How do I ask my job for autism accommodations?
When dealing with autistic burnout at work, figuring out what accommodations to request and knowing what is actually possible to ask for can feel overwhelming. This uncertainty causes people to constantly put off crucial meetings with administration to get the support they need.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- This comes up 14.7× more often in r/Teachers than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Working with a therapist to figure out accommodationsDid this help you?
- 2Putting off meetings with administration due to uncertainty about what to ask forDid this help you?
- 3Using self-directed accommodations such as asking for directives in writing, wearing Bluetooth earbuds, or using AI to transcribe speech during meetingsDid this help you?
- 4Sharing health history directly with students and the school nurse rather than formally going through district HRDid this help you?
- 5Framing accommodations as beneficial to everyone rather than just oneselfDid this help you?
- 6Finding routines along the wayDid this help you?
- 7Avoiding public accounting to steer clear of heavy meeting and client-facing requirementsDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I want to say what mine is, but I’m kind of knee-deep in a situation and it would be pretty obvious who I was if somebody from my district saw this.”source ↗
“What types of accommodations have you needed and what kind of responses have you received from your school? I’m particularly curious to know if anyone has been told they shouldn’t be teaching if they have that condition.”source ↗
“I need to have the same meeting with my admin but keep putting it off for the same reason. I don’t know what to ask for or what is possible.”source ↗
“Can y’all share your experience with getting accommodations for your own autism in your job? I’m realizing I’m deep in autistic burnout after a decade and a half of teaching and am going to work with a therapist to figure out accommodations”source ↗
“I am. It ruined my life. Because of that, i cant hold down a job not because of my work ethic, but because i do not fit in. Usually around 3 months. As of now, I have managed to maintain my current role for about 8 months. But eventually I will get fired.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 2How to add a downstairs shower for someone with mobility issues