PTSD and Employer Disclosure

[GrowingStrong]

Hi everyone,

I have a long standing complex trauma PTSD diagnosis and I am currently looking for a new job. I was wondering what your personal experiences are in disclosing your diagnosis to potential employers. Have you disclosed to employers? Did you choose not to? In the past I have not told anyone I worked with and it has become a horrible surprise for all parties when a panic attack is incidentally triggered.

I don’t feel shame around my diagnosis, but I do fear discrimination. I am aware there are laws against discrimination based on disability, but I feel there are so many ways to get around it in practice.

Any thoughts/ideas are much appreciated 😊

[Croix]

Dear GrowingStrong~

Welcome here to the Forum where I guess an awful lot of us have been faced with that decision at one time or another.

I suppose it boils down to a few things. Some organizations - such as police and military - do require you to give an accurate account of your total medical history, so there you do not have much choice. Failure to disclose is viewed seriously however most do have a mechanism whereby one can prove being symptom-free for a specified period..

Where you do have a choice perhaps it might depend on your current condition, and how likely you are to need help, time off or special consideration. If these are highly likely then your condition may become quickly apparent anyway. Mind you if that is the case then I'd suggest that your treatment and regime might need adjusting, something to talk to your doctor about.

Otherwise I would imagine it is a judgment call - provided it does not affect workers compensation insurance. I used to be very close-mouthed about my PTSD, depression and anxiety, however for me at least the public climate has changed and I'm normally quite comfortable talking about my past. Then again my condition is pretty stable nowadays.

Dunno how much help that is, I wish you the best of fortune job hunting.

Croix

[geoff]

Hello GrowingStrong, thanks for coming to the forums.

This has been a topic of great discussion and Croix has mentioned some very good points already to consider.

My view is that if you mention any type of depression on the application form, the chance of getting the job is very low, even though the Disability Discrimination Act forbids it, but it's easy for a future employer to say 'sorry the job's been filled'.

It would need an employer who supports mental illness, but there's a different to when you are already employed by someone, rather than applying for a job with a history of depression where they don't want to add someone with this illness.

They can't check out your medical history without your consent, but there are a couple of other issues to think about, if you have had counselling and believe you have overcome depression, then will a full time job be too much or would doing a p/t or casual job suit you better?

We can never be ashamed of our illness, it's something we couldn't stop, what it actually does is that it takes us to another level, changes our opinion and can make us stronger.

Best wishes.

Geoff.

[Thisshallpass2]

I have PTSD and left my employer of 22 yrs ,3months ago because of there lack of understanding of the condition. I have applied for positions and put down on that I have depression . I can honestly say that I believe putting it down has resulted in me not gaining positions ,

[Srfr]

Dear Growing Strong,

it might be just me, however, the one and only time I opened up to a boss about my feelings (it had been depression at the time), I was promptly dismissed.

This was a well known, large company. Even though now I know I could have caused the company some trouble, I.e. unfair dismissal, of course at the time my energy levels were not strong enough to even recognise what could be done.

Tread carefully here - depending on the industry, I have found caution is the wisest way to go.

Good luck!