Disclosure to fellow co-worker today...

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I told someone who is majoring in Human Services like I am, and she asked "Is that why you act like such a freak sometimes?" I regretted telling her after she asked me that. I thought she would be more mindful, especially since she's supposed to advocate for people in general.

Yeah..that really sucks..I didn't major in Human Services but i work in an office that deals with our community and others like cerebral palsy. But autism seems like a huge caseload now here in the state of NJ among fellow co-workers who are case managers. I felt really uncomfortable when we had a regional meeting and people from AutismNJ showed up to give a presentation and they handed out a questionnaire and one of them was " What is Aspergers syndrome?" I really wanted to burst out laughing but their was probably 150 or so people in the room ( most of them case managers) so i kept it to myself....im just a temp worker but luckily i haven't come across full time employees at my work who don't like us or anything.

I've told a couple people I've known for a while, but for the most part I've kept it to myself. I'm still pretty new to the idea but the majority of my family seems to agree that I have it and have accepted me for it. I've actually found it harder to try to get the remainder of my family to understand than it was to tell my three of my friends. I'm reluctant to tell anyone else unless it's absolutely necessary because I don't want to end up being treated like I've suddenly turned back into a little kid and need to be taken care of, which is what one of my friends is starting to drift toward. She actually tries to censor what other people are saying in front of me. The only thing worse than that feeling is to be told that you're too smart or too normal to be an Aspie. It's odd: I'm not ashamed of having AS, but I am ashamed of how some people act around me when they know about it. I still know how to cross the street, thank you.

I'm a Manager in Human Resources. I caution folks to be very careful about "coming out" with your AS admission. It can have unintended repercussions in the wrong ears...be sure you can trust the person you're telling.

The only folks I've told in a work environment were 2 people (good colleagues) that told me they had kids with AS and we struggling with taking care of them...I used my AS diagnosis as a way to bridge the proverbial gap in our conversation. It did help...I doubt they told others. There are some folks at my company that would send an e-blast to the whole company if I told them. Caution is prudent.

Wow, that's quite sickening. You'd think people in this field of work would be better understanding and knowledgeable about this kind of thing. Whenever I overhear people talking about autism spectrum disorders, it's always negative. They never have anything good to say- they make autism look like this horrible, horrible beast in everyone who has it. I tell people that I am an Aspie and they do what the chick I was talking to did, compliment me on how much I've "overcame" my disability, or they have ABSOLUTELY no idea what autism is or anything related to it. "Is that a form of mental retardation?" Seriously, people? Have you ever read a book before? At least show people with disabilities a little respect by actually LEARNING about what they are.

Lot of people still don't know what Asperger's is so my husband just says I have autism or a forum of it. I guess he doesn't like dealing with the ignorance either but he never heard of it either when we first met.

Yeah i mean its like a lot of case managers have not actually met an adult with autism/aspergers...its always a child, so they are shocked when they see someone who wears work clothes and can do actual work in an office environment...its like we are supposed to be incompentant and not able to work.

Um, it sounds incredibly immature so I am guessing this is a pretty young person.

I get two kinds of responses when I mention that my son has AS, one is 'but he is so high functioning, are you sure?' and "what exactly does that means"...
It would be extremely impolite for someone to say "Yep, I also thought your son was a little left of centre"...so they try and dismiss is to make you feel better that it's not an 'obvious disability"

Yeah I sometimes get that...the " but your too sociable with me to be autistic"..I than have to explain the spectrum and how around people i find comfortable to be with i can act fairly sociable but i can be a nervous wreck and withdrawn around others. Convincing after disclosure is sometimes another issue to deal with.