"In November I just crashed and I've barely been to work since then... Over the time I've been ill, I've had to really rethink my job and the type of work I can realistically do."

I am a teaching assistant in Penzance and this is my fourth academic year at the school. I've worked part-time for the last 18 months of those, which suited me much better as I am a single parent.

I come from a youth work background, and my training is in performing arts so I wanted to work in that field as a Teaching Assistant, and intended to go on to train as a teacher.

But recently, I've been very poorly - I have Chronic Fatigue, or ME, which I originally had about ten years ago, and was very ill for three years, and then for years after I was fine. I don't know what happened but as of January 2009, things started to go downhill again. I managed to stay in work with some time off, and then over the summer holidays I realised something was wrong.

I battled on for a while, and then November I just crashed and I've barely been to work since then. The school has been a fantastic support - they provided me with an occupational nurse and I did a phased return back to work, which was great, as I started off doing just one lesson.

I was always aiming to go back to my full hours but I haven't managed it. A couple of weeks ago, I really crashed again. Over the time I've been ill, I've had to really rethink my job and the type of work I can realistically do. At the moment, I'm on full pay for six months for sick leave and then I go on to half-pay and then statuary sick. It's a huge worry financially and I also feel I am letting down a lot of young people and teachers.

I'd like to find a new direction. Being ill has made me think again about teaching - it's such a demanding work environment and even doing a three-day work is tiring. I also need something that could allow me to be more flexible.

It's very scary to think about what happens next. I've done waitressing before but I can't do that now because of my health but I also don't want to. I'm 36 this year, and I want to prove myself, and I need a job that's going to be flexible or self-employed so I can call the shots a bit more.

I've got some ideas but I don't know how feasible they are or if I'd be able to afford to retrain. To have some financial support to retrain or do an apprenticeship would be fantastic, but I'm not sure if I'd be eligible.

I don't know what's out there, or where to look in terms of advice, so it would be great to talk through some ideas with someone like a careers adviser. Knowing how to find out about training or funding would be incredibly useful - not just in terms of the course but also how to handle travel and childcare and all the extras.

I do have one possible idea. I've always had a real passion for makeup and would love to be able to do it professionally. I've done a lot of face-painting too, and would like to get involved with that, especially as there are lots of festivals in Cornwall. With extra training, I could also offer other things such as tinting, and maybe learn a bit of massage.

Becoming self-employed terrifies me. I have no idea where to start with setting myself up to be self-employed, or how to start a business and market it. I'd love to be able to access advice on this.

Tasha Otto - 35