Finding suitable work for mentally ill people?

I've always had mental health issues and have been in and out of hospitals because of them, even when I was in school. I've almost always had bad experiences with work; I've never been able to stick with anything for long.

After graduating from high school, I first started studying, then dropped out, and then at some point did an apprenticeship (first year of vocational school, then as "in-company rehabilitation through retraining").

I got a job twice through a measure where the employer paid me a subsidy for three months if I was taken on afterwards. One was 30 hours a week and limited to 14 months, the second was full-time and permanent but I had to do a lot of overtime and it all didn't work out. Then after a year and a half I had a nervous breakdown and was unemployed again. I went to a clinic and then did a year of vocational training with two internships, but couldn't find a job after that. Then I got another internship through a social center and then I was on an EU-funded project for a long time with 30 hours a week, but the funding then stopped and the project ended.

Then I started studying again and got my bachelor's degree, thinking that I could find a better-paying job where I could live off of it if I only worked part-time. I didn't actually complete my required internship, but instead made up the hours with a part-time job over a longer period, which was recognized based on my professional experience.

After that, I applied for a position that would have required a master's degree, but by chance, I was able to work there part-time for a year in my training position as a parental leave replacement. Then I went back to the clinic, and after that, I did my Federal Voluntary Service, which was extended to two years due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Then my mother died, which threw me off track again and led to a longer break. Most recently, I did another six-month vocational training course with a three-month internship in remote work, full-time at first, but then I had to reduce it to 30 hours because I was overwhelmed.

Then my partner broke up with me after 10 years and I gave up applying for jobs pretty quickly after that because I didn't need to earn money quite as urgently now because of the inheritance, but mostly because I'm totally frustrated because I've done a lot of application training and all that, but I just can't manage to sell myself well in interviews, my CV is crap with all the gaps and measures, I'm not making any progress in gaining enough new practical experience, I should have really done a traineeship after studying but that's only available full-time and I know that I'm just not mentally resilient enough for full-time work.

The theoretical aspects were always easiest for me, like school and university. Now I've been unemployed for a good year, and I just don't know what to do. I don't even know what kind of job would suit me, given my shortcomings. I don't want to be over-challenged, but I also don't want to be under-challenged (especially intellectually). Do you have any other ideas?

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DODOsBACK
1 year ago

If you're looking for help, maybe you should tell us a little more than just the reasons why you can't work "normally"…

What did you learn in what professions did you gain experiences, what worked well, what was hard for you, what is not? Which entry time would you trust, which long term? Are you even looking at the first job market or are you thinking of a disabled workshop?

DODOsBACK
1 year ago

I'd think about it again – let's touch it with velvet gloves first and get a foot in the door again as a quota person than apply you as an "averagely loadable" and then fail to meet the requirements. This is much worse for self-confidence than for others to trust you.

Good luck!