Can you still work after IP?

I'm in a pretty steep depression, and I know a hard manic session will follow. Considering IP, but I'm afraid it will demolish my plans for the future. I'm in school for EMT, and am going to begin volunteer firefighting very soon. My goal is career firefighter, but I'm afraid that IP (or even my diagnosis for that matter) will keep me from reaching these goals. Anyone have any knowledge or experience they could share?

An employer can't ask about a disability so you are fine there. They can have you do psychological testing to ensure you are ok for the strains of the job and if that happens you need to be honest with the tester if they ask about diagnosis. But having been IP shouldn't count against you and I seriously doubt they'd ever ask if you had been. Even if they did it is a good and responsible thing to go IP, not a negative.

Well I found this: Becoming a Firefighter: Psychological Tests for Firefighters | Education.com

Based on other searches I'm pulling up in Google, it doesn't appear to be the case that anyone would be accessing your mental health or hospital records, but it does look like becoming a firefighter requires some psychological testing. Gives me the impression that so long as you were to stabilize with proper treatment prior to the testing, you would be fine.

Well,I used to be a career firefighter. I still volly. I'll just say a couple of things:

1) the hours are hard. It seems like a easy job, working only 6-9 days a month. Until you learn you are working DAYS. 24 hours. The lack of sleep and the oversleeping on days off can mess with anyone, not to mention a BP.

2) BP meds (if you are on any) can really mess with you. Sedate you, alter you, ect. This is a huge no no for the job. Tbh, you will likely have to go off meds for the job. Not from the employers request, just a personal decision to keep up with co workers. It's a huge reason I quit meds and still don't take any.

3) you have to take a phyc test for some department s. If you go IP, it will show up eventually. It will be a red flag for the selection board. Why would they hire you (who is BP) when there are literally 600 other applicants for the same position.

I found it quite hard to keep up with the job, the schedule, and stay stable. Part of the reason I quit was to try and find some stability. And go back to college. But it really is the best job in the world. I wish you the best of luck in your application processes.

P.S. If you need to go IP, then do so. Your health comes first.

They will ask.

They will access your health records in the medical physical you are to take. Top that off with a couple hour long phyc test and a polygraph exam, it will come out. There is very little to hid when it comes to applying for these kind of jobs. They will find out.

The best bet is to be honest. Lying about it and them finding out would be worse.

I'm glad to know there are other FF out there with the same issues who have made it work, if only for a while. It's been a dream since I was young, and now that I have the time and means to make it happen, I'm scared that this will derail the whole thing.

I do not know about fire fighter , but doing work for the gov I had to allow access to "all" medical records , "all" financial records and basically anything else they could think of , ... one reason since ip I have not reapplied to do gov work ... thankfully my work let me opt out of the gov work and keep my job ...

The job is the best. I wish you the best of luck. I learned a lot about myself and my time as a professional Firefighter made me into a better person. I did not want to put you off the job, was simply giving my thoughts.

Let me know if you have any questions.

I went IP and got diagnosed after I was hired, and quit in a year after that. I would only imagine how much harder the process would have been if it happened before.

It is possible tho.