Being on the dole makeing me so depressed

LegacyUser

ive being on the dole for a while now, and im seriously cracking up sitting in the house all day looking for work never hear a word back from any jobs, I cant voulenteer as I cant afford bus fair to nearest town, when bills and stuff paid im left with not a penny for myself, the days are so long and the week goes so slow, any advice

Try to stay positive and fill your time as best you can. Some possible choices:

- Go to bed early and get up early. Have a goal each day.
- Throw on a pair of trackies, step outside and jog. When you get tired, slow to a walk, when you get some energy back, jog again.
- Make a healthy eating plan. If you have one already, try to improve it.
- Find new ways to budget and save money so that you can try to afford something nice from time to time.
- Try other hobbies, even if it's just sitting down gaming, reading, etc.

fussyonion

What interests do you have?
What do you ultimately want to do in life?

Figure that out and try a FAS course...it's a great way to meet new people and further yourself.

Bigdeadlydave

Best thing to do is set yourself goals, I suggest fitness, try and get in good shape, that way in the future when you look back the time on the dole was not wasted time but was a productive stage in your life were you got fit and healthy.

Exercise gives you structure to your day, you achieve goals on a consistent basis (jogging a bit further, lifting a bit more etc) this helps with self esteem, physically and mentally you will feel better.

surewhoknows

Do you have any qualifications? What have you done about looking into getting some sought after qualifications? You may very well be entitled to the Back to Education Allowance. Do a fas course or fetac level 5 course and that should help set you on the road to options.

AllthingsCP

OP their is a lot of people right now in the very same boat, I was up until maybe a year ago when i left the Defence Force a few years back i walked into two jobs only to be let go Six months later in a two week gap, i found myself with no money under 25 and getting 100 euro a week on the dole my partner was let go four weeks after me as she was under 25 she got 100euro also we got 25 euro to feed our son and 60 euro to left towards our 150 euro week rent, In that time we amounted huge debt and depended on high cost loans {Stupid us}, Time's where hard and deeply depressing, no money hungry and always late on bills. My partner got into the local college and attend a one year nursing studies after completion she applied every were around the country for work with no success, so she attained another course level 6 business course to apply as a manager with no bloody success, Times got serious bleak and we we about to be put out of our house, then about two days after the letter coming threaten to evict us she gets a phone call to go down to the local nursing home for an interview only to find the lady interviewing was a lady that she had cared for while working in Nenagh hospital on work experience during the nursing course, she gets the work on the spot. few months on we are nearly out of debt we have saving a RAS house life seems a bit secure, Child in attaining pre-school in the same housing estate as us, i just started level 5-6 security studies but more then likely be returning to the Army {British Army}.

Our time on the dole was depressing, inspirational wise been unemployed is a bloody killed that's how i felt anyway, but we pulled our-self's out by constantly attaining course's, Also get fit improve your health take this time to really consider your path in life and start the foundation to getting it, Their is light at the end of the tunnel just keep powering on.

numnumcake

You should consider getting a qualification in something your interested in or doing an internship. It would get you out of the house and give you work experience to put on your cv that will help you with employment in the future. Don't worry OP things usually have a way of sorting themselves out.

LegacyUser

ive done a number of courses and kind of getting fed up of them to be honest I want to earn a wage at this stage, but any job I apply for I never even get a reply I am loseing all hope here and my confidence is totally gone, and not to mention the boredom

surewhoknows

What about getting help with your cv. Ive seen this make all the difference with getting to interview stage.

OP, I know exactly how you feel! I'm a recent graduate, with pretty good qualifications and have had help with my CV from the career department at my old college, so I know that's not the problem; it's the fact that I have little or no work experience in the relevant areas to back me up. I know how demeaning it can be to apply for jobs (I'm not sure how many internships/jobs I've applied for) and either have them say no or for them not to reply at all!

Try not to let it get to you though. Go outside and walk, buy a book and sit down somewhere to read it. Get an audiobook and listen to it. Learn a new language (I recommend Duolingo for this - it's completely free and a lot of fun!), learn a new skill/hobby (the Internet is pretty amazing for this - in the words of Scroobius Pip - "You can build your time better when you find a passion,/ The Internet and public services give free education,/ So it really ain't a case of rich or poor, /It's a case of self-motivation and nothing more, /Like Billy says, whether you have or you have not wealth, /The system might fail you, but don't fail yourself")

Get help with your CV either online or in-person, if you can find someone. Look into volunteering. I've done some checking into it and seemingly as long as you let the Social Welfare office know that you're doing it, then it should be OK.

I know it's grim. But it's only as grim as you're willing to let it.