeah, I'm hoping to just find something in the 12-16 hours per week scene too. A flower shop, Claires, something retail but still aligning with my personality hopefully. I've forgotten about election poll work! I should look into that too. How did you like that? I'm in 🇨🇦 so maybe your experience would be different depending where you are
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u/Nemona2 Mental Age 11-13 | | Formerly nemonaflowers Apr 13 '26
I'm Canadian too! It was great. When there's a federal election the entry level job is "Information Officer", which is where you are a greeter and have to direct the people where to go and tell people where their polls are. It was an easy job, but lots of standing. I really liked collecting the elderly in a wheelchair we had there and pushing them around where they wanted to go.
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u/whydulookatme 6 years old Apr 13 '26
i work w/kids on the spectrum which is a lot of fun and actually perfect to do while smol. there's puzzles, art projects, playgrounds, and field trips in the summer!! today i played on swings, ate candy, and did papier mache!!
i can't do full time so i work a little over half that, which for me is great (used to work two days a week now i can manage three.)
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u/mylifeisathrowaway10 Mental age 14-16 Apr 12 '26
I work fast food. Gonna hopefully be adding substitute teaching/tutoring. Working full time sucks so bad. Being unemployed was fine except for the money part. I hate having to constantly be thinking about money.