Someone to share the emotional load of job searching

Christina* was let go from her previous role for reasons she did not understand, which caused her mental health to deteriorate. Despite what had happened, she really wanted to get back to work and was referred to Monika, her dedicated Employment Specialist.  Monika supported Christina to look for work and use any rejections as learning points to make the next application even stronger. Christina was then offered two jobs at once! She’s now working in a fantastic new team for a good employer and feels strong enough to challenge her previous employer, with Monika supporting her all the way. Here Christina tells us her own inspirational story…

I was let go from my job in September 2023 for reasons related to my disability, and I was really struggling with my mental health as a result. I was referred to an NHS-run health and wellbeing centre and they put me in touch with Twining for some employment support. This is when I eventually met Monika, who would end up being my dedicated Employment Specialist.

I started working with Monika in the summer and at that time I was still struggling with my mental health.  At that point I was nine to ten months into my job search, but looking for suitable jobs with my physical disability made the job search even harder as employers were starting to want to move jobs to hybrid roles and that just wasn’t physically possible for me.  It all just felt really demoralising as I wasn’t hearing back from anything.

Then I started working with Monika and she looked at my CV and cover letter and helped me to update them; I used the updated versions going forward to apply for jobs. There is a lot of contradictory CV advice out there and it just helped to have support from someone who specialises in employment and could give me practical yet personalised advice.

Every week Monika would send me job links and it helped to have that regular advice. You tend to get into your own routine of using the same job sites and looking in the same places, but she opened up new avenues for me. She was really helpful.

We met almost every week – sometimes on the phone and sometimes in person; Monika was always really accommodating to my needs. She gave me encouragement all the time and it helped to have someone there acknowledging that job searching is a stressful time – especially when money worries start to creep in.

I found that not getting much feedback from jobs was really frustrating and that’s when Monika’s support came in really useful again; she helped me to tweak my cover letter each time which made the overall process seem valuable.

She would remind me each time I saw her that if there was anything I needed, to just get in touch with her. If I needed answers to specific questions, general information, or just needed some support in between meetings, I knew there was someone there for me - just to know that it wasn’t all on me. Knowing I had someone else there really helped me to share the emotional load. Not all the weight was on my shoulders.

There was one job that I really wanted which didn’t work out, but Monika encouraged me with the application, and she also supported me when I didn’t get it. This job just became a learning point and helped me to move forward again.

I then became interested in two jobs, both of which were very different, and I got interviews for both! Monika was there by my side every step of the way, helping to weigh up the pros and cons of each one, and prepare for both interviews. Having someone to help me to think through everything was really helpful; it helped me to move through the process.

Then I was offered both jobs - which was really amazing! They were both quite different and so it made it really hard to decide which one was the best fit for me. One of them was full time and the other was four days per week. One paid more than the other. Typically people choose the one that pays more, but I ended up taking the one that paid less, because it was a better fit for me. It just suited my needs better for both my mental health and my physical disability. It helped to have Monika really reassuring me at that stage too. Monika helped to remind me that if it fitted my needs better and would be more sustainable, then it was the better option for me.

Even before I started the role, just knowing I had the job waiting for me made such a difference to how I felt. I’ve now been in the role for 3 months and Monika is still there to support me. I meet with her a bit less than I did before, but she’s supported me through my training and disclosure of my disability and makes sure I’m not having any issues. The whole team is remote, so my need to work remotely is not an issue either. It’s also just a really lovely team and my employer is known in the industry for being a good employer.

I’m also going through a tribunal with my old employer and it’s been useful to have Monika there for support with that too. She has genuinely cared throughout the time I’ve been working with her; she has spurred me on to get the support that I need with my physical health and shared in my joy as my mental health has improved.

Thank you Monika – you’ve supported me at a critical time in my life and my employment journey.

*Name and picture changed to protect client anonymity

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