22-year-old Iranian refugee Jasmine is having a blast and loving life. She lives with a disability and receives wonderful support through Mable, which helps her connect with independent support people of similar age and interests. Today, Jasmine is studying Psychology at Macquarie University and supports her community through social work in refugee centres. It’s a role that involves occasional travel and with the support of the independent workers she’s connected with via Mable, she is able to make these journeys with ease.
After originally fleeing to Jakarta from Iran at the age of 13, Jasmine then embarked on a long journey to Australia with her mother and sister. For months, Jasmine’s family stayed in detention centres until they moved to Sydney where she was enrolled in school in Collaroy.
NDIS funding was approved when Jasmine was 17 and while initially set on a traditional path of plan management, she found that the support workers assigned to her were never a good match. They were usually much older than her and as a young lady with a vibrant personality, Jasmine knew she’d feel happier with a support team more close in age, who could understand her and have some fun and a few laughs. The age difference also meant she didn’t feel entirely comfortable asking for advice or help.
When Jasmine learned about Mable, everything changed! She was able to browse the profiles of independent support people on the Mable app, and could choose those who she thought might be a personality match as well as be able to look after her particular needs.
It wasn’t long before Jasmine was able to gain a lot more independence and could finally start to take control of her own life. She could go shopping, to the movies and explore cool places to eat, all with the assistance and companionship of her team of support she connected with via Mable.
As her career took shape, Jasmine’s support workers were able to help her pursue her goals and ambitions. They would help her get to various community volunteer projects such as girl scouts, refugee children playgroups and food drives.
When a conference came up in Brisbane and Jasmine wanted to attend, one of her support workers made the trip with her so she could be part of a series of focus groups that unpacked issues surrounding education for refugees. Jasmine felt empowered because she could take a trip without her parents and leave home for days with only her support person.
Jasmine is now using Mable to access support for her university studies and has never felt happier or more fulfilled!
Learn more about finding support and independence at Mable.
