Autistic teachers- can you advise please?

Ultimatley its your choice - I am just explaining what it is like. The biggest thing to get your head around will be the fact that if you are autistic - you'll have gas lighted yourslef for your entire life. 

Just do it... Only you will feel how you feel whatever happens. 

I suppose it’s not the ‘broke,” issue- I’ve worked fine for a long time with some but minimal help. Lockdown and all the changes have  meant I have really struggled- I can’t for example follow my own plans as things are much more centralised and I have to do it someone else’s way. Also I’ve struggled with anxiety due to the unpredictability and not being able to plan. I’ve found that hard to hide. I suppose it would help me firstly to have a definite answer, but more so for my employer to know the reasons behind the seeming sudden dip/ why I’m finding it difficult. I don’t necessarily see it as a disability- although I know it is as it hinders so many aspects of my life. For me, I have abilities in other areas and talents that are as a result of the way I think and my brain works. I don’t see it as a negative- and feel quite positive. I think a lot of the positivity from a work angle has been due to their encouragement and support. 

It's fine, and there's no need to apologise. We all have different experiences of these things. It sounds like it has really affected you and I can understand why you would want to warn other people. It's good to hear different sides - that's what this forum is for.

I get it totally and thank you for your reply and sorry if I come across like an ass at times. 

Real issues yes which over the years have cumulated into anxiety. I do feel broken sometimes. I'm currently having CBT and don't know how much of how I experience the world is because of anxiety. I feel I need answers to my life for why I find things difficult.

I'm sorry you have had such a bad experience of getting a diagnosis. But I can't get past the what if.

So just curious too? No Real issues just curious...? If it aint broken why fix it.

Hi, i'm awaiting an assessment but strongly identify with many traits. I work in further education and my manager is very supportive. I'm well respected by staff and students. I have said to her that I identiy with ASC and she said it makes no difference to how she sees me. Your place sounds very supportive and it sounds like you're a great teacher. The allowances which  have been made for me have been because of general anxiety disorder.

If my assessment comes back as ASC I will definitely tell her but I haven't decided who else i would tell. I'm sure there are other neurodiverse people in our team and the organisation itself is diverse. I think you know yourself how people would take it. For me, I want answers to why I feel I find things more difficult than other people. In terms of work, I think it'd give me agency to remove some of the mask. So I'm similar in that, I'm "successful" in life but it's come at huge cost to my mental health. I feel this isn't going to get better as I get older.

Sorry I can't be of any more help but just want you to know there are other teachers on here.

Yes in the UK - Reason I commenetd in here is because you are the first person I have seen on here with a simialr situation to me. That is - no real issues at all, just curious. 

So be careful - why fix what isnt broke. On the disability thing - you're exactly correct. Why make yourslef officially disabled - just for curiosity sake? 

Its like the blue pill or red pill. No going back once you swallow the red one. 

Thanks, my work place is amazing and although I’ve worked alongside my coach for 11 years, I only asked for help during the first lockdown. She has never once let me down and has given her time freely each morning or whenever I’ve needed it. She’s an assistant head, and so had a heavy workload. I have asked her in the past to help build on weaker areas and it has helped make some things easier- things I couldn’t have achieved on my own- only with support. I was unaware of someone my weaker areas- as seen on the supporting letter she wrote, - but they are areas I can ask for her to help me with. I did say they could send it direct to the assessment centre but she said she’d rather me see it first. I’m mostly outstanding in observations, and the areas that are sometimes graded good are as a direct result of anxiety. They’ve already helped me with the observation process last year even before we had any conversation about ASC. She’s assured me it won’t change a thing from a work perspective, and I trust her totally. I suppose I have just read so many negative stories about workplaces in general there’s a tiny bit of doubt ...and this is the reason I won’t share a diagnosis openly. I’ve seen how some staff treat difference. For me though, I think it will be a positive step as I already have the support in place and she had said school would fully support the process which they have done. In a way, I don’t need any other adjustments off them as they are all in place and they are ready to help if I ask. Thanks for a positive reply- I hope other autistic teachers can share some tips or advice too.. 

I think u are in a very positive environment and being supported by some very nice and truly remarkable people. So I recommend you go for an ASC assessment to see want they say.

The diagnosis helps you to re-establish yourself and you can build from there on your weaker areas. There are some autistic teachers on here and they seem to do fine. I hope some catch this thread. 

Bottom line here is your coach is so willing to help you  and work with you through your assessment which is really awesome. So please go for the ASC assessment and become a really good teacher of say sciences for really gifted children who need someone exceptional people to teach them.

u.re doing the right thing and u're in the right place at the right time.

you are managing now so you can manage even better in the future.

Are you in the UK? 

Thanks for sharing your experience. What changed to make you feel so negative about yourself and your achievements? Although I have anxiety- mostly caused by the working ing environment- I recognise my talents and so do my employer. They have said it won’t change me- it’s just a gaining of knowledge and that’s the way I’ve viewed it- just the answer to what is already known in both my and my employer’s case. 

I am fairly well aware of how I present to staff and students, although in the supporting letter were some things I wasn’t aware that I do.... My coach was concerned they were negative aspects and was hesitant to share in case it upset me. I simply said they were factual statements and that having that know was a good thing. 

Although some aspects make life difficult, I have a different slant from you- rather than concentrating on the “disability”  side, I see it as giving me different insights into things at times. My way of thinking isn’t less/ deficit, just different. 

Thanks for sharing your experience...I suppose part of me is worried about the things you describe and that’s why I asked. 

Hi - I am a teacher who got diagnosed in 2018 mostly out of curiosity and for peace of mind and because my wife thought it was a good idea as she says I am angry. Never really feel angry and hve mosty had an amazing time - I am 47 now. Successful in my own way. Always done my own thing and followed my ownd desires - on my own without a care. Now I am diagnosed - all my confidence has been flushed down the toilet and can honestly say that I now regret the whole sroory saga. I f I could go back to 2018 I would never get a diagnosis if I knew what was about to happen. Total and utter collapse of oneself and sense of well being - its like being a five year old again in a world full of aliens. 

I used to do solo expeditions to far flung destinations where nobody ever treads without a care in the world - now I am scared to leave the house. I used to taech in my own private school - but now - I feel as if I can no longer relate to my students in any way at all and will liely never teach again as I realise the person I think I present to them is nit the person they see - I have no control over how I apear. Always did before - but now I feel like my soul is just a sorry shadow of my old self. 

I have nursed both my mum and dad to thier deaths in the last 15 years and it was easier to cope with then a diagnosis. 

So Please don't rush into it unless youre ready for your entire reality to be turned upside down and inside out with a single bit of support in any way at all. 

Probs the only regret of my life is getting turned from an adventurous fun sould into a disabled useless thing that is no longer functioning.