Community
18 July, 2024
Life back on track
A TULLY woman living with anxiety and depression landed her dream job after four years without work thanks to an employment service company’s approach to people with disability.
After years out of the workforce and countless hours of therapy, 59-year-old Jacqueline Stevenson was ready to take her life back, starting with a big step – employment.
In late 2020 she reached out to APM Employment Services in Tully and, with the support of her consultant Alyssa Congoo and APM’s disability employment services, she discovered a new passion and started a life-changing job in October of 2023.
“I stopped working because of anxiety and depression, and I think I didn’t work for four years. Halfway through that time I started doing full on counselling and just after that I started working with APM,” Ms Stevenson said.
“At first it was a bit hard for me as they were swapping the people that looked after me but once I started working with Alyssa it was wonderful. She was very supportive and encouraging and she was the one that recommended that I studied,” she said.
“I was very nervous going back to study, but she supported me every step of the way and it gave me the confidence to keep going.”
Ms Stevenson completed a certificate III in individual support and aged care and obtained a blue card to become a support worker.
“I wanted to get a semblance of my life back, and that was the next progression in getting my life back, because work is very important to me,” she said.
“I’d done cooking a lot in my life and getting a bit older I wanted to retrain and change, do something different, and I chose the community care program which I could really relate to and it became a dream job for me.
“And they (APM) helped me get there.”
Ms Stevenson is currently employed by Right at Home Far North Queensland where she works as a support worker and spends one-on-one time with her clients, providing companionship and assisting them with tasks such as cleaning and baking.
“My job is fantastic, they’re very supportive of us (workers). I’ve gone 10 steps forward with this job, I’ve gotten a purpose back in life,” she said. “To other people with mental health problems, I’d say take that step and go to a service like APM for help, give them a chance because it can help you recover your life.”
