Top 10 Anxiety-Friendly Jobs

SA is such a burden. I desperately want to have a successful career, but sometimes I can barely leave the house.

Whoever this "r" person is up there needs to learn what an anxiety disorder actually is and have some empathy! Who do you think you are, telling people who can barely function doing daily activities that they they're just giving up too soon? It's people like "r" that make living with an anxiety disorder so hard! They think we should have had more coffee, taken more pills, or pushed ourselves harder. I AM LIVING PROOF THAT IDEA DOESN'T WORK! I tried to commit suicide after person after person told me I wasn't trying hard enough. "R", go fly a kite and learn some empathy.

I agree with the whole job list that you have posted , I am currently working as a prep cook but it does get stressful at times , I'm actually thinking of quitting and helping my step father on his landscaping business , I am truly happy to see that there are people just like me, cause sometimes I do feel like an outcast but I sympathize with all of you and wish you guys peace , love and positivity

Having mental illness and keeping a job has been the most challenging thing in my life. The only job I liked and felt good at was working at a few golf courses. That job can't pay all the bills though so I headed into corporate America. I got customer service jobs and it was very stressful and I felt overwhelmed a lot. I survived for years and had my fair share of breakdowns and anger outbursts. Anxiety even had me freeze up a few times when I just couldn't take another call from a frustrated customer. I hate feeling that way and it's hard to get anyone to understand why I feel the way I do. Even I still don't fully understand it. I can't just think positively and everything is going to be okay. I wish it was that simple. I wish everyone with any form of mental illness good luck in trying to find a job that you can cope with.

I am a nurse, and I recently had to quit my job due to anxiety and depression. It seems that a lot nurses also suffer from these disorders. I was constantly stressed, overwhelmed and would worry that something got missed and something would happen to one of my patients. Things happen unexpectedly and I constantly found myself on edge afraid of what would happen next. I would even worry about patients, or if I had made any mistakes etc. on my days off .
I desperately want to leave this career, but I have people telling me not to give up. I am young, and I do not want to live the rest of working years being miserable and anxious.
Anyone else in the same situation?

Lol, I love the article and all of the comments. And although, yes, I do agree with many of the occupations not being generally good for all, I think it depends on the severity of ones illness, and personality, age, etc. It's hard to start schooling/training again when one is older and having to provide for oneself too! I think the top choices for me at this moment are working with animals (not in an office, but along the lines of equine therapy or farm work, its hard but there is much help needed in those area lately) and music therapy or anything with music. One can teach music privately or play for churches or private events. Those are the only two I can think of, for myself, that seem doable at this point (almost 33 :( ). Instead of landscaping, maybe organic farming or any farm work or working in some sort of botanical garden (which sometimes requires a degree as well). Also archiving (not librarian) is good, but also requires advanced degrees.

This is great thank you, I am very anxious in work as I have to multi task, and now they want me to do a admin qualification. Me being me has said Ok, because I don't like letting anyone down, but I am getting all worked up for it. Need a job were I don't speak to anyone, and I can go in and come home. One of the things I have to disagree on is working with children. I did this for 20 years and the times have changed, more paper work, more children, more hours rubbish pay. I had to leave working with children as my anxiety hit the roof because of it. Thank you for putting this on I totally agree with working with animals, so therapeutic xxx

Another thing about lorry driving is that in the not too distant future could DRIVERLESS technology take over? They are allready trialling driverless cars. Ive seen on youtube lorry drivers controlled robotically are much more efficient than humans in reducing traffic jams. For anxiety I think WORK from HOME jobs are best bet. No worry about social interaction, appearance (for those with body dysmorphic disorder bdd), travelling time to and from work, save money on transport, uniform/clothing. There are not many 100% work from home jobs entirely. Some require a little attendance here and there. Im sure in the near future there will be an influx in work from home jobs due to internet, IT and new technology.

...And medications for side effects) are hard to tolerate. The medications make the negative symptoms of the illness worse. Sedation, fatigue, apathy, avolition, no motivation, no desire for life are caused by the medications. There was a course on futurelearn about psychosis and schizophrenia. There is a doctor doing research into negative symptoms. So glad that this area is being looked into as this area is highly neglected by psychiatrists.

