Yesterday I got outed at work. My friend, who has been encouraging me to go back to school, told someone in the human resources department about my autism spectrum disorder. Since I am not officially diagnosed, this is something my employer was not aware of up until now. I am not very happy about this at all and told her so. She said she was only trying to help as I told her I felt I was getting the runaround concerning their college credit for work experience program. So she emailed the HR person but did not ask me if it was ok to bring up my ASD. She said that she thought that this person ought to know a little of my background and what I was dealing with.
Well, first of all, that is MY story to tell, not hers. And I hate to say it, but in her telling some of the facts got garbled and now I shall have to try to put them straight if I can. She doesn't think there will be any fallout from the revelation and she said "This (autism) is part of you. Claim it." No. As all of you know all too well, there's still a lot of stigma and ignorance attached to the label and there's no telling how that is going to affect my relationships at work. Except that right now they all have something far more serious to deal with than what I may or may not be. Without going into details, a rather high-ranking employee has been charged with a very, very serious crime. It is entirely possible that I may end up having to give a deposition before the judge regarding what I know of this person. If it weren't for that, I'd be much more angry at my friend. I know she meant well. But I am still upset that she said something without asking me first. Especially as she herself is a private person.
Well, first of all, that is MY story to tell, not hers. And I hate to say it, but in her telling some of the facts got garbled and now I shall have to try to put them straight if I can. She doesn't think there will be any fallout from the revelation and she said "This (autism) is part of you. Claim it." No. As all of you know all too well, there's still a lot of stigma and ignorance attached to the label and there's no telling how that is going to affect my relationships at work. Except that right now they all have something far more serious to deal with than what I may or may not be. Without going into details, a rather high-ranking employee has been charged with a very, very serious crime. It is entirely possible that I may end up having to give a deposition before the judge regarding what I know of this person. If it weren't for that, I'd be much more angry at my friend. I know she meant well. But I am still upset that she said something without asking me first. Especially as she herself is a private person.