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Highly_Autistic
Deinonychus
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14 Feb 2026, 4:29 pm

In a job interview, should i tell them I have autism? I mean, i'm not too high functioning. I'm intelligent but my social skills are not good. So, sooner or later they would find out something is wrong with me.



funeralxempire
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14 Feb 2026, 4:32 pm

I don't know if I'd disclose during the interview, but if you're hired it might make sense.


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14 Feb 2026, 4:44 pm

Ain't Nobodies business ,But Your own.? Don't ask don't tell ...but if you see a oppurtunity . That it might benefit you or the place you work for , then you might give a hint . just my own humble opinion. this doesn't include ADA help
situations of course .


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QuirkyLibrarian
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14 Feb 2026, 7:18 pm

If it doesn't affect your work, then I would say no. If it does, then I would discretely ask for an accommodation request form and fill it out there, along with a doctor's note. I know with my job, my boss is NOT allowed to know about health issues due to fears of the person being treated differently (turned down for promotion, excluded from things, etc). Only certain people can know, and everyone else knows what your limiting factors are from there.



Tamaya
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16 Feb 2026, 1:17 pm

When I first entered the working world I was conditioned to believe for a long time that it was essential that I tell the employer about my diagnosis, because I was conditioned to believe that I was disabled. I used to think that Asperger's defined me and was my identity and had to be revealed to everyone or else they'd find out and I'd be consigned to prison or something for lying. That's just what I believed for a long time, because that's what getting a diagnosis so early in life does to you. And it was a catch-22 for me because I felt too embarrassed to look someone in the eye and say that I have Asperger's syndrome. It just caused added anxiety that I didn't need and I envied everyone who didn't have any disgnoses.

But since being on autism sites I have learnt that 99% of people on the spectrum aren't diagnosed until adulthood anyway, so not everyone who's a bit quirky like me automatically gets a diagnosis at 8 years old. In fact people whose autism is way more symptomatic than me don't get diagnosed at 8 years old. So, according to employers, I could be just another undiagnosed Aspie if I did show symptoms. I'm so glad I have discovered this and that my diagnosis doesn't need to follow me around everywhere for the rest of my life if I don't want it to. I'm in control, it does not define me.

Yes, employment isn't my ideal life as I find it too restrictive and I don't really get on with following rules I find restrictive or petty, also I chafe under authority and can have panic attacks. But at the same time I am a very capable worker and am happy to be asked to do something I can just get on with, and not having people in authority breathing down my neck.

The only things that do hold me back in employment aren't even part of AS:-

Emetophobia
Cleaning up vomit can trigger me into panic mode, which makes things a little complicated when the only jobs you're good enough for are cleaning jobs. I should broaden my horizons really and aim to find some else other than cleaning jobs, but I'm rather settled in what I'm doing right now.

Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria/ADHD
My ADHD can make me do impulsive things, which doesn't really affect my work but it can sometimes affect relationships with colleagues, causing some to target or exclude me, and this can have a huge impact on my mental health, causing frequent panic attacks in the workplace, which may look like anger, even though I'm not an angry person really. My distaste for following petty rules can sometimes lead to bullying as a result, which I just don't have the emotional skills to deal with. Bullying shouldn't happen in any workplace, so I shouldn't really have to go into all this at a job interview. My impulsiveness doesn't affect or hurt anyone, so bullies have no excuse really to target me. But bully they do.

'Math Dyslexia'
I think it's called Dyscalia or something like that, can't remember how it's pronounced, but this is probably the only disability I have and can prevent me from working with numbers, even if I'm at a computer that does all the math for you. For me numbers jump around in front of my eyes and I have a hard time remembering them or reasoning with them. It can get me into great difficulty, even if I know well how a number-related task is done.

So yeah, I can complete tasks, understand instructions, work with others, and have a good attendance and work ability. I am great with colleagues until one decides they don't like me and won't stop reminding me of it just because of one little incident that happened months ago that I'd even put right.


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Diamondisis
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16 Feb 2026, 2:48 pm

It's kind of a double edge sword, if you tell them up front then they're going to be prejudice and not hire you but if you don't tell them you're autistic up front they'll fire you for doing something wrong



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17 Feb 2026, 9:44 am

^In some countries it's much harder for them to fire you for doing something wrong if you "pull the autism card". You can argue it's discrimination. I wouldn't tell them before I had landed the job.


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Tamaya
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17 Feb 2026, 10:28 am

I get upset when people start targeting me at work because of my ADHD behaviours (impulsive, easily distracted, forgetful, hyperactive, etc). It's not that I wish to use ADHD as an excuse or "pull the ADHD card" (like saying "I have ADHD so I'm allowed to slack"). It's that if I do appear to be slacking all I need is a little reminder, for example if I'm standing around daydreaming because I'm having difficulty prioritising, it would be best for a supervisor to ask me to do a task, rather than, say, some trouble-stirrer to go taking pictures of me and sending it to the boss, showing me up and making me look bad when I don't intend to be. That sort of thing.


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My diagnosis story and why it was a traumatic experience for me:
viewtopic.php?f=35&t=416910&start=1056#p9695026

Please notify me if there's a spelling mistake or an obvious autocorrect error in my posts.