Hi Alan. What a coincidence. I was thinking about lorry driving too actually. You would be on your own in peace. I enjoy driving however lorryy drivers have typically long days. I wonder if part-time is offered and commonplace. I have OCD and Schizoeffective disorder. Im currently managing on disability money and support from family luckily. But I really want to be independent and functional. I can drive. My mind is highly unstable and its hard to tolerate. I am researching for a cure for my mental illness. The medications (antipsychotics, mood stabilisers, antidepressants, sleeping tablets, anti-anxiety

To throw another idea in, I've been thinking about lorry driving. Quite an investment in terms of time, but I hear it's a job in demand. Some companies will loan you the training fees.
I certainly wouldn't mind the 'being alone for long periods of time' element.
I had a spell of working as a copywriter/editor/proofreader for two companies for two years which was perfect - could work from home. Great work if you can get it. They both went bankrupt (not because of me, I don't think :).
There's also translating, if you know another language.

I've lived my anxiety all through my childhood even now as a mom of 3 on my own stuffer everyday with nerves anxiety with depression it's hard to find a job as I'm not one to mix with people not many people understand what's it's like to live like this

I am 54 and after I was brutally attack 10 years ago my anxiety and depression have taken over my life. It has effected my job/jobs, family life and the majority of my friendships. I have struggled with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Social Anxiety most of my life. Some counseling helped me with coping skills. But now I am reaching out online for more tools to help me deal with my struggles right now. I find your article and others comments very helpful. I would love to be a writer and help others with these issues but I struggle so with organizing my mind to make what I want to say come out understandable.

Thanks, this is a useful article. A lot of people are picking at some of the choices but on the whole it has got us all thinking about what jobs can minimise anxiety and why. As anxiety and its triggers are different for different people so too will be the appropriate jobs.
K

One thing that helps me is to break my workday up into little chunks. Breaking things into smaller bits is one of my main strategies for living with anxiety.
I can't face up to a whole day at work, but I can face it in 15 or 30 minute intervals. I kind of see it like crossing a creek by hopping from one stone to the next. I don't focus on getting though the day, I focus on getting through the next 15 minutes, one chunk at a time. I also try to stay focused on the task at hand, or what I'm doing right this minute.
I'm finding that practicing these two things at work makes the day more tolerable, and that the practice gets easier the more I do it.
Here's some more info about mindfulness:
http://www.healthyplace.com/search/?q=mindfulness&Itemid=99999
Hope this helps.

Hi Greg,
Thanks for replying to my post.
You have no idea how much of a relief it is to hear that someone understands. Although in saying that I feel for you also because I understand how painful and difficult it is. I am in therapy and was taking medication but stopped the medication because I didn't find it was helping. If anyone is taking medication please don't stop taking it immediately. It has serious side affects and can be dangerous. I have tried other medication in the past some of which has helped but I'm fed up with trying to manage my weight all of the time as well as other side effects.
The therapy is ok but I find it's not really addressing my issue.
I also suffer from very low self esteem.
Do you have any suggestions as to how I can get through the anxiety at work? I don't think I get panic attacks as such but when I have an anxiety attack it feels to me very life threatening and I tend to just want to avoid the situation ie going to work. I also just feel like I want to walk away from it and avoid it altogether. This in turn makes me feel guilty and ashamed. Everyday the cycle repeats itself. Right now I am dreading going in tomorrow.

I am 35 years old and have struggled with this since I finished uni in my mid 20s. I've had so many jobs and there have been a couple that I've just walked away from without notice because I've panicked so much that I can't bring myself to go in or face anyone. At the moment I've held a job for approx. 5 years which seems like a long time but the work environment is fast paced and can be toxic. I made the mistake of taking on a supervisory role which initially went well or so I thought, until a few months ago when I had another nervous breakdown and asked to step down to my former position. Now I'm having panic anxiety attacks again even in the lower paid position. Just thinking about work I get extreme anxiety. I am in a highly anxious state all day long! Non stop. I've called in sick so many times. I wish there was a group for people like me. Then I try and explain it to my husband and he just doesn't understand it and starts to get angry with me or thinks I'm lazy. Today he said to me that it looks like I won't be able to work because I've had these issues with every job I've held. I want to work but my low self esteem issues, anxiety and depression make my life very limiting and at times debilitating.

I am reading through all of this and I am relating so well to everything. I have ADHD and anxiety. I have had two main jobs and they all have ended up with me in tears a lot. The issue is that my doctor won't give me back my ADHD medication unless I find a job or something but I really don't know what to do. I don't have a college degree and I am 35 years old.

I recently quit my new cna job after just the first day. On my second scheduled day I couldn't stop crying long enough to go to work and had a panic attack. Talked to my family since we all deal with anxiety and they said it wouldn't be healthy for me if it's stressing me out that much. So I quit. I'm in college and now I don't even want to pursue the medical field like I thought I did. I don't know what to do anymore. I've changed my major so many times over the past 3 years because I can't think of something that fits me and my anxiety. I did well at my data entry/file clerk job and had lower anxiety but more depression. I really want to finish school and have a good career but this anxiety is so hard to live with. I can't see myself doing any of the jobs on this list but maybe it will help me narrow it down.

