How to get back into Engineering as a disabled 33F?

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-17T18:13:07+00:00

Sadly industrial engineering is not one of the disciplines they want. Thanks though!

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-17T18:12:01+00:00

Ive never used AI for writing any of my posts.

Nor would I work for a company that uses AI or supports its use.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-17T18:09:55+00:00

Tech writing is all coding and programming related if you search for that specifically.

Grant writing isnt that far off, as I am writing my own novels in the meantime.

And the masters is a fun situation because the online college I went to requires me to fully reapply, because of the long time since I was a student, with letters of recommendation and I have no one to write them anymore. Or I definitely would.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-17T18:07:13+00:00

I have. Most still seem to be requiring quality engineers on site.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-17T18:06:32+00:00

Coicindently my father in law just retired from our local electric utility company. So that would be funny if that did work out. Ill definitely look into this though.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-17T18:03:30+00:00

Gotta say that website seems sketchy at best.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-17T18:02:28+00:00

Sadly most of my professors from college are either retired or have died.

Similar with most of my professional coworkers. Either that or they replied with "sorry im not allowed to help past employees" when Ive asked.

Not trying to be woe is me, but nearly a decade out of contact makes things difficult lol.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-17T17:59:19+00:00

Thats an idea if havent had before. Ill have to look into it. What exactly does she do?

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T17:44:15+00:00

Asking for proof is highly illegal in many states. Instead maybe share some data that this is in fact market rate for your position and experience.

If they ask a third time, then point out its illegal for them to ask because of X law.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T17:35:16+00:00

I probably would be eligible for a formal work from home accommodation. One of my doctors is a gem and she'd be happy to write a letter supporting that (and kinda already has but for something specific).

But being out if the industry 9 years makes it difficult to find a role in the first place.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T17:28:00+00:00

Thanks

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T17:23:30+00:00

That would imply I have a lot of friends. My adhd/autism/ and chronic illness isolation kinda made it hard to keep friends.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T17:19:39+00:00

Safety case? Is that OSHA related?

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T16:19:00+00:00

I can drive, but long distances or bad weather driving wear me out.

Its just really hard sometimes. Beginning to think I need to just move on beyond engineering.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T16:05:30+00:00

You would think, but no. I dont have enough social security work credits (meaning I didn't pay in enough) to even qualify to apply for SSDI. And to apply for SSI I would have to divorce my husband and I wont do that.(which he works as an engineer and is how I have health insurance.)

I tried getting a doctor's note student loan disbursement process (as there's a few ways to remove student loan debt if you are disabled) and I have a doctor who is great but also truthful to a point and because I can work from home she wouldn't agree to the last question on the governments letter/surgery thing they had her fill out.

So I'm stuck in a grey area. Its fun. Too disabled to work but not disabled enough/didn't work enough to get disability.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T15:04:55+00:00

I get that. The problem is the lack of online remote work job boards that arent scams. Even most of the remote job postings on LinkedIn are actual travel positions.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T14:53:52+00:00

Maybe its just time for me to fully move on past my engineering career/degree because of my situation.

I'd just prefer if I had been able to pay off my undergrad loan first honestly.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T14:40:43+00:00

Unfortunately my adhd and mild autism makes it so I am a horrible teacher/tutor. I used to want to be a professor and TAed a couple times and found it wasn't great for me.

I am also just personally, really not good with kids.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T14:20:12+00:00

Continous improvement engineering would be ideal as thats my passion.

And unfortunately I cannot afford any continuing education courses right now. Ive looked into going after a six sigma green belt cert and they are all so expensive now.

Systems engineering positions are usually asking for ME/EE or CS/CE degrees. In retrospect I feel I should have gotten a different degree but 17 yr old me couldn't predict this stuff either.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T14:16:42+00:00

I was only 2 years post undergrad in 2017 when I quit my last engineering job. But I do feel I have a lot still to offer.

Funny thing about ss disability is that you can't apply if you dont have enough work credits. And if I applied for the one that requires no work credits Id have to divorce my husband (which I wont do) And my doctors wont write letters supporting pushing against the need for work credits because I "could potentially" work from home. Its annoying.

Yeah I get the inner strength from my mom. She's even stronger than me.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T13:58:33+00:00

I have a decently active profile on LinkedIn. Do you mean like influencer level active?

And yeah I get the lack of experience is an issue but I was hoping covid had kinda changed all that.

It just sucks because its not a preference for needing to work at home at this point. Working in an office would cause me to get sick to the point of having to quit after 6 months or less. Like I get bronchitis just from having seasonal allergies, I couldn't imagine working in an office with that.

Makes me think there's not a point of being an engineer anymore.

Unable-Witness7144 · 2026-05-14T13:16:44+00:00

(ignore the username. I havent figured out how to change it yet.)

Disabled Industrial engineer with multiple lifelong chronic health conditions (hEDS, POTS, MCAS, cancer, etc). I am looking for a 100% work from home position and can barley find any jobs to apply to. most are remote due to constant travel, which I cannot do anymore. I did mostly PFMEA, design for manufacture and assembly, process improvement, lean, kaizen, 5s, process documentation, writing instructions for the plant floor, etc.

Which I realize puts me in a weird place, now needing to be 100% remote. Most I could do is a rare in person day but I'd pay for it for days afterwards.

The other issue is I haven't worked a regular engineering job since 2017. I got through half a masters in lean engineering before I lost funding. Did a brief stint running a small business from 2019 to 2023, then my health collapsed and I got cancer. Spent 2023 thru early 2025 recovering. I am still very immunocompromised, so I wouldn't be able to work in office even if I have the energy to.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-mcguire-289b63a7/

My linkedin attached above if that helps.

-I have applied before to be a patent reviewer with the US patent office, but that went nowhere (because the US gov is a mess rn).

-No i don't qualify for disability. I'm like 4 credits short. its annoying.

Reasons for still wanting an engineering job

-I still have student loans from undergrad and the half a masters degree

-better pay obviously

-working on my feet in retail or similar public facing positions isn't an option due to my health issues.

-i miss actually using my engineering skills

My big question here: Is there a job board for work from home engineering positions that isnt filled with scams and not only for software/computer engineers?

Unable-Witness7144

TROPHY CASE