Born and bred in Port Macquarie, Jillayne (or Jill) as she likes to be called, had been living in Queensland with her husband when her journey with ParentsNext began. Jill was referred to a ParentsNext provider not long after the birth of her youngest child. She felt in no shape physically, or emotionally to take part in anything at all to do with preparation for work or education.

Not long after, they decided to move back to NSW and settled in Laurieton, where she was living with her parents as they did not have a house to go to.

With her recent move back to the region, Jill was referred to Bamara where she met her Case Manager. She explained to her Case Manager that she had anxiety and was worried about having to commence with another ParentsNext provider. She felt she had no direction and had been suffering from depression.

“We got on well straight away as my Case Manager was a happy man and we both loved to talk, he made everything feel relaxed and that I was somebody,” said Jill.

She laughed when talking about their first meeting being so much fun and a positive experience. She realised that her Case Manager was only interested in helping her and was already looking at ways to get things moving. He asked her all about the things she liked to do.

“I like to talk, I like to listen and I love to help people,” said Jill – and they got to work.

She said that after that meeting, she had made the decision to get motivated. Her Case Manager had suggested she start by joining a local playgroup to begin socialising in her community.

“To start with, it was daunting but the people were friendly and my daughter really enjoyed it, they also helped me feel really good about myself,” said Jill.

As things progressed with their meetings and planning, her Case Manager was on the lookout for suitable courses and opportunities for Jull that would help her back into the workforce. Keeping in mind that she loved to talk, listen and help, they found a course that was perfect for her.

Her Case Manager assisted Jill to enrol in a Certificate III in Individual Support with a local training provider. Over some time, she completed it with great results. She spoke fondly of an experience during her first work placement at a local nursing home in South West Rocks.

“There were these two elderly men who pulled me up one day to tell me that they really loved to see me because I smiled a lot, took time to talk and checked to see if they were ok, I knew this was what I wanted to do,” said Jill.

Jill said how much she enjoyed completing the course and how it gave her lots of self-confidence in getting back into the workforce. Happy with the fact that she could now officially work with people, Jill can now work in various settings such as nursing homes, home care, and disability support.

Jill was happy talking about her journey with Bamara and obtaining her Certificate that has now led to employment that suits her life and her family.

Jill is currently self-employed and running her own business as a home care worker contacting the NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme) as a provider with her own ABN number.

She is working with mature age participants with a newfound zest for work and life.

“I love being able to help people and talk with them as I am a friendly person, I love my job,” says Jill.

Jill speaks very highly of her Bamara experience and of course her chirpy, friendly Case Manager.

“Before going to see my Case Manager, I was very standoffish, suffered anxiety and didn’t want to leave my house. I did not want to go out full stop, but my Case Manager helped me through it,” says Jill.

Her youngest daughter has just turned four and started pre kindy which she is loving. She has a lot of support from her husband and family. Her final quote to sum it all up was the simple line.

“I am happy.”

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