JessicaTG

That's fair. I recognise that it's quite hypocritical of me, but I don't really have a choice in the matter. :-( I've argued enough against the practice to reduce the problem from something that would take on average an hour to something that only takes 5-10 minutes at most, something that is taught and used extensively at universities around here. Thinking about it, no one has failed it at all.

For me, I do kind of need to rush. I'm transgender and not really in a safe environment to come out, and the time is fast approaching where it's near impossible to hide. Whereas overseas, where I do not know anybody, I can be myself. That is also why I also want to move to San Francisco in particular, it is very open and friendly.

> the bigger issue is that companies are being stupid by interviewing anyone this way, period.

I don't know about being stupid. I think it's an okay way to evaluate candidates, and as a person who does regularly interview people for engineering positions I see its value (I just get people to code a simple singly linked list with an insert and a find method). It's just unfortunate for a small minority like me that don't do well in situations such as these, particularly with the more difficult and involved problems.

> Just decline the ones that do use algorithm puzzles / whiteboard questions / etc., and include your constraints about how you will be evaluated just as you would include constraints about salary, insurance, job duties, etc.

> ...

> If part of what you want is to be treated with basic dignity and respect while being evaluated during an interview — something incompatible with trivia / hazing style interviews that are ubiquitous in the tech industry — then just own that choice, be proud of it and straightforward. Just politely tell interviewers it does not work for you, accept that you may need to opt out of a lot of interview pipelines, and you’ll find options better suited to you.

The thing is, I can't really do that. I want to move to America, in particular San Francisco, where I have absolutely no network I can reach out to like I do where I currently am. I can't imagine a situation where a company would forego a technical interview in a case like that, despite my work history or GitHub account

Thank you for taking the time to reply mlthoughts2018, I really appreciate it :-)

Hi jryan, thanks for your reply! :-)

> Practice. Basically exposure therapy for interviews.

That's the thing though. I have and I do already do that. I like doing coding challenges, some time constrained others not, in my spare time. The difference is that I do not need to succeed in those. There is no person watching over me and everything I do, there is no environmental pressure other than the time. And if I fail, I learn from it and have the ability to try again.

I do currently see a therapist to deal with things, not sure if it's CBT or not. But what I'm told to do is to try and bring myself back into the present, which I can't really do during the middle of an interview.

Or just use "text" :-)

There's no storage advantage using varchar in PostgreSQL. Just the length constraint checking.

You're a wonderful person :-) As an international resident, trying to get a job there has proven quite difficult whereas here (Sydney) it is easy. Although I do completely understand why recruiters are hesitant to employ people that reside out of area.

I started an SSRI a couple of months ago to help treat major depression and anxiety. My GP went over all of the side effects and potential health risks, timelines, as well as its severe withdrawal symptoms and that if I wanted to stop I should slowly wean off it by lowering the dosage (cutting the pills in half for a while, then quarters, etc). This was in Sydney, so some at least do it :-)

> So it's pretty clear that male and female brains do not react the same way to these things.

Give the man suffering low testosterone some oestrogen and progesterone, and their mood will lift and vice-versa. Low hormone levels result in depressive symptoms, not what type they are.

> Don’t trans people take the hormones associated with the opposite sex to become more like that sex?

This is correct. Although there's only so much they can do for those of us transitioning post-puberty (like me) once bones have fused and stopped growing.

As testosterone is stronger than oestrogen, it will override the oestrogen in your body and bring about masculinising changes such as making your adams apple more prominent changing your voice box, a V-shaped upper body, facial structure, body hair, hand and feet size, larger bones, and higher hip growth. Whereas if you only have oestrogen, these effects don't occur at all - really only just wider hip growth.

Aand it's buried. That's okay, I'll try again later :-) I really want an answer for question 2.