My name is Anthony. I moved to my excellent self-contained flat in the south of Leeds a few years ago. I live there independently with some enabling support from ubu. Since I moved in, one of my goals has been to get myself a job I want to do, where I can get paid and feel good about how I spend my time. Like everyone else I know, I want to live a healthier lifestyle. For me, having a real job means that I can become even more independent and live in the way I want to.
There’ve been times in the past when I found it difficult to get motivated to start eating better and living a healthier lifestyle. Everyone knows that it’s a good idea but figuring out how to do it isn’t that easy. I thought “I need some help here” and so I asked for some support from the ubu enabling team where I live to make a start. We sat down together and worked out how to put together a ‘healthy’ eating menu planner. It took a bit of talking and thinking about, but once we had got it down on paper I could visually see all the different meals I could eat and stay healthy with.
It took a few weeks to make the changes and to start of taking control of my own diet, but you know what? I started to feel a lot healthier. I could also feel myself becoming happier. So far in my healthily eating lifestyle I have lost 8lbs, which I think is pretty good. Once I get to a weight I think is more like what I need to be, I want to take my healthy lifestyle one step further. I’d heard about a local five-a-side football team and I love footie, so I thought I’d give it a go. Score! I started going to football sessions at the John Charles Leisure Centre which is not so very far from where I live. My team took part in a football tournament and came 3rd! And that’s not bad starting from not very healthy!
I loved going, I got on with people, met new friends, I could socialise, it made me feel good again!.
So a couple of weeks ago I went for a job interview for a catering position in another part of Leeds. The company serve people who go to racing and boxing events, so it will be a busy environment. I got myself ready for the interview by looking smart (I wore a tie etc) and I asked for some help from the ubu team to practise answering some of the questions I thought the company might ask.
I think it’s fair to say I was a little nervous at first when the interview started, I’m pretty sure most people are but after the interview I was told I had done very well. They offered me a position starting on a few hours per week so that I can get into it and build up my experience and confidence.
I am very excited about this opportunity, I really want to work and get out into the community and do something positive. Turning things around, taking charge of my life, learning some new skills and doing something I can be good at in the future is fantastic!
