When to tell?
I have accepted a new job. It's in a new city (half way across the country!!). It's with new people. New people who don't know that I have diabetes.
It was during my four-year tenure at my current job that I was diagnosed. I had no problem telling just about everyone in my very small office about diabetes. I already knew them and their personalities.
It's different now. I have a problem with going in to the boss on my first day and saying, "Hey, guess what..." I also have a problem with waiting three months until my benefits kick in, or even longer when someone sees me checking my sugar (or doesn't know what to do if I pass out) to say, "Oh, yeah, maybe I should have told you sooner."
However, I do think someone should know in case there's an emergency. Imagine if no one had known that I have diabetes the day I was 40 after lunch and couldn't walk to the fridge for a regular soda. What exactly would I have done?
I don't like to hide things, although I hid my pump during my interview (though not my ID bracelet). And I can't imagine that I'll do very well hiding this for very long, especially my sugar checking. I'm just not the kind of person who keeps secrets very well.
I know there are lots of people in prominent jobs who have kept their diagnosis from their employers. I really don't think that's deceptive, I just don't know if I can do that. I'm confident that my new employer will not care that I have diabetes. And when I say "not care" I mean that it won't influence the way she feels about me, my personality or my abilities.
I want them to know, I just need help picking the ideal time to blurt it out. Suggestions?





