“I Am Not Broken”: The Invisible Labor of Neurodivergence and the Pivot to Disclosure

Neurodistinct employees often conceal their identities through “masking”, a form of high-effort impression management. This concealment is a defensive strategy to avoid the social rejection and the “double empathy problem” prevalent in neuro-normative workplaces. In this empirical exploration of 1,593 online narratives, we develop a four-phase core process model detailing how and why employees pivot from this costly concealment to disclosure. The process moves through (1) Concealment, where masking creates invisible burnout, (2) Transition Triggers emerging from unsustainable tension, with disclosure triggered by one of two paths: an “exhaustion route” (resource depletion) or an “empowerment route” (a safe invitation), (3) the Disclosure process itself, encompassing distinct route-driven strategies and divergent trajectories, and (4) Post-Disclosure Outcomes. Inclusive leadership creates the psychological safety necessary for disclosure. The primary outcome is not accommodation, but identity affirmation, a profound “relief from self-blame” (“I am not broken”), which can foster reciprocal commitment between employees and organizations. This discovery reframes neurodistinct disclosure from a compliance event to a relational, leadership-driven phenomenon with implications for retention, performance, and authentic workplace inclusion.