So I was diagnosed with ADHD in my late thirties and before that I was a mess, job to job etc. then got lucky and worked for a company that afforded me the chance to study for my dream job without work pressure.
I am now a software developer and although I went from being the smartest person in the groups I roamed to the dumbest person at work I still have half a foot in my old life of drugs and poor decisions (although the usage has dropped by 95% and I’ve got a good routine and go to bed early).
I feel like a pretentious dick when at a party and someone asks what I do for work, I kinda feel ashamed saying I’m a software developer. Like a fraud I guess.
How to stop this?
To me you turning your life around sounds impressive. Despite your condition you achieved something awesome. Software developer sounds like as good a job as any. Absolutely respectable in my book. And you got plenty of time to climb the career ladder.
Also if you hang with lots of smart people and don’t think of yourself as smart, chances are you are smarter than you give yourself credit for.
Thanks for the kind words, it was a struggle and I was fortunate to have lots of support.
You’re right in that I do devalue myself.