‘Burton & District Mind doesn’t look much from outside of the building but it’s an entirely different world in there. The atmosphere is caring. For over a year I had received support from Mind through three wonderful people, CBT counselling to find my way back to life, and coaching to get ready and find a work I can and would like to do. Today I feel good about my life. I actually like my life. It’s peaceful, I do what I like and I’m on the way to build up stable financial circumstances. I still get medical attention regarding my mental health but life doesn’t look so dark anymore, in fact, I like how things go. I want to take this opportunity to thank to the Evolve team at Mind for all the help and support to get me back on the road’
Andy was diagnosed with Autism after joining the Evolve project; the diagnosis helped the Evolve team to better understand Andy’s responses to certain situations.
Andy initially was keen to keep himself isolated away from people, he would not speak to people around him because of his anxieties and then low self-esteem would kick in. He does not like noise or even talking to new people and did not want to change his CV because he was afraid to attend job interviews. Andy received counselling and CBT via Burton and District Mind, which helped him to identify coping strategies for stress and anxiety
When a new Project Coordinator joined the Evolve team at Burton & District Mind the team were worried Andy wouldn’t engage due to his anxiety around meeting new people, however, Andy was ready to give it a go and he made amendments to his CV straight after receiving constructive feedback and took all the feedback positively. The Project Coordinator adapted their approach in order to meet Andy’s needs which helped him to engage fully.
Andy was supported with many job applications, including an application for a Store Assistant role with Tesco for which he was shortlisted for an interview! Andy was nervous, but he was supported in preparing for the job interview, from clothing to questions and answers. Although Andy was unsuccessful at the interview, he did not take this negatively; instead, he was so positive that finally he now acknowledges that he can attend job interviews without being nervous. He knows he is capable, and that he just needs to stay positive, confident and motivated, which he is now doing really well with.
Andy left the project being able to job search independently and on a training course that would enhance his job prospect and boost his CV.