I would have to disagree with the childcare one. I worked at one for 6 months and while I was there I had two anxiety attacks one at work in front of the kids. Granted, it was mostly from the fact that the people I worked with were people who didn't know how to be team players and would give me the silent treatment like the adults we are. But from what I have heard, a lot of other childcare places aren't much better. It really is a big deal to those of us with anxiety to work at a place were the coworkers are nice and helpful and the management is as well.

Yeah, I was about to say that Nurse Aides (also called CNAs) have the worst part of nursing. They take DIRECT care of the patients. They feed them, wash them, change their bedding, etc. Absolutely NO way is that a social-anxiety friendly job! You've been warned.

I also have that anger problem where I start getting mad my body trembles and my face gets hot and I lash out and my only way of "handling" it is screaming, crying, or breaking something. Happens when Im obligated to do something I really dont want to do. Hasnt happened in a while thank God. Most the time this has happened ive been on my own.

I've never been able to work passed 6 months on a job. I worked in customer service. I would go home crying everyday. I tried working at a baking company which was even worse than the call center job. I lasted 3 weeks and lost 12 lbs. because I could not sit down to eat lunch because of so many people in the break area. Im trying to push myself just to call a screen printing company to ask if they are hiring. At 30 yrs old Anxiety just gets worse for me especially because I feel sooo much like a failure, good for nothing, and stupid not just because I cant or dont last in a job but because I get soo confused and forgetful and get scared just to ask someone for help or just to ask if Im doing things right. I have yet to get any professional help, I dont know what kind of doctor to go to.

Now to break down the list:
Writing: I would love. But how do you really make a living off of that?
Childcare: I love children, come from a huge family full of kids and I'm good with children. But dealing with the parents is what would get me. The being responsible for someone else's child, scared to make the tiniest mistake would send my anxiety level sky high.
Computer programmer: I'm am unqualified for.
Working with animals : LOVE I was actually thinking of looking for some jobs in veterinarian offices. With my experience being within the medical field and all. I worry it take a toll on my emotions. But I think I could deal with it.
Cleaning offices - I would like that. But I don't know of many that pay very well... and I'm on my own here finacially so I would need something I can live off of.
CNA: I addressed in my above comment.
Tutoring: eh. I don't have much expertise in anything specific. I also hate training people because I have my own way of understanding things that usually doesn't translate well to others.
Counseling: Something to consider , but requires degrees, which means more schooling and I LOVE school. (Wish I could go to school for a living) lol. But into my late 20's now I'm afraid I'm getting too old to start anything like that. And that kinda falls into the medical field , which as I described those jobs are not good for me
Cooking: I would like, I'm good at cooking and baking. I'm not a professional though. So I dont really no what kind of job I would be able to get holding no degree in that industry.
Landscaping : I like the idea of that job. But not really female friendly at least for me. I'm a pretty small female not very strong physically, nor emotionally lol. I'm just a mess.
Thank You for this list.
You have given me some things to consider.
I appreciate you taking the time to create this to help me and other like me.

I would have to disagree as well with CNA being on that list. I'm a CMA (certified medical assistant)I work in a very busy high stress doctor's office. Which has been horrible for my anxiety. I actually just had to call out of work today because of it. I couldn't imagine being a CNA. The constant interactions with patients in some of the most intimate ways. The amount of patients and responsibility, the multiple Co workers. Plus most CNA'S work in a hospital. That means no where to run. You're in high demand. You can't call off , you can't stop to catch your breath. Medical jobs in general I think are very bad for anxiety because of the importance and high demand of the jobs. Also the high levels of social interaction. Of course , getting into this field you know you're going to have to deal with patients. However, you not only have to deal with patients, often difficult. But Co workers with a more dominate personality, doctors, and multiple others. If you don't have a very outgoing ,strong, personality. This can be very difficult. Often resulting in you being overlooked, taken advantage of, and being made to feel incompetent. I'm not a "take control" kind of person. I don't want to be in charge , I would never want to be manager of anything. But I am a hard worker. I follow direction very well and am kind , smart and capable. I just have anxiety/depression. So I function a little differently then most.
I DO agree though that environment plays a huge role. Like I said my office is extremely stressful, we often work short staffed which is worse. It's a kaotic office and management is a mess. So it very well can depend on where you work. If you can find a more low key, supportive, comfortable environment where you able to complete your tasks without constant distraction and forced interactions and in an organized setting I believe that any of these jobs could be possible.
I want to look for a new job badly. This was my first in this field. Coming from retail. Which is horrible but way less stressful then my current job. I took the job because I needed it. I had no choice I was about to be homeless. Now with some experience I want to move on. But it takes me so long to get comfortable in new environments and I finally have that comfort level here. As well as a genuine like for the doctor's I work for as well as the Co workers. But the stress level and poor compensation are taking a toll on me. I'm afraid too much of a toll. Affecting me in and out of work. I'm a life long sufferer of anxiety/depression. I thought changing my circumstances , going to school, getting a better job would help me. But it's just getting worse. I fear that I will never find a career that where I can function normally without anxiety taking over.
Sorry for the long rant.
After a night of attacks I needed to vent.

