Arthritis and going back to work

[Toooldformarketing]

I've had a year out due to being really ill. In that time I've been diagnosed with epilepsy and rheumatoid arthritis. My meds have settled down and I'm beginning to crave work.

I live in a part of the UK where PT professional roles are rare and I can't seem to find any. E.g the most PT I've found is 35 hours a week...

I'm quite keen on a remote role but this is also unlikely having looked on LinkedIn and Indeed.

Has anyone got any tips for going back to work in an office after a period of sickness? There's a gap on my CV. I'm mid 30s and I am keen to crack on but scared of not being able to manage and experiencing burnout.

Hybrid is unlikely as employers haven't really embraced it here (SW)

I'm also a mum to primary aged children but I do have a very supportive husband who is absolutely amazing.

Any advice would be lovely :)

When you say professional role, do you mean a particular industry? What skills or experience do you have? How narrow is your search field?

How part time are we talking? 35 hours is too many - would 30 be manageable? 25? 20? 15?

Will you need any other adjustments? Are there things that could make more hours manageable? Have you looked at Access to Work?

Have you looked at support/information from charities specialising in your conditions? E.g. on the page linked below, once you scroll down past all the video clips there are booklets you can download/order about managing work.

nras.org.uk/resource/work/

They might have suggestions you could use (even if it's just one little thing)?

Have you looked at remote volunteering roles to build your way up? Or in-person volunteering?

Tricky. Maybe a few gigs? As in, some eBay selling or craft work, some virtual PA work, some zero hours work?

Just to get you started, while you wait for something more regular to come along- like more virtual PA stuff.

What did you do before? What skills have you got?

I don't actually expect you to type out your answers to all those, it was more aimed at idea generation. Apologies if it came off like an interrogation!

I'd suggest getting a couple of work related qualifications under your belt first - that always looks better on a CV than being 'too sick to work' does alone.

Worked for me, anyhow - I stuck in a bit of volunteering in the last couple of months to give something a little extra to be able to talk about if I got to interview (I picked things that were very vaguely related but fun, rather than hard slog) and meant I had recent references so I didn't fail at the final hurdle by not having an employer to provide a reference in respect of an arbitrary timeframefucking NHS - and by doing something different, that demonstrated an ability to 'switch' sectors.

I was out for 8 years. Wish MTX had been offered at the outset instead of six years in.

Thanks for your replies! I have actually just started (last week!) volunteering my digital marketing skills but it won't lead to a paid job. It's fun nevertheless!

Good idea about getting some qualifications!

My career has been in marketing but I enjoy the data / web side of it more. Problem is that marketing is so saturated I'm not getting anywhere with applications. My age is also against me as I'm not part of the Tik Tok generation (or so I've been told)

My ideal job would be a Marketing Data Analyst for 3 days a week! I can dream :)

I've applied for general admin and marketing assistant level but I'm often rejected because I'm too qualified / experienced. The 1 year gap is also an issue as recruiters keep mentioning it.

I'm thinking about a career change but again, jobs here are a bit too meh to support a career change!

I guess I just wish I could cope with FT hours :( because then at least I'd be in paid work and getting my career back on track.

I'd LOVE to work for the local Council. They pay well and often have data analytic / web administration but they're usually 37hours only. I was offered a job there in December and they refused to consider part time or WFH.

I should have taken it. But my meds make life challenging some days :(

Just want to say that when the council refused PT and WFH. All I asked was for 30 hours a week instead of 37. They said no. And then I suggested 30 hours in the office and remaining 7 at home. Again they said no.

I didn't ask for anything silly. (Although I felt silly!)