I Choked on a Phone Screen Today

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I messed up. The phone interview was scheduled. I missed the call. It was because I misread the calendar invite and mistook the end time for the start time. The phone message asked me to call back as soon as I got it. I struggled. Worked up the nerve to make the call. Hung up on the automated voice system. A few minutes later, called up and got further. This time, I got as far as dialing the extension and then hanging up again.

I was scared. That being said, this was inexcusable. Letting my anxiety and fear of being interviewed rule the day was a crappy thing to let happen. There's no point blaming my autism or AS or whatever. It was me. It was all my fault.

I took your thread title way too literally. I had images of you literally choking after having put a phone in your mouth, and was really confused!

Anyway, my autistic moment aside, mistakes like this happen, and it's not the end of the world. We have a tendency to catastrophize and imagine the worst, but I imagine if you just explain what happened, they'll understand. It's been almost a week since you posted this thread, have any more developments taken place?

Did you call back in and explain that you had a problem with the automated phone system? You could say that the buttons on your phone are a little close together and this typically happens when you try to use those number systems, or you could say that your dog was barking and you think that messed it up. You'll put him outside next time. Crazy, lol. You know, say something like that.

This seems like a catastrophe to you because you know that you messed it up by being anxious. No one at the other end knows that. Just try to calm down and reschedule.

Oh, and like StarTrekker said, even if in the worst case scenario, you just explained exactly what happened, that is also not a big deal. I used to be a hiring manager and sat through hundreds of phone interviews. That kind of thing happens sometimes and no one minds. If it were me, though, I wouldn't say it was anxiety because it would make me more self-conscious.

You live, you learn.