This is a great start for someone like me even if the list isn't "perfect". I have OCD & Social Anxiety and for years I've regularly changed jobs about every 2 years...that is my limit before I lose it and have a breakdown. I was fired from my last job while out on medical leave, I was in therapy! Now, I'm looking for work again, but it's hard finding something low stress, plus having been fired looks bad on my resume. I'd be homeless if it wasn't for my mom. I keep applying for jobs with no luck. Yet I'm afraid to work anywhere with people because my anxiety presents with anger and I'm afraid of lashing out at clients, customers, or coworkers.
But again, this list is a good start. Thanks for sharing.

I'm a teacher and it is hell for someone with social anxiety - noise, multi-tasking, constant interaction, disgruntled students / parents / bosses. A job with animals would be my ideal. Love the list - given me some hope!

I appreciate the list as a good starting point. It would be very easy pick any of those jobs and say something against it, but for the defence of the author I need to say that everyone basically need only one or two good options. The rest of the list is not for you. For example, I very much like the job of writter and counselor as the best for me, but all the rest is not really for me. Children, cooking, landscaping, animals, and nursing are nightmares straight away. Only a thought of doing it gives me the begining of panic attack. Tutoring, programming and cleaning is considerable, but not really realistic for me anyway.
So as I said. Thanx for the article, and comment writers, it's better to be focused on finding the one or two that works for you and ignore the rest of the list. I personally am about to find more and more articles with more suggestions, so I can look at the issue from the perspective. So, good luck to everybody, as I know that anxiety is no fun. Pure suffering I would say.

Childcare is not for people with anxiety and you can panic from anxiety and scare a kid because you flipped out. I have anxiety. My mother did daycare and kids are noise. I like kids but when they get super loud (I mean noise, not music) and are constantly on you for attention, my anxiety creeps up and I have to leave-lock myself in my room and tell them I need a few minutes alone now (to calm down). Now, I get along with people. I am great talking to someone 1 on 1 or 1 on 2 at max. Probably, why I have 2 best friends only and everyone else interacts with me on "doses" throughout the year. Anxiety for me also happens when it's a group of people like more than 4 and they will not leave you alone to "think". People with anxiety need time alone to think on things...we think on things for a bit because that is how we take action... by thinking it over and over until we are satisfied with our plan. If we cannot think of anything suitable for the situation and have people not letting us think... this is what I call an anxiety attack. The mind is overwhelmed with too much, we get overwhelmed...and then feel terrible that we cannot be like everyone else. It stinks and pills don't help us.

There are a few jobs on this list that I don't agree with. Being a nurses aide was incredibly stressful. My anxiety went through the roof when people would code, doctors treat you like the scum under their feet, nurses are ungrateful at times and you get paid TERRIBLY. Same goes for child care worker. This list just didn't make sense to me.

Thank you for taking the time to make some recommendations, even if people disagree with some. I think every job is going to have moments of high stress no matter what, but your list still seems pretty thoughtful. I have really bad social anxiety and have trouble finding a job that is worthwhile, and I am still really young so I'm also thinking about college although I graduated high school in 2013. I worked for a cleaning company for a year, and the only reason I left is because of physical problems and the active job made my physical problems worse. Otherwise, I really appreciated the job and not having to deal with many people. Going into a different job made me realize just how sad humanity is, that so many people can't just be civil and kind. I honestly want my cleaning job back, even if it means suffering physically because I'd rather suffer physically than to always be depressed, anxious, and treated horribly all the time. I love writing, so it would be a dream to get any kind of job in writing, but I'm still figuring out my future and I want to be VERY careful with what I decide to do in college. Anyways, before I wander too much, I just wanted to let you know I appreciated your article and hope you get back the job you want!

I'd love to hear readers' suggestions for more truly anxiety-friendly jobs. Fire away!

This list is ridiculous. Only 4/10 (writing, computer programing, cleaning, and landscaping) do I consider doable with social anxiety. I've tried to be a prep cook twice and got kindly asked to quit after 5 weeks of one and only 2 weeks of the other. When the place wasn't too busy I was fine, but during high stress times I became dysfunctional- as if I was someone just arriving from a far away country who knew nothing about the place, people, language, or mannerisms. It's like locking up except without actually freezing in place.
I also tried to tutor math and teach dance, and while neither failed miserably, I became worse than when I started and developed worse and worse anxiety attacks before and afterward so I figured that much life taken away from me was not worth whatever money or experience I gained doing the job.
As for consular... are you serious?? I can't hold my own thoughts together let alone deal with someone elses. How many times I've taken the wrong advice, or misinterpreted good advice, or mislead someone else because, even though I had good advice, my diction, syntax, tone, body language, and every aspect of face to face speaking never aligns with my intentions. So yeah, no. I can see it now: I'd freak out before having a patient enter the room and put a note on the door saying "sorry I forgot to call earlier, we have to reschedule, family emergency, hope you're fine!" While I hid under my desk crying.
A nurse or medical assistant is probably the worst one on here. People EVERYWHERE. Even when on break you have all the secretaries and doctors doing their thing or whatever they do, and you have no place to run. Oh, and if you're not at least somewhat social to get along with coworkers, you're singled out. That's always fun. I was thinking of being a medical assistant until I heard a story that hit home and made me realize that, just because I'm older and educated doesn't mean it's going to go away. Ill still fight against my entire body and mind to go do what I know I can and need to do, I'll still have the urge to (and sometimes probably will) lock myself in a bathroom or my car just to cry and breathe through the rest of the day with my half my brain in lock down mode.
Now, I understand that working with children is different than adults. If you're anxious is less likely they'll catch on, and perhaps if you show it on occasion they'd help you and it'd be a nice bonding. Plus, being responsible for someone makes you feel more confident and able. However, I wouldn't put this as one of the "best" jobs for anxiety sufferers.
Sorry to sound so crabby, but I live with bad anxiety day in and day out, and just escaped from a family gathering. I didn't notice how bad I was until I tried to have conversation and then went to the bathroom and started crying. I'm so used to dealing with anxiety I don't notice I'm shutting it out or focusing so hard and whatever consciousness I have left over, which is blind to anxiety, is like "why am I being so awkward? Why do I lack passion? I just had joy and enthusiasm a little while ago when I was home dancing and singing as I tidied the house. Where am I?" Then I feel it, and regret leaving my listlessness. So I left, and to avoid negative thought loops I decided to think logically and strategically. I've fought this for years, and any break I get doesn't last more than 2 months (though usually it lasts a week at most) Because of having an autoimmune disease that makes me extremely tired all the time I can't take anxiety medication, even the lowest dose. So, I need to rethink what I'm going to school for, and what entry level jobs I apply for while I work towards my degree (having just been asked to quit my second attempt as a prep cook/waitstaff). This list came up as the first or second google result, and, again, sorry for being crabby but it is obviously not created by someone who understands anything. They understand as much as any psychology major, like some of the consulars I've seen who think my brain works like their college textbooks taught them.

I work in counseling and it is not anxiety-free. Some people make things way more complicated and consequently very stressful... Plus rigid standards in documentation, deadlines, etc.

Man I wanna design video games. I work as a provider and I can't get a break. I have worked of 2 years straight no days off at all and I got PTSD. I'm also an insomniac who does not sleep more than an hour and a half a night without sleep aids. I am in school, overworked and underpaid. I have a story for a game written but no company is willing to help those outside the company, and will not hire me at the moment.

The animal field is NOT a low stress job whatsoever. Interaction with humans is NOT minimized. I have been a veterinary technician for five years and have had four different jobs! Do not go into this field if you have anxiety! It can also be super depressing caring for sick animals that do not get better.

The jobs listed above are indeed ideal jobs but not everybody who has to work for a living has the luxury or opportunity to do what they love...
Any job (or life situation) can be anxiety provoking if you let it be. I have worked with the public for over 30 years. When I started out I was very shy, anxious and insecure. Over the years I've worked for some very demanding unpredictable bosses in some very stressful, noisy, fast paced environments where constant interruptions were the norm. I never thought I'd last 6 months but I did and then some. I learned to adapt because I had to. You learn what works and what doesn't and you build from there. If you keep trying and don't give up you can do just about anything you set your mind to. I am living proof. I've learned some very valuable life lessons working in these environments and you can too if you're willing to just keep trying and not give up. Life is full of stressors and anxiety provoking situations. If you keep avoiding them you'll never grow and learn to overcome them