Going back to work can be quite nerve wracking. Your employer is obliged to allow you a phased return to work and to make any reasonable adjustments to allow you to do your job. A good employer will have been in touch with you all the time you have been off sick and will have measures in place to help you get back.
It may be that you lost your job, or perhaps haven’t had the chance to start one as your condition affected you while you were at school/college. Consider taking up a voluntary role to start with, perhaps just a few hours a week, in a field in which you are interested. In this way, you can build up your skills and also feel a sense of achievement and self worth from helping others. There is a very wide range of volunteering opportunities available so search the internet to see what you can do in your area.
You may realise that there is no way you can ever go back to the job you had because it was too stressful, too physical, too far to travel etc. This is an ideal opportunity to spend some time thinking about what you would really like to do and then investigating training opportunities. There are a very wide range of free online courses that you can do or you may like to look at part time courses at your local college/university. Perhaps now is the time to start your own business? There is a lot of help and advice available to you…remember Richard Branson started out in a very small way and look where he is now!
Here are some useful links related to getting back to work:
Working
- Fit for Work
- Fit for Work Scotland
- Reasonable Adjustments for Disabled Workers
- Employing Disabled People and People with Health Conditions
- Work Choice – Overview
- Equality Act 2010
Volunteering
Start Your Own Business
- Business Guides – First Steps
- Set-up Business (A Government guide)
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