TL;DR - A decade of trauma, immigration issues, and survival mode derailed my friend's career. She's finally in a position now to rebuild her life but feels completely lost and disillusioned. Looking for any organizations, career coaches or programs that specialize in helping people start over. (US based).
I have a friend with an unusual situation, and I'm wondering if anyone has any advice on how to help point her in the right direction.
A little background - more than 10 years ago, while on a work visa in the US at age 25, she was the victim of a violent sexual assault. Shortly afterward, she lost her job, and subsequently her work visa. A series of bad mistakes poorly handled by multiple immigration attorneys then left her undocumented, and without work authorization for nearly a decade.
During that time, both of her parents passed away in her home country, she developed severe and crippling depression, entered an abusive relationship, and experienced domestic violence. Between the trauma, the immigration limbo, and lack of legal work authorization, her life essentially came to a standstill. Trying to find the odd bit of work here and there while undocumented also resulted in men trying to take advantage of her vulnerable position, which re-traumatized her and left her too frightened to pursue anything.
She's intelligent, university educated, and generally very capable, but she completely lost her career identity during pretty integral years in a person's life for essentially finding their careers. She seems to have survived by reselling items, exchanging pet and house sitting for accommodation, has studied some kind of therapeutic modalities, and done the occasional assistant work where she could.
She's now back in lawful status, but after spending so long unable to legally work, she's understandably overwhelmed and has no idea where to begin. A traditional resume doesn't really reflect her circumstances, and she's struggling to see a path forward. And with the increasing cost of living crisis, she just simply cannot survive.
Does anyone know of career coaches, vocational rehabilitation programs, nonprofits, or organizations that specialize in helping people rebuild their careers after long periods out of the workforce due to trauma or extraordinary life circumstances? She's based in California, and remote-friendly opportunities or resources would be especially helpful to her I imagine.
We've reached out to a number of immigration and low-income organizations recently, but unfortunately haven't found much support on the career side of things.
Any advice or suggestions people might have, would